Page 24 - Marchant Ninety Jades For 90 Years

八 8. Brushwasher, xi, of circular dish form, pan, carved in the centre with two high relief open-mouthed fish, mirrored with their lower fins

almost touching, the back fin and tail detailed with ridges and fluting, the large open eyes with circular lids, all beneath a flat rim, the
雙 underside with a recessed base forming the foot, the stone white.
魚 4 15/16 inches, 12.6 cm diameter.
洗 Qianlong, 1736-1795.

白 • From a highly important German collection, purchased in China, circa 1900.
玉 • A similarly carved larger dish bearing a Qianlong mark and inscription dated to 1786 is illustrated by Michael Knight, He Li &

乾 Teresa Tse Bartholomew in Later Chinese Jades, Ming Dynasty to the Early Twentieth Century, from the Asian Art Museum of San
隆 Francisco, no. 181, p. 180, inventory number B60J82, where the authors note, ‘The twin-fish plate was a particular favourite
of the Qianlong emperor’s, perhaps both because it is an archaic form and because the design symbolises wealth in the complex

system of rebuses in Chinese decorative arts of the Qing dynasty. The ultimate prototype for this form might be found in the

bronze pan of the Shang dynasty. However, a two-fish version was more common in the Han dynasty, and examples from the

Han served as models for ceramic pieces in the Northern and Southern Song dynasties, the Yuan and the Ming’; another similar

example is illustrated by Yang Boda in A Romance with Jade, from the De An Tang Collection, no. 16, p. 39; a further example,

carved on the exterior with music stones, fish and xi characters, was included by Marchant in their 85th anniversary exhibition

of Chinese Jades from Tang to Qing, 2010, no. 128, pp. 180/1; yet another, from the collection of Mr M. H. T. Hodgson was

included by Basil Gray, Jessica Rawson and John Ayers in the exhibition of Chinese Jade Throughout the Ages, an exhibition

organized by The Art Council of Great Britain and The Oriental Ceramic Society, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1975, no. 420,

p. 128, pl. 7.

• A deep dish with identical twin fish is illustrated by Pierre-F. Schneeberger in The Baur Collection, Geneva, Chinese Jades And

Other Hard Stones, no. B 10.

• The twin fish, yu, is the Buddhist emblem symbolising freedom from restraint. Double fish, shuangyu, form the rebus, ‘May

you be blessed with connubial bliss, fecundity and abundance of good luck’. Because fish are reputed to swim in pairs, they

symbolise the joys of union. The great reproductive power of fish stands for numerous offspring and twin fish is a popular

symbol for weddings because good things come in pairs.

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