EASTERN HAN DYNASTY (AD 25-220)

Details

A VERY RARE GREYISH-GREEN JADE FIGURAL PLAQUE
EASTERN HAN DYNASTY (AD 25-220)
The flat plaque is carved as a woman seated with her legs bent to one side and her hands clasped within the long sleeves of her full robes as she appears to rest her arms atop a railing or support. Her robes have an upswept collar and are incised with decorative markings. Her oval face is incised with simply detailed features, and she wears an elaborate headdress with trailing ribbons. The grey-green stone is semi-translucent and has a satiny polish on the carved side, while the plain reverse has a somewhat matte surface.
3 in. (7.5 cm.) high

Provenance

C.T. Loo & Co., New York.
Hon. Hugh Scott (1900-1994) Collection.
Property from the Collection of the Hon. Hugh Scott; Sotheby's New York, 7 December 1983, lot 42.
Fong Chow (1923-2012) Collection, New York.

Exhibited

Exhibition of Chinese Arts, C.T. Loo & Co., New York, 1 November 1941 - 30 April 1942, no. 257.

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Lot Essay

A similar, but somewhat cruder figure, also with simply detailed facial features, can be seen in the center of the upper openwork plaque of a grey jade table screen of Eastern Han date, from Dingxian, Hebei province, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Unearthed Jades in China - 1 - Beijing Tianjin Hebei, Beijing, 2005, p. 208. The figure, identified as the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu), appears to be clasping her hands atop a support. The lower plaque of the screen is centered by the King Father of the East (Dongwangong).

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