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Lot Essay
The present vase is very rare. No other example of this exact 'phoenix' double-vase shape appears to be published. Conjoined forms, incorporating sections of two or more shapes to create a single vessel, were a visual innovation widely propagated among a number of monochrome ceramic shapes of Yongzheng period (1723-1735) and continued into the subsequent Qianlong reign. The motif of the phoenix is highly regarded in Chinese mythology. As a king of birds, legend has it that this creature appears only at the time of peace and prosperity.
The present white jade vase is particularly stunning since it is very finely carved in low relief in Mughal style which became admired at court in the mid 18th century. Mughal jades entered the court as tribute to the Qianlong emperor during this time, and there are numerous imperial poems in praise of the foreign artworks, extolling the exotic qualities of the jades, especially their lightness and the subtlety of their low relief designs which can be seen through their thin walls. With this Mughal influence and under the Emperor's orders, a large number of Chinese jades were carved in the style of the Mughal works or copying their desirable qualities, as is the case with the present lot with its delicate and elegant low-relief carving.
The present white jade vase is particularly stunning since it is very finely carved in low relief in Mughal style which became admired at court in the mid 18th century. Mughal jades entered the court as tribute to the Qianlong emperor during this time, and there are numerous imperial poems in praise of the foreign artworks, extolling the exotic qualities of the jades, especially their lightness and the subtlety of their low relief designs which can be seen through their thin walls. With this Mughal influence and under the Emperor's orders, a large number of Chinese jades were carved in the style of the Mughal works or copying their desirable qualities, as is the case with the present lot with its delicate and elegant low-relief carving.