Page 13 - Sotheby's Part I Collection of Sir Joeseph Hotung Collection CHINESE ART , Oct. 9, 2022

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ਠ ኜ AN ARCHAIC BONE CARVING, อ ڡ A CELADON JADE PIG-DRAGON,
˾ ৶ SHANG DYNASTY, ANYANG PERIOD, 14TH-13TH CENTURY BC ͩ ͣ NEOLITHIC PERIOD, HONGSHAN CULTURE
τ ᎉ the thick shaft of animal bone incised finely with a pair of large confronted kui dragons shown in profile, coming across the narrow edge ኜ ͗ of iconic form, modelled as a stylised coiled dragon with a thick and softly rounded body, depicted with a short upturned snout with

ජ ᓿ to form a zoomorphic mask, and with two smaller kui dragons forming another zoomorphic mask on the opposite edge, all reserved ࣛ ʃ furrows between large circular eyes, the neck drilled for suspension
ࣛ ኜ on a dense leiwen (thunder) ground, in a broad frieze below triangular blade motifs, the surface smoothly polished and exceptionally ˾ ሥ 3.5 cm
well preserved
ಂ 9.4 cm ߎ Ꮂ PROVENANCE Ը๕j
ʮ The dating of this lot is consistent with the results of the radiocarbon analysis, certificate no. R18219/NZA3052. ʆ Artistic Sources Arts Co., Hong Kong, 30th November 1991. ᖵ๕ტd࠰ಥd1991ϋ11˜30˚
ʩ Ϥשۜϋ˾ၾ׳࢛׌၁ʱؓഐ؈ɓߧdᗇࣣᇜ໮R18219/NZA3052f ˖ HK$ 200,000-300,000
US$ 25,500-38,300
ۃ PROVENANCE Ը๕j ʷ
ɤ Collection of Max Loehr (1903-88). ᖯ⭮€1903-88ϋϗᔛ
J.J. Lally & Co., New York, 11th May 1993. ᔝଣઠdॲߒd1993ϋ5˜11˚ This dainty carving depicts a zhulong, or pig-dragon, a modern term similar facial features, attributed to the late Hongshan period, is
̬ A larger bone carving similarly adorned with ferocious masks and that describes the animal’s prominent bulging eyes and coiled body. included in Art in Quest of Heaven and Truth Chinese Jades through
Considered to represent the prototype of depictions of mythological
the Ages, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 2011, pl. 4-5-4, where
Ї stylised cicadas, formerly in the Gibson and Stoclet collections, is dragons in later Chinese art, zhulong are some of the most interesting Teng Shu-p'ing states that similar animal motifs were adopted
said to be discovered together with five other examples in Anyang,
ɤ Henan; see Georges A. Salles and Daisy Lion-Goldschmidt, creations of the enigmatic Hongshan culture (c. 4500-3000 BC) in by the late Songze culture and continued in the early Liangzhu
civilisation (p. 54). A slightly larger example with subtle ears and an
the north and evidence of the existence of a complex system of
ɧ Collection Adolphe Stoclet, Brussels, 1956, pp. 328-31. belief in supernatural forces. articulated spine was excavated from Inner Mongolia and published
˰ HK$ 100,000-150,000 Lacking the large ears and wrinkly snout typical of Hongshan culture in The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, vol. 2: Inner
Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Beijing, 2005, pl. 23, together
ߏ US$ 12,800-19,200 pig-dragon, the present piece is highly unusual. By comparison, the with an example with concentric circular eyes but lacking obvious
ears, pl. 25.
eyes, depicted with concentric rings, appear more rounded, and
৶ the slit opening is proportionally wider. An example of this size and
ᎉ
ᓿ

24 I FOR COMPLETE CATALOGUING ༉းྡ፽ʫ࢙ሗᓭᚎ SOTHEBYS.COM/HK1293 THE PERSONAL COLLECTION OF THE LATE SIR JOSEPH HOTUNG I 25