AN EXTREMELY RARE JADE 'BOYS' BOWL QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD

the translucent albicant white stone superbly carved with a whimsical scene in high-relief of two boys and a dragon on the exterior of a bowl, the one of the boys dressed as an official clad in a loose robe, with his hair in a chignon held in a cap on top of his head and holding a ruyi scepter in his right hand, the second boy bald save for the two knots of hair on his head, standing on a perch consisting of wispy ruyi clouds, dressed in a jacket worn over pants, clutching a large round flaming pearl trying to keep it away from the curious sinuous dragon clambering up the side of the vessel peering over the rim, the stone with natural veining and a few mottled patches

Spink and Son, London, purchased 5th June 1918 for £105.
Captain A.T. Warre, no. 140.
Mr. and Mrs. George Warre.

George Ware was born in Oporto, Portugal on 19th April 1876 to a three-generation famous port-producing family.  George Warre was probably introduced to Chinese art by a very close family friend, Captain Annesley Tyndale of Hove, Sussex. Tyndale was so close to the family, that he adopted the Warre family name.  Captain Warre lent some of his pieces to the 1935-6 Royal Academy Exhibition in London.  George Warre inherited the collection and also added to the collection.  Many of his pieces were purchased from  respected London dealers such as Spinks, Bluetts, Sparks, Malletts, Partridges, and Gorer.

The overall condition is very good. The stone has two long natural veins running near the foot on one side of the vessel. The white stone also has a few areas of darker mottling.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The present bowl is a fine example of the artistic ingenuity of jade carvers of the Qianlong period. Although it is a unique design and no other comparable example appears to be recorded, the motif of two figures forming the handle of a vessel is one that appeared during the late 13^th and early 14^th centuries. The carvers of the present bowl were probably familiar with and may have taken their inspiration from a bowl, attributed to the late Jin dynasty, carved in high relief with a Daoist procession scene above a cloud formation and with two female immortals riding on clouds and wearing scarves forming the two handles. This bowl is now in the Cleveland Museum of Art and is illustrated in James C. Y. Watt, Chinese Jades from Han to Ch'ing, New York, 1980, pl. 131. Qing carvers adapted the earlier design to suit contemporary taste, and used the more popular motif of two boys. However, it is interesting to note that the feature of clouds forming a stand for the figures, as seen on the Cleveland bowl, is repeated in the Qing version where one of the boys is depicted standing on a cloud-form perch. Jade carvers working in the Palace Workshops also made a close copy of the Cleveland bowl. This bowl, in the National Palace Museum, Taibei, was included in the exhibition The Refined Taste of the Emperor. Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch'ing Court, National Palace Museum, Taibei, 1997, cat. no. 33.

Small jade vessels supported or surrounded by images of boys are known from the Ming dynasty, but it was during the Kangxi period that this decorative theme proliferated and became a more common design element in art. See a fine 17^th century jade carving of a vase standing on a rockery base with one boy holding the rim of the vessel and opposite him another boy standing on the shoulders of a third boy, from the Sammy Chow collection, illustrated in Watt, op.cit., pl. 137.   

In Chinese tradition the two boys are generally known as the Two Immortals of Harmony and Unity (Hehe erxian), making them a favoured design on wedding gifts. The boy figure carrying a ruyi in his hand also conveys the wish for a harmonious marriage and that wishes may come true (hehe ruyi). The originality and skilfulness of the carver is manifested in the close attention paid to the minutest detail in the carving, in the stylish rendering of the figures and the animal and in the clever use of the material that is skilfully carved making use of the different shades of the white stone. The 18^th century was the golden age of jade carving with abundant supply of the finest quality nephrite and jadeite. The Qianlong emperor was a great patron of art, especially jades which he fervently collected amassing one of the largest jade collections in the world. His collection included both ancient and modern pieces. He led the taste for the production of new jades and challenged his carvers to make one-off designs that were creative and often unusual. The carver of this bowl had taken inspiration from a number of sources and combined decorative motifs that had historical precedence and produced a masterpiece that was innovative and contemporary.         

The carver of the present cup was also inspired by vessels made with dragon-form handles, whereby two dragons are generally depicted with their jaws and front paws on the rim and often with a third dragon in between climbing up the side of the vessel. For examples of Qianlong period jade bowls with dragon-handles, see one in the Palace Museum, Beijing, included in the Chinese Jades Throughout the Ages – Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, op.cit., pl. 12; and a yellow jade washer with three coiled hornless dragons, two serving as handles and one depicted in a very similar pose as the dragon on this piece, in the National Palace Museum, included in the Masterpieces of Chinese Jade in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1973, pl. 34, together with another washer of oblong form with two dragons forming its handles, pl. 35. Compare another dragon-handle cup with a Qianlong reign mark and of the period, in the Palace Museum, published in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, pl. 28, together with its stand similarly decorated with two coiled dragon around the rim, pl. 29.

The present bowl may have served as the inspiration for later carvings of washers with boy-form handles. See a jade washer in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Yang Boda (ed.), Chinese Jades Throughout the Ages – Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, Hong Kong, 1997, pl. 65; and another with four legs and two boy-form handles, from Qing court collection and still in Beijing, published in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 164.