QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD (1735-1796)
LENGTH: 7.3CM
The crouching amphibian is worked with bumpy skin and large bulging eyes,
its muscular legs terminating in webbed feet, perched atop a pair of succulent
pomegranates borne on leafy branches. The stone is of an even white tone
suffused with russet patches.
A closely related example was included in the exhibition Chinese Jade Animals
中國肖生玉雕, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1996, Catalogue No.
178. The depiction of a toad and pomegranates often carry an auspicious
rebus for “May you have an abundance of wealth and descendants” ( 丁財兩旺
dingcai liangwang ).
PROVENANCE
Joseph Shapiro (1938-2005) and Bella Shapiro (1941-2011), England
| 清乾隆 白玉雕臥蟾 |
