An Amber Carving of Zhang Qian on a Raft Qing Dynasty, 18th Century

carved as Zhang Qian, the great Han statesman and explorer, sitting cross-legged on a log-raft amid temptuous waves, dressed in loose robes and holding a leaf fan in his right hand, leafy tendrils issuing downward from the tip of the raft and merging with the swirling waves, the translucent amber of a reddish-orange tone

Apart from a 0.2cm chip on the back rim and other general surface wear, it is in good condition.
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Amber carvings of Zhang Qian are rare and are more commonly found in rhinoceros horn, jade and silver; for example see three rhinoceros horn carvings illustrated in Hai Bo, Zhumu yajiao qi zhenshang, Tainan, 1995, pls 157, 168 and 171; another previously in the collection of Kenyon V. Painter, sold in our New York rooms, 21st September 2006, lot 8; and a jade example sold at Christie’s New York, 22nd March 1999, lot 29. A silver model, dated 1345, is illustrated in Masterworks of Asian Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, 1998, pl. 74.

Zhang Qian was an intrepid Han Dynasty statesman and explorer; numerous legends cite his expeditions to discover the source of the Yangzi River, the origin of the Milky Way galaxy, and the means of making grapes into wine, hence its popular use for the decoration of wine-related wares.