A MAGNIFICENT PAIR OF CARVED WHITE JADE 'CHICKEN' BOWLS
A MAGNIFICENT PAIR OF CARVED WHITE JADE 'CHICKEN' BOWLS
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Millicent Rogers - An Icon of Elegance The granddaughter of American oil tycoon Henry Huttleston Rogers, Millicent Rogers (1902-1953) is often referred to as the 'Standard Oil Heiress'. She was seen as a trendsetter from an early age, distinguished by her striking beauty and adventurous and sophisticated style. She remains a timeless icon of elegance and glamour. While she is most often remembered for her extravagant and fashionable lifestyle and illustrious list of husbands and companions (which included Clark Gable, Ian Fleming and Roald Dahl), she was also a passionate traveller and philanthropist, and a discerning collector of art. Christie's is honoured to be offering a selection of fine jade carvings and porcelain formerly in the collection of Millicent Rogers. These pieces are part of a larger collection of Chinese Works of Art which includes gifts from Millicent Rogers' dear friend Madame Chiang Kai-Shek. The collection has remained in Millicent's family until present. PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE AMERICAN COLLECTION (LOTS 2126-2129)
A MAGNIFICENT PAIR OF CARVED WHITE JADE 'CHICKEN' BOWLS

QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

Details
A MAGNIFICENT PAIR OF CARVED WHITE JADE 'CHICKEN' BOWLS
QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY
Each bowl is supported on five shallow bosses. The straight angular sides are finely carved with a continuous scene of two roosters and a hen in a garden setting with plantain and wutong trees and rocks issuing flowers. The stone is of an even white tone with some patches of russet mottling, and an opaque whitish vein running through both bowls.
6 5/8 in. (16.8 cm.) diam., wood stands (2)
Provenance
Millicent Rogers (1902-1953) and thence by descent to the present owner

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Nick Wilson

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Lot Essay

Jade bowls carved with the chicken motif are extremely rare. This pattern seems to have been inspired by the popular doucai 'chicken' cups in porcelain, which first gained prominence during the Chenghua period in the Ming dynasty, and continued to be highly sought after and copied during the Qing period. The Percival David Foundation Collection has two chicken cups from the Chenghua and Kangxi periods, both enamelled with cockerels in a garden scene similar to the scenes on the current bowls, and illustrated by Rosemary Scott, Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art. A Guide to the Collection, London, 1989, no. 79. The same collection has a chicken cup decorated with cockerels and a boy and inscribed with a poem by the Qianlong Emperor, illustrated by Rosemary Scott, Illustrated Catalogue of Qing Enamelled Ware in the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, London, 1991, no. A827.

A related jade bowl carved with a similar theme of a boy and cockerels in a garden scene was sold in Los Angeles, 11 June 1975, lot 567, then at Sotheby's New York, 25 February 1983, lot 285 and Christie's Hong Kong, 27 April 1997, lot 9. It was later illustrated in The Splendour of Jade. The Songzhutang Collection of Jade, Hong Kong, 2011, no. 99.

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