A green jade 'pine tree and lingzhi' vase, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period

Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Deftly carved, the present vase imitates the form of a tree-trunk while the exterior is wreathed by a large gnarled pine tree. The branches spread across the vase, hugging the vessel, with further sprigs of lingzhi issuing from below. Carved in the round with delicate precision, the composition flaunts the carver’s dexterity with the medium by displaying their ability to capture a variety of textures while also brilliantly incorporating the stone's naturalistic inclusions into the decoration. Furthermore, finished with a smooth polish, the vase, with its curling branches and continuous decoration invites movement and appreciation from the beholder - one may only fully begin to understand the vase's beauty when it is handled, turned around, and appreciated from all sides.

Comparable vessels of this type and carved to a similar high standard include a vase, decorated with pine, bamboo and prunus, previously in the Qing Court Collection, now housed in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 51; and a celadon jade example, similarly decorated with a pine tree, in the National Museum of History, Taiwan, included in the exhibition Jade: Ch'ing Dynasty Treasures from the National Museum of History, Taiwan, Taiwan, 1997, cat. no. 32. For a white jade covered vase, with a prunus branch twisting around the vessel, see one from the Qing Court Collection and still in Beijing, illustrated in op. cit., pl. 67.