PROPERTY FROM THE LIZZADRO COLLECTIONThe Lizzadro Collection is a rare assemblage of fine jade carvings amassed by one man. Joseph F. Lizzadro (1898–1972) was Italian by birth, but in the early 1900s he emigrated with his father to the United States. His father was a shoe maker and set up a cobbler’s shop in the city of Chicago, Illinois. He was soon able to bring the rest of the family to the United States. As a young man Joseph worked in his father’s shop, but he also went to school, studied hard, and became an American citizen. In 1916, Joseph took a job as a laborer with Meade Electric Company, which operated a retail appliance store and converted gas lighting to electricity. This was to remain the focus of his working life. Through dedication and hard work, he was successively promoted and eventually became a company stockholder. Such were his abilities, that on the death of the company’s founder in 1929 he was appointed Chairman of the Board, a post he held until his death in 1972. His perspicacity and enterprise brought the company considerable prosperity, as was demonstrated in the early 1940s, when, having noted the inadequate condition of traffic lights in north-eastern Illinois, Joseph secured a contract for his company to maintain them for the state. This contract was followed by others for street lighting, and pumping stations, as well as a range of contracts for steel and oil companies.In 1932, Joseph married Mary Sandretto (1910-2001), and the couple had six children, necessitating a move to a larger house in Elmhurst, Illinois, in 1939. Mary had been born and brought up in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Upper Michigan, where Joseph and his family enjoyed regular visits. It was here that Joseph began collecting stones - especially Lake Superior agate (often characterised by alternate red and white banding), thomsonite (a zeolite mineral often with attractive concentric rings of contrasting colours), and datolite (a granular mineral, which can be almost transparent). These he learned to cut and polish to make jewelry for his family and friends. This was the start of his introduction to the art of the lapidary. Joseph’s new hobby brought him relaxation, and it introduced him to a subject of immense diversity. He not only cut stones himself, he also began to collect the work of other lapidaries from widely ranging geographical regions and temporal periods. Joseph acquired his first Chinese jade carving, a small hanging vase, in the late 1930s with the intent of cutting it into pieces for jewelry. In the United States at the time it was nearly impossible to obtain rough jade, but jade carvings were fairly plentiful and could be acquired for relatively modest sums. They were therefore often purchased by amateur lapidaries and re-cut. In the case of the Chinese hanging vase, however, Joseph discovered that his respect and admiration for the skill of the original carver prevented him from re-cutting this piece of jade. Thus began his lifelong passion and fascination with Chinese jade and hardstone carvings.While Joseph’s first love was jade, he appreciated the Chinese artisan’s skills in carving other materials such as amber, agate, aquamarine and tourmaline, and he was able to acquire many outstanding carvings in these various materials. He continued to collect until his death. As his collection grew, so did Joseph’s desire to create a venue to showcase his many treasures and, as he put it: to ‘share with others our enjoyment of the eternal beauty in gem stones and our appreciation of the art with which man has complemented the work of nature’. His dream was realized on November 4, 1962, when the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art opened its doors to the public in Elmhurst’s Wilder Park. Appropriately the museum building is designed to resemble a jewel box in the park setting. The collection continues to grow under the discerning eye of his son, John Lizzadro, Sr., who shares his father’s passion for Chinese carving. The museum now houses several hundred pieces of jade and other hardstones, including pieces of international importance. It also displays exhibits explaining the evolution of these stones, especially jade, while also celebrating the art of the lapidary - ‘What a true lapidary artist needs is an eye for beauty, originality, and excellent craftsmanship. Equipment helps of course, but advances in lapidary art have come about largely through the talent and dedication of people throughout the years who chose stones as the medium of their art’.

A RARE GREY AND RUSSET JADE SHELL-SHAPED PLAQUE

MING DYNASTY (1368-1644)

Details

A RARE GREY AND RUSSET JADE SHELL-SHAPED PLAQUE
MING DYNASTY (1368-1644)
The convex top is well carved as two tigers, their coats picked out in the brown and opaque russet skin of the grey stone, shown walking in a landscape above a lower section carved in openwork with the 'Five Poisons': a lizard, a centipede, a toad, a snake and a scorpion amidst the scrolling stems of frond-like leaves.
3 ¼ in. (8.5 cm.) wide

Provenance

Lizzadro Collection, Elmhurst, Illinois, acquired prior to 1960.

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Olivia Hamilton

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Lot Essay

The unusual decoration on this carving may represent the motifs for the Duanwu festival, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, considered the most poisonous day of the year. Many of the themes associated with the festival relate to the desire to combat evil forces and poisonous creatures, in this case represented by a lizard, a centipede, a toad, a snake, and a scorpion. The two lions may refer to the Daoist, Zhang Daoling, who is usually shown riding a yellow tiger while brandishing a sword to combat the 'Five Poisons'. Here the creatures are shown amidst leaves that may be that of sweet flag, one of the Five Auspicious Subjects (wurui), its sword-like leaves representing a hand holding a sword to ward against evil vapors and poisonous insects during the Duanwu festival. According to Terese Tse Bartholomew in Later Chinese Jade: Ming Dynasty to Early Twentieth Century, San Francisco, 2007, p. 248, during the Ming dynasty, badges decorated with the 'Five Poisons' were worn by officials during the festival.

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