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PROPERTY FROM AN ASIAN PRIVATE COLLECTION and illustrated in Gems from the Relics of the Museum of
A RARE JADE ARCHAISTIC ‘DRAGON’ RHYTON the Western Han Tomb of the Nanyue King, Museum of the
QING DYNASTY, YONGZHENG / QIANLONG Western Han Tomb of the Nanyue King, Guangzhou, 1999,
p. 49. Beginning in the Song dynasty, rhytons were carved
PERIOD with a mythical animal head at the base, perhaps as a later
Height 4⅞ in., 12.5 cm intervention to provide a visual explanation for the source
of the bifurcated tail; see a later Ming dynasty example
PROVENANCE of an ox head carved at the base, in the National Palace
German Private Collection, acquired in China between 1894 Museum, Taipei, included in the exhibition Through the Prism
and 1922. of the Past: Antiquarian Trends in Chinese Art of the 16th to
Sotheby’s Paris, 10th June 2015, lot 92. 18th Century, Taipei, 2003, cat. no. III-26.
Masterfully carved, the present piece playfully depicts a lively For closely related jade rhytons of the same period, see a
chilong in pursuit of a flaming pearl, clambering up sides russet jade example, carved to the exterior with elaborate
of a vessel that terminates at the base with a protruding archaistic decorative design and inscribed to the interior
dragon’s head. The vessel is imbued with dynamic vitality yet with a Qianlong imperial poem, sold at Christie’s Hong
also references the rich stylistic elements of China’s past, a Kong, 30th November 2011, lot 2963; and another white
sublime example of the ingenious creations of the craftsmen jade rhyton, similarly carved with chilong clambering to the
working during this period. sides, attributed to the 17th to 18th century, previously in
the Florence and Herbert Irving Collection, sold at Christie’s
The basic form of the vessel derives from jade rhytons New York, 20th March 2019, lot 804.
produced during the Han and Tang dynasties. The form was
introduced to China during the Han dynasty when trade with ⊖ $ 300,000-500,000
Western and Central Asia was active and Western luxuries
were popular at court. See a Western Han prototype, a
celadon jade rhyton carved with a kui dragon below its 清雍正 / 乾隆 玉龍首形角盃
mouth, the base with a bifurcated and striated tail but
lacking the dragon head of the present piece, excavated from 來源
the tomb of the Nanyue King Zhao Mo located in Guangzhou, 德國私人收藏，於1894至1922年之間得於中國
巴黎蘇富比2015年6月10日，編號92

434 SOTHEBY’S COMPLETE CATALOGUING AVAILABLE AT SOTHEBYS.COM/N11275 435