A white jade boulder with a lohan in a grotto Qing Dynasty, 18th Century

the translucent white stone flecked with white calcified patches well-hewn into a rocky grotto bisected by a small waterfall, inside a lohan meditates on his woven mat with shoes placed neatly to the side, this books and incense burner displayed on a small outcrop in the cave, outside a pine and paulownia tree grow

Chait Galleries, New York (according to label).

The overall condition is very good. The stone has a few natural veins and the stone near the base is slightly tinged yellow.
"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 piece is impressive for its powerfully rendered rockwork, which has been skilfully carved as though split in two while the jagged lines complement the rounded forms to enhance the stillness of the meditating figure. Carvings of this type but with the central figure facing right are more commonly known; for example see a related piece with similarly carved rockwork in the De An Tang collection, included in the exhibition A Romance with Jade from the De An Tang Collection, Palace Museum, Beijing, 2004, cat. no. 34; another in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 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, Taipei, 1997, cat. no. 43; and a third with a Qianlong reign mark and of the period, sold in these rooms, 27^th April 2003, lot 33.

For a carving containing a lohan facing left, see a boulder containing a figure and small elephant illustrated in Roger Keverne, Jade, London, 1991, p. 161, fig. 83; and another figure in the British Museum, London, published in Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1994, p. 410, fig. 1. See another example with a lohan facing left in this sale, lot 2718.

A group of sixteen or eighteen individuals are traditionally singled out from the much larger company of lohans, and were conventionally shown in paintings and woodblock prints as inhabiting a landscape of unusual rock formations, as seen in the present piece. The close relationship of the jade carvings to the painting tradition is signalled by the hard, blocky lines of the rocks, whose forms resemble strong brushwork and rendering in woodblock prints.