Olivia Xu
Associate Specialist
THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 紳士藏品
Lot 140
A LARGE GREY AND BLACK JADE 'PHOENIX AND PEONY' GROUP 17th/18th century
16 May 2024, 10:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£4,000 - £6,000
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Chen Xie
Specialist
Edward Luper
Specialist, Chinese Works of Art
A LARGE GREY AND BLACK JADE 'PHOENIX AND PEONY' GROUP
17th/18th century
Finely carved as a phoenix grasping a leafy peony spray in its beak, the wings gracefully folded over the body, the tail curled inward and legs tucked beneath the body, the stone of mushroom-grey tone with black patches and striations. 13cm (5 1/8in) long
Finely carved as a phoenix grasping a leafy peony spray in its beak, the wings gracefully folded over the body, the tail curled inward and legs tucked beneath the body, the stone of mushroom-grey tone with black patches and striations. 13cm (5 1/8in) long
Footnotes
十七/十八世紀 墨白玉鳳銜牡丹把件
The phoenix has long been regarded as the king of birds, symbolising auspiciousness; the peony has been considered as the king of flowers, symbolising wealth and prosperity. The combination of the two (phoenix and peony), seen in the present lot, carries the auspicious meaning of wealth and prosperity always being present, and glory enduring forever. Compare with two related jade carvings of birds, dated Song and Song to Ming dynasty, illustrated by J.C.Y.Watt, Chinese Jades from the Han to Ch'ing, New York, 1980, p.96, nos.80-81.
See a related pale celadon jade 'phoenix and peony' group, 18th century, which was sold at Christie's London, 5 November 2013, lot 43.
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