QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)

Details

A FINELY CARVED WHITE JADE RECTANGULAR POMANDER
QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)
Each half is carved with a female immortal standing beneath a pine tree against a background of openwork diaper pattern. One immortal holds a scroll while the attendant behind her holds a fan, and the other immortal holds a peach beside a phoenix with long tail feathers. The two halves fit together with a hinge at the bottom and a pierced, curved tab at the top. The translucent stone is of pale greenish-white color.
2 5/8 in. (6.1 cm.) high, silk tassel

Provenance

John Sparks, London, September 1969.
Private collection, England.

Sale room notice

Please note that the provenance for this lot should read:
John Sparks, London, September 1969.
Private collection, England.

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Olivia Hamilton

asianartny@christies.com +1 212 636 2180

Lot Essay

Openwork small containers of this type were popular accessories at the Qing Court, and would have been used for diffusing perfume or fragrance from flowers and herbs. Examples can be found in various luxury materials, such the gold filigree examples illustrated in Collected by The Palace Museum: Jewelry and Accessories of the Royal Consorts of the Ch’ing Dynasty, Hong Kong, 1992, pp. 135-138, nos. 311-21. The delicate openwork of these containers would have been easier to craft from gold than to carve from jade, perhaps making jade examples more precious. Two green jade pouches are illustrated ibid., p. 134, nos. 309 and 310.

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