Sale 2388
Hong Kong
|
27 November 2007
Price realised
HKD 367,500
Estimate
A FINELY CARVED BURNT WHITE AND RUSSET JADE 'LION AND CUB' GROUP MING DYNASTY, 16TH/17TH CENTURY The large recumbent beast carved in the round holding the ribbon of a brocade ball between its clenched teeth, his massive head finely detailed with bulbous eyes below prominent eyebrows and curled fur swept, partially covering its prominent dorsal spine, the young cub by its side similarly portrayed grasping the other end of the ribbon, their long striated tails interwoven, the stone of an opaque creamy beige-white tone with russet splashes 5¼ in. (13.4 cm.) long, stand
Provenance
Eskenazi, circa 1985
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Literature
Robert Kleiner, Chinese Jades from the Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, Hong Kong, 1996, no. 58
Exhibited
Christie's New York, 13-26 March 2001 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, August 2003-December 2004
Similar carvings, more commonly found in white or celadon jade appear to have been popular towards the end of the Ming dynasty but tend to be less refined than the present example. The detail of the carving on this example is of remarkable quality while retaining a sense of movement. Compare a pale celadon jade example from the Gerald Godfrey collection sold at Chrisitie's Hong Kong, 20 October 1995, lot 877.
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