Page 59 - 2019 OctoberSur Quo Wei Lee Collectim Important Chinese Art Hong Kong

Striking for its grand size and particularly translucent white
tone, this vase is a statement of the wealth and glory of the
Qianlong period. Boulders of such size were rarely used
for making vessels due to the natural irregularities in the
stone, thus were more often reserved for scenic miniature
mountainscapes. The quality of the present boulder however
has led to its formation into a vase with the craftsman skilfully
producing a piece that centres on its broad proportions and
luminous colour through the elongated octagonal form and
delicate low-relief carving.
Jade carving reached its zenith during the Qianlong reign
as a direct result of the Emperor’s personal passion for jade
objects and access to unprecedented quantities of the raw
material. Prior to the mid-Qianlong period, jade boulders only
reached Beijing in small quantities, as the jade-rich territories
of Khotan and Yarkand in present-day Xinjiang were occupied
by the Dzungars, who blocked the supply of jade to mainland
China. The Qianlong Emperor gained access to these areas
in the 24th year of his reign (1760), following the Qing army’s
defeat of the Dzungar Khanate. Beginning in the following
year, tribute jades were sent to Beijing in spring and autumn
and a formal system of biannual tribute soon developed.
The stable supply of large quantities of raw jade led to the
production of increasingly larger display objects, including
vases such as the present.
The Qianlong Emperor advocated that jade carvers should
take inspiration from the past, and many of the most
impressive jade vessels made in this period combined
elements readily associable with China’s revered Bronze
Age with portents of good fortune. This vase is no exception:
its shape represents an adaptation of the archaic bronze
fanghu shape, and its motif features geometric C-scroll and
kui dragons reminiscent of bronze wares from the Eastern
Zhou dynasty (770-256 BC). The motif was cleverly combined
with a shou (longevity) character suspended from a musical
chime, and three lingzhi on the cover that add an auspicious
message.
White jade vases of octagonal shape and of such large size
are rare. A smaller octagonal vase, similarly carved with a
shou character on the body, was sold in these rooms, 22nd
May 1979, lot 274; and one lacking the cover and carved with
two fish suspended from a bat and a stone chime, in the De
An Tang collection, was included in the exhibition A Romance
with Jade, Palace Museum, Beijing, 2004, cat. no. 57.
The motif on this piece suggests it was designed as a birthday
gift; stone chimes (qing) are homophonous with the word to
celebrate (qing), while the shou character and the lingzhi on
the cover conveys the wish for a long and happy life.