Page 72 - Fine Chinese Works of Art Bonhams Hong Kong May 2018

This exceptional lustrous white jade gong vessel can be numbered The exceptional quality of the white jade stone used to produce
amongst the very finest jade carvings made during the celebrated this vessel would have become more available for the Jade Palace
Qianlong reign for the Imperial Court. It is very rare to find a jade Workshop following the Qianlong emperor’s conquest of the Dzungar
carving of such impressive size and magnificent white jade stone Khanate between 1755 and 1759, where much of the jade was
displaying outstanding purity. These rare elements, combined with sourced. The jade carver whilst demonstrating his skills in the form
the archaistic style favoured by the Qianlong emperor, and masterful and relief carving, ensured that the magnificent quality of the stone
ingenuity of craftsmanship and design, all speak volumes of the would be exhibited through the areas left unadorned, smoothly
Imperial origin of this lot, exemplifying the apex of jade craftsmanship polished to a lustrous sheen.
during the Qianlong reign.
The present lot appears to be amongst the largest in size and of
The vessel is inspired in its gong form and design by archaic bronze superior jade quality, compared to other jade in a selected number of
wine vessels, first made during the second phase of the Anyang vessels of related form. Compare with a similar white jade ‘phoenix’
period; rapidly replacing the animal-shaped zun vessels. This form was gong vessel, but smaller in size (16.6cm high), in the Palace Museum,
revived during the Song dynasty. The Qianlong emperor advocated Beijing, illustrated by Yang Boda, Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji, Hebei, 2005,
taking inspiration from antiquity in form and design, proposing to p.542, no.37; see also two other related gong vessels of pale green
‘restore ancient ways’, suggesting that jade carvers turn to antiquity jade and of white jade, from the Qing Court Collection (19.5cm and
for models, which would enable them to imbue their designs with 14.1cm high), illustrated in Compendium of Collections in the Palace
simplicity and honesty, and so achieve refinement and elegance. The Museum: Jade 10 Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, pls.82 and 84. See
‘ancient ways’ referred to the intrinsic values of sincerity, simplicity, also a related white and russet jade gong of smaller size (11.5cm
and happy exuberance; see Chang Li-tuan, The Refined Taste of high), from the Yuanmingyuan, in the Musée National du Château de
the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Fontainebleau, illustrated in Tsao Huei-Chung, Jade: From Emperors
Ch’ing Court, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1997, p.49. to Art Deco, Paris, 2016, no.194; and another related example,
illustrated by R.Y.Lefebvre d’Argence, Chinese Jades in the Avery
In this instance, the master carver was able to capture a sense of Brundage Collection, San Francisco, 1977, pl.LVII.
contemporaneity by merging the naturalistic style of the phoenix and
ancient form of the ritual vessel together as a reinterpretation resulting Imperial archaistic vessels of similar form were also produced in other
in an Imperial masterpiece. materials; compare a related cloisonné enamel rhyton, Qianlong,
illustrated in Colorful, Elegant and Exquisite: A Special Exhibition of
Imperial Enamel Ware from Mr Robert Chang’s Collection, Suzhou,
2007, pp.34-35.

A related Imperial white jade archaistic vessel and cover, gong,
Qianlong, was sold at Christie’s London, 13 May 2008, lot 65.

68 | BONHAMS