Page 98 - Reginald and Lena Palmer Collection EXHIBITION, Bonhams London Oct 25 to November 2 2021

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A GREYISH-GREEN JADE CARVING OF A DRINKING HORSE
17th century
11.5cm (4 1/2in) long.
十七世紀 青灰玉馬

Provenance:
Christie’s London, 12 July 1945, lot 125
John Sparks Ltd., London
R.H.R Palmer (1898-1970), acquired from the above in July 1945,
Collection no.156

Published, Illustrated and Exhibited:
The Arts Council of Great Britain and The Oriental Ceramic Society,
The Arts of the Ming Dynasty, London, 1957, no.358
The Arts Council of Great Britain and The Oriental Ceramic Society,
Chinese Jade Throughout the Ages, London, 1975, no.364

來源：
倫敦佳士得，1945年7月12日，拍品編號125
倫敦古董商John Sparks Ltd.
R.H.R Palmer（1898-1970）於1945年7月購自上者，典藏編號156

展覽著錄：
英國藝術委員會與倫敦東方陶瓷學會，《The Arts of the Ming
Dynasty》，倫敦，1957年，編號358
英國藝術委員會與倫敦東方陶瓷學會，《Chinese Jade Throughout
the Ages》，倫敦，1975年，編號364

This harnessed long-tailed horse, its head lowered to sip from the
shallow water eddying around its large hooves, was probably used as
a scroll-weight for a scholar, encapsulating the theme of recognising
talent for government, with the horse itself symbolising scholar-officials.

In the early Yuan period, when the ruling Mongols curtailed the
employment of Chinese scholar-officials, the theme of the groom and
horse - associated with the legendary figure of Bole, whose ability
to judge horses had become a metaphor for the recruitment of able
government officials - became a symbolic plea for the proper use of
scholarly talent. See Zhao Mengfu’s (1254-1322) painting of horses
illustrated by M.Hearn, How to Read Chinese Paintings, New York,
2008, pp.10–13, no.2.

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