Page 122 - 2019 Nov 28 Sir Quo-Wei Lee Collection Hong Kong

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A CELADON JADE RETICULATED ‘LINGZHI’ 清十八至十九世紀 青白玉鏤雕福壽瑞芝薰爐
INCENSE BURNER
QING DYNASTY, 18TH – 19TH CENTURY 薰爐滿飾靈芝水仙精緻入微，有芝仙祝壽之美意，尤為祥瑞。鏤
雕玲瓏，邀人輕撫，細味巧工。清十八至十九世紀，風行此類透
of compressed globular form finely carved and pierced 雕薰爐，焚香器內，芳幽盈室。
with lingzhi and day lily sprays among dense foliage, below
a border of intertwining ruyi, cover centred with a ‘shou’ 此爐器形渾圓雅致，並帶平頂小蓋，類例無尋，甚為罕見。鏤雕
symbol, surrounded by five bats, the smoothly polished 蓋爐，多採蓋盌之式，如北京故宮清宮舊藏一例，圖見《故宮博
stone with some russet veins, wood stand 物院藏品大系．玉器編》，卷10：清，北京，2011年，圖版94
15 cm, 5⅞ in. ，同書並載一碧玉例，其蓋上飾高鈕，圖版96，以及一白玉花式
耳蓋爐，圖版97。參考北京故宮博物院藏碧玉爐，載錄於《故宮
HK$ 700,000-900,000 博物院藏文物珍品全集．玉器（下）》，香港，1995年，圖版40
US$ 89,500-115,000 。紐約大都會藝術博物館且有一白玉例，尺寸較小，原屬 Heber
R. Bishop 珍藏，藏品編號02.18.585a,b。
This censer is remarkable for its elaborate openwork floral
design which imbues the piece with a wonderful tactile
quality. The dense lingzhi and narcissus scroll was expertly
carved with minute details, showcasing the artisan’s
technical virtuosity. Such intricately carved and pierced
burners, were popular in the 18th and 19th century, and were
used to add fragrance to an area or room with aromatic
scents released through their openwork designs.
Incense burners of this elegant globular form, with a small
flat lid, are rare and no other closely related example appears
to have been published. Censers carved in openwork with
complex floral designs were more commonly made in the
form of covered bowls, such as one from the Qing court
collection and still in Beijing, illustrated in Compendium
of Collections in the Palace Museum. Jade, vol. 10, Qing
Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, pl. 94, together with a spinach-green
jade example with a tall knobbed cover, pl. 96, and a white
jade one with floral handles, pl. 97; another spinach-green
jade censer, also in the Palace Museum, Beijing, published in
The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum:
Jadeware III, Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 40; and a slightly smaller
white jade censer, from the collection of Heber R. Bishop, in
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, accession no.
02.18.585a,b.
The floral motif on this piece bestows good fortune and
wishes for longevity upon its owner: the narcissus (shuixian),
the flower of good fortune and prosperity, contains in its
name the character for ‘immortal’ (xian), and together with
lingzhi, the immortality fungus, and the meandering leafy
scroll, they express the wish for a long life.

120 SOTHEBY ’S CHINESE ART