Page 183 - Bonhams Asian Art London November 5, 2020

177 Y
A RARE WHITE JADE CARVING OF A PHOENIX
18th century
The mythical bird finely carved recumbent with its talons neatly tucked
underneath the body, the plumage and wings finely incised and long
curling tail feathers expertly pierced, clasping a long leafy spray of
auspicious lingzhi fungus in its short beak, the head raised, the stone
of pale-white tone with some milk-white inclusions, wood stand.
6.5cm (2 1/2in) long. (2).
£4,000 - 6,000
CNY35,000 - 53,000

十八世紀 白玉雕鳳凰擺件

Provenance: acquired from Roger Keverne Ltd, London on
10 May 2002
A distinguished English private collection

來源：現藏家於2002年5月10日購自倫敦古董商Roger Keverne Ltd.
英國顯赫私人收藏
178 177
A SUPERB VERY PALE GREEN JADE ‘DOUBLE GOOSE’
PAPERWEIGHT
18th century
Crisply carved as two flying geese with long slender necks, spreading
their feathered wings detailed with plumage, mutually holding a spray
of waterweed in their beaks, the stone of an even pale-green tone.
11.5cm (4 1/2in) wide.
£3,000 - 5,000
CNY26,000 - 44,000

十八世紀 青白玉雕雙鵝紙鎮

Provenance: a distinguished English private collection

來源：英國顯赫私人收藏
179 Y
A PALE GREEN AND RUSSET ‘BOYS WASHING THE
ELEPHANT’ GROUP
Qianlong
Crisply carved as a wrinkled elephant standing four-square in a whirling
pool of water with finely-incised eddy currents, its long trunk playing
with the water, two boys with brushes sweeping the elephant, the
stone with russet patches, wood stand. 7.5cm (3in) long. (2).
178
£5,000 - 8,000
CNY44,000 - 70,000

清乾隆 青白玉帶皮童子掃象擺件

Provenance: S.Marchant and Sons, London (label)
A distinguished English private collection

來源：倫敦古董商S.Marchant and Sons（標簽）
英國顯赫私人收藏

The subject matter of boys tending to an elephant forms many multiple
layers of meaning and auspiciousness. The phrase ‘ride an elephant’
(qi xiang 騎象), has a similar pronunciation as ji xiang (吉祥), meaning
good fortune. Furthermore, boys cleaning or ‘washing the elephant’
(sao xiang 掃象), forms a rebus for ‘sweeping away the phenomena of
the outside world’, which are thought to be mere illusions. The pun is
based on the fact that the pronunciation of ‘elephant’ and ‘image’ is
the same in Chinese (xiang 象). Compare with a related carving of an
elephant being groomed by two boys, illustrated in the Compendium
of Collections in the Palace Museum: Jade, Beijing, 2011, no.136.

See also a related white jade carving of an elephant and boys, 18th
century, which was sold at Sotheby’s London, 10 May 2017, lot 4.
179

For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue. FINE CHINESE ART | 181