87
PREMIUM LOT | AN EXTREMELY AND FINELY CARVED 'LAO SHOUXING' WHITE JADE MOUNTAIN BOULDER WITH RUSSET INCLUSION, CHINA, QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)
in very good condition
Height 17,5 cm
Property from the Janssen Collection, Sotheby's London, November 12th, 2003, lot 207
Height 17,5 cm
Property from the Janssen Collection, Sotheby's London, November 12th, 2003, lot 207
ESTIMATE € 120.000 - 160.000
The white celadon stone with russet inclusions skillfully used to depict a mountainous landscape, carved and undercut in a variety of levels of relief, as a monumental mountain following the natural contour of the hills that follow one another, the stone carved with pagodas and garden terraces amongst pine trees, with two Immortals and an attendant watching over the mountains up in the sky amongst clouds the Daoist God of Longevity Lao Shouxing, flying on the back of a crane descending to meet the two Immortals on a garden fenced terrace below, one of which is Cao Guojiu holding a ruyi sceptre and an attendant with a basket of peach fruits in his hands, all amongst pine and peach trees issuing from rockworks, the reverse carved in a russet landscape with two isolated pagodas with pine trees and clouds.
It is very rare to find jade with such good carving quality. For a similar finer carving jade example and with the same measurement see Christie's Hong Kong, The Personal Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman Part II, 27 November 2007, lot 1510 and Christie's New York, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Part II, 25 March 2011, lot 1508.
The present boulder is notable for its large size with the craftsman cleverly used to render a miniature idealized landscape incorporating into the design the natural colours of the stone, with the white of the jade use for the high mountains and the sky and the russet-brown for the 'forest' and for the land. The carving which is in varied and undercut relief is a technical challenge for the hardness of the material, the very good quality carving of this boulder underlines the technical accomplishments of the craftsmen. The visual vocabulary on which these miniature landscapes were based incorporated many features of the natural world. Moreover the many figures, creatures and plants depicted pertained to a system of design sustained by a complex concept of the universe and its auspicious phenomena, see Jessica Rawson, the Auspicious Universe' in Jessica Rawson and Evelyn S. Rawski (eds.) The Three Emperors 1662-1795, London, 2005, pp. 358-361.
This jade most probably is a tribute to one of the most important Daoist God of Longevity Lao Shouxing, commonly represented holding a giant peach of immortality in his right hand and a walking stick with attached gourd (holding special life-giving elixirs) in his left, often accompanied by other symbols of immortality, such asor spotted deer, with pines and cypress or other evergreen in background, sometime accompanied by a young boy symbolizing youth, who may hold a peach for longevity or a basket of peaches; all this images evoke up wishes for the viewer's or for the beneficiary's long life or longevity. After the pacification of Xinjiang in 1758 large resources of jade suddenly became available. It is under the reign of the Qianlong Emperor that the carving of jade boulders into three-dimensional miniature landscapes first appeared as noted by Jessica Rawson in The Three Emperors 1662-1795, London, 2005, pp. 463.
It is very rare to find jade with such good carving quality. For a similar finer carving jade example and with the same measurement see Christie's Hong Kong, The Personal Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman Part II, 27 November 2007, lot 1510 and Christie's New York, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Part II, 25 March 2011, lot 1508.
The present boulder is notable for its large size with the craftsman cleverly used to render a miniature idealized landscape incorporating into the design the natural colours of the stone, with the white of the jade use for the high mountains and the sky and the russet-brown for the 'forest' and for the land. The carving which is in varied and undercut relief is a technical challenge for the hardness of the material, the very good quality carving of this boulder underlines the technical accomplishments of the craftsmen. The visual vocabulary on which these miniature landscapes were based incorporated many features of the natural world. Moreover the many figures, creatures and plants depicted pertained to a system of design sustained by a complex concept of the universe and its auspicious phenomena, see Jessica Rawson, the Auspicious Universe' in Jessica Rawson and Evelyn S. Rawski (eds.) The Three Emperors 1662-1795, London, 2005, pp. 358-361.
This jade most probably is a tribute to one of the most important Daoist God of Longevity Lao Shouxing, commonly represented holding a giant peach of immortality in his right hand and a walking stick with attached gourd (holding special life-giving elixirs) in his left, often accompanied by other symbols of immortality, such asor spotted deer, with pines and cypress or other evergreen in background, sometime accompanied by a young boy symbolizing youth, who may hold a peach for longevity or a basket of peaches; all this images evoke up wishes for the viewer's or for the beneficiary's long life or longevity. After the pacification of Xinjiang in 1758 large resources of jade suddenly became available. It is under the reign of the Qianlong Emperor that the carving of jade boulders into three-dimensional miniature landscapes first appeared as noted by Jessica Rawson in The Three Emperors 1662-1795, London, 2005, pp. 463.
LOTS
52
SCATOLA IN PORCELLANA DECORATA NEGLI SMALTI DELLA FAMIGLIA VERDE, CINA, DINASTIA QING,
SCATOLA IN PORCELLANA DECORATA NEGLI SMALTI DELLA FAMIGLIA VERDE, CINA, DINASTIA QING,
ESTIMATE € 700 - 1.000
45
GRUPPO DI DODICI TABACCHIERE IN VARI MATERIALI, CINA, DINASTIA QING, XIX-XX SECOLO
GRUPPO DI DODICI TABACCHIERE IN VARI MATERIALI, CINA, DINASTIA QING, XIX-XX SECOLO
ESTIMATE € 1.200 - 1.500
44
GRUPPO DI OTTO TABACCHIERE IN VETRO, AGATA E AMBRA, CINA, QING DYNASTY, XIX-XX SECOLO
GRUPPO DI OTTO TABACCHIERE IN VETRO, AGATA E AMBRA, CINA, QING DYNASTY, XIX-XX SECOLO
ESTIMATE € 800 - 1.000
42
PANNELLO IN LEGNO DECORATO A RILIEVO IN OSSO, CINA, DINASTIA QING, XIX-XX SECOLO
PANNELLO IN LEGNO DECORATO A RILIEVO IN OSSO, CINA, DINASTIA QING, XIX-XX SECOLO
ESTIMATE € 200 - 500