Page 218 - Fine Chinese Art Christies London May 2018

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A GREENISH-WHITE JADE ‘PHOENIX AND PEONY’ RUYI-SCEPTRE
QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)
The impressive sceptre is carved in relief and undercut with a mountain and wave terminal below a phoenix holding a branch peony which trails up the delicately
curved handle. The upper terminal is carved with a phoenix with its wings embracing the ruyi-shaped head and grasping a further branch peony in its beak. The
stone is of an even pale tone.
12º in. (31.1 cm.) long
£50,000-70,000 $71,000-98,000
€58,000-80,000

清乾隆 青白玉富貴鳳凰紋如意

This form of sceptres has a long historical association with Buddhism and
Daoism. One of the frst references of a sceptral object was recorded in the
Dharmagupta-vinaya in The Tripitaka, translated in A.D. 410, and listed as a
religious instrument, see Auspicious Ju-I Scepters of China, National Palace
Museum, Taipei, 1995, p. 64. One of the earliest forms of implement with
its lobed-form head attached to a long handle is a gilt-silver example dated
to the Tang dynasty and excavated from the crypt of the Famen Temple in
Shaanxi province, illustrated ibid., p. 19.
Sceptres of this type also made their appearance in Daoism, and they
are associated with the deity Lingbao Tianzun, the ‘Celestial Worthy of
Numinous Treasures’, who is depicted holding a ruyi. Lingbao Tianzun is part
of a trinity of high gods known as the Three Purities, Sangqing; together they
were known as the pure emanations of the Dao, and constitute the highest
deities of the Daoist pantheon. The other two deities forming this trinity are
known as Yuanshi Tianzun, the ‘Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning’;
and Daode Tianzun, the ‘Celestial Worthy of the Way and Its Power’. Cf. a
gilt-bronze fgure of Lingbao Tianzun holding a ruyi, sold at Christie’s Hong
Kong, 28 November 2005, lot 1608. This fgure cast carrying a ruyi is also
found in Daoist paintings, such as the hanging scroll from the White Cloud
Monastery, Baiyun Guan, Beijing, illustrated by S. Little, Daoism and the Arts
of China, The Art Institute of Chicago, 2000, p. 229, no. 66.
By the Qing dynasty, this form of sceptres continued to fnd favour in
Buddhism. It is mentioned that these were an essential ritual item in Tibetan
Lamaism as evidenced by examples inscribed with Buddhist scriptures,
such as the two included in the exhibition, Auspicious Ju- Scepters of China,
National Palace Museum, and illustrated in the Catalogue, nos. 49-50.
During the Qing period, ruyi was largely seen as an auspicious emblem. The
characters ruyi means ‘as one desires’, and it is associated with expressions
such as Jixiang Ruyi, ‘May all your good fortunes be fulflled’, as inscribed
on the handle of the present sceptre. These sceptres were known to have
been commissioned by Qing emperors either to commemorate birthdays
or bestowed as birthday gifts. Both the Yongzheng and Qianlong Emperors
were depicted in court paintings, each holding a ruyi. The frst painting is
entitled, ‘A Life Portrait of Emperor Yongzheng Watching Flowers’, illustrated
in Painting by the Court Artists of the Qing Court, The Complete Collection
of the Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1996, p. 124, no. 19;
and the other, ‘Plucking Lingzhi’, portrays the young Prince Hongli, who later
became Emperor Qianlong, ibid., p. 146, no. 25 (fg. 3). The lingzhi fungus
(glossy gandoerama) resemble the tri-lobed form of a ruyi head. The fungus
itself was traditionally reputed to possess ingredients that facilitate longevity,
and as such images of the lingzhi and ruyi were inter-changeable in many
works of art.

216 Other fees apply in addition to the hammer price – see Section D of our Conditions of Sale at the back of this Catalogue