QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD
LENGTH: 8.5CM
The recumbent bird with wings tucked on either side, its beak
clenching a gnarled sprig of lingzhi . The stone is of an intense
blue colour with characteristic creamy-beige inclusions and gold
flecks. The original hongmu stand is carved in openwork with pine
and lingzhi amongst rocks.
Compare a similar lapis lazuli carving of a pair of mandarin ducks
dated to the 18th century in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London,
illustrated in Ming Wilson, Chinese Jades , London, 2004, p. 102,
no. 100.
| 清乾隆 青金石雕銜芝瑞鳥 |
