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PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANN AND GORDON Comparable ruyi scepters include one similarly carved on
GETTY the head with peaches, but lacking the bat and high-relief
A CELADON JADE RUYI SCEPTER decoration on the shaft, sold in our London rooms,
29th November 1977, lot 269; and a white jade example,
QING DYNASTY, LATE 18TH / EARLY 19TH but the shaft wreathed with a spray of leafy bamboo and
CENTURY peach blossoms, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th April
2013, lot 3035. See also a smaller example, the arched shaft
the lobed ruyi-form head carved in low relief with a gnarled
similarly carved with an elongated prunus tree, and the head
peach tree laden with ! ve ripe fruit, weathered rockwork
below the branches, a soaring bat in high relief framing the depicting two perching ribbon-tailed birds, from the Robert
H. Blumen! eld Collection, sold at Christie’s New York, 22nd
scene from above, the front of the undulating shaft carved in
March 2012, lot 1229.
high relief with an elongated blossoming prunus tree, a small
lingzhi sprouting at its base, the reverse incised with bats and Jade sceptres were rarely made prior to the 18th century given
clouds, the pale celadon stone with scattered white and russet the scarcity of large boulders and only became available in
inclusions larger quantities after the Western campaigns of 1760, which
Length 15⅝ in., 39.7 cm secured control over the area of Uyghur region of Eastern
Turkistan, in present day Xinjiang. Jade boulders from these
PROVENANCE
areas were brought to the court, where the best specimens
Sotheby’s New York, 19th September 2001, lot 70. were selected to be carved by artisans working in the palace
workshop, in the jade workshops of Suzhou or in those
Finely ! nished to a smooth and highly tactile polish, this piece
belonging to the Huai and Changlu administrations.
is notable for the attractive combination of sophisticated
high and low relief-carved design which has been carefully
$ 60,000-80,000
chosen for its auspicious connotations. Ruyi scepters, by
de! nition, are propitious objects favored for their shape, which ૶ɤɞ˰ߏ͋ ɤɘ˰ߏڋ ڡ͗ᎉ၅ྪᕐΌྡνจ
represents the expression ‘as you wish’ and for their similarity
to lingzhi, the immortality fungus. The decoration of the Ը๕
peaches on the head and the blossoming prunus branches on ॲߒᘽబˢ2001ϋ9˜19˚dᇜ໮70
the handle of the present scepter together symbolize longevity
and perseverance.

196 SOTHEBY’S