Page 32 - Marchant Ninety Jades For 90 Years

十 12. Brushwasher, xi, of shallow circular form, carved in the centre in high relief with branches of flowering begonia, qiuhaitang, and large

二 leaves and buds, the exterior with branches of flowering chrysanthemum, juhua, the base with central relief button and recessed to

form the foot rim, the stone white.
花 5 ¼ inches, 13.4 cm diameter.
卉 Qianlong, 1736-1795.
紋

洗 • From a private English collection.

白 • Purchased from John Sparks, 10th August 1967.
玉 • A similar dish, carved with lingzhi and wannianqing (Rhodea Japonica), is illustrated by Michael Knight, He Li & Teresa Tse

Bartholomew in Later Chinese Jades, Ming Dynasty to the Early Twentieth Century, from the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco,

乾 no. 351, p. 304, inventory number B60J430; a large dish of this type, also carved in the centre with lingzhi and wannianqing,
隆 was included by Marchant in their 80th anniversary exhibition of Chinese Jades from Han to Qing, 2005, no. 116, pp. 140/1, and

is also illustrated by Chen Hao in the Zhejiang Provincial Museum exhibition of Jade Blossom, Imperial Xiuneisi Jade Objects and

1967 Ancient Jade Gems Collected by the Xu’s of Cixi, Zhejiang, 2010, pp. 132/3, where the author notes, ‘This is a typical piece of art

made in Suzhou’.
年 • Begonia, qiuhaitang, with its four characteristic petals is one of the floral shapes favoured by Chinese artisans since the Song

月 dynasty. It is found in pottery, porcelain, lacquer and jade work. A jade rectangular brushwasher in the Asian Art Museum
of San Francisco, similarly carved in the centre with begonia, is illustrated by Terese Tse Bartholomew in Hidden Meanings in

日 Chinese Art, no. 8.3, p. 232, where the author notes, ‘Chrysanthemum, juhua, is an important flower of China and is a symbol
購 of autumn and the flower of the ninth moon. It is also a symbol of longevity because of its health-giving properties.’

于

古

董

商

John Spark

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