A Small White Jade Double-Duck Pendant

LIAO/SONG DYNASTY, 10TH-12TH CENTURY

Details

A Small White Jade Double-Duck Pendant
Liao/Song dynasty, 10th-12th century
Well carved in the round as two ducks shown side-by-side, the head of one resting on the back of the other which grasps a long stem in its beak, pierced vertically, some earth encrustation
2 1/8in. (5.4cm.) long

Provenance

Ralph M. Chait Galleries, New York, September 1967.

Lot Essay

A pair of mandarin ducks is a symbol of fidelity and happy marriage. This charming, well-carved piece is similar in motif to a greyish jade carving of two recumbent geese, or water birds, shown side-by-side with their long necks entwined, excavated in 1950 in Liaoning, dated to the Liao dynasty and illustrated in Zhongguo meishu quanji, Gongyi meishu bian, 9, Yuqi, Beijing, 1986, p. 136, pl. 143.

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