Page 68 - Bonhams Hong King May 30 2017 THE SONGZHUTANG COLLECTION OF EARLY JADES

Reverse (enlarged)

38 The meticulous carving of the incised cross-hatched pattern, the
A PALE GREEN JADE ‘DRAGON AND PHOENIX’ PENDANT rope-twist pattern, the double-lined single and double hooks and the
Warring States Period double-lined ‘S’ pattern employed on the present lot, as well as the
Of inverted trapezoidal form, deftly carved in openwork with a stylised elaborate reticulated structure, are characteristic of jade carvings from
dragon at the centre flanked by a symmetrical pair of phoenix, the the Warring States period, demonstrating the masterful craftsmanship
dragon and phoenix in scrolling profile with pointed tips, the body achieved in this period.
and limbs detailed with finely incised lines, the softly polished stone
of greenish-white tone with minor dark brown inclusions. Compare a finely carved greenish-white jade reticulated ‘dragon’
6cm (2 1/2in) long pendant, Warring States period, excavated from tomb no.52 at the
burial site of the capital city of State Lu in Qufu, Shandong Province;
HK$150,000 - 200,000 and for a pendant of similar structure and with the dragons decorated
US$19,000 - 26,000 in openwork with similar pointed body details indicating curling
feathers, see The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China,
Provenance: vol.4, Beijing, 2010, p.207. See another slightly larger example of
Acquired in Hong Kong in 2009 similar form but more elaborate design, middle Warring States period,
The Songzhutang collection, no.40 in the Aurora Foundation collection, illustrated by Teng Shu P’ing,
1999 Collectors’ Exhibition of Archaic Chinese Jades, National Palace
Published and Illustrated: Museum, Taipei, 1999, p.255, pl.172.
T.Fok, The Splendour of Jade: The Songzhutang Collection of Jade,
Hong Kong, 2011, pl.40 See also three reticulated pendants of comparable design from an
ensemble of jade ornaments, early to middle Warring States period,
in the Lantien Shanfang collection, illustrated by Teng Shu P’ing, One
Hundred Jades from the Lantien Shanfang Collection, Taipei, 1995,
pp.200-205, pl.62, nos.4, 10 and 11; compare also the carving style
of the incised rope-twist pattern, the cross-hatched pattern and the
double-lined hooks executed on the three pendants.

66 | BONHAMS