明十五世紀 犀角雕「蒼龍教子」圖盃

carved with a long-horned three-clawed chilong rising from swirling waves enveloping a conch, the dragon's sinuous body with a bifurcated tail wrapped around the base of the cup, its head peeking over the rim confronting with a smaller chilong clambering from the other side, The base carved with a design of a raging torrent rendered through narrow carved bands swirling out concentrically,  the horn of a deep chestnut brown tone

J.J. Lally & Co.，紐約

《金木水火土：香港文物收藏精品展》，香港藝術博物館，香港，2003-2005年，編號118

霍滿棠，《中國犀角雕刻珍賞》，香港，1999年，圖版17

The overall condition of the libation cup is quite good, with the exception of some minor losses especially to the whiskers of the larger chilong as well as the extremities. The patina is relatively dry.
"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 precision and delicate carving on this libation cup, which is lighter and of a more pronounced shape than late Ming and Qing dynasty examples, point to it being of early Ming production. The richness of the deep brown patina and the iconography itself confirm this dating.

For a closely related early Ming dynasty rhinoceros horn libation cup from the Qing court collection and still in Beijing, see The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Bamboo, Wood, Ivory and Rhinoceros Horn Carvings, Hong Kong, 2002, p. 125, pl. 114. The delicacy of the carving, thinness of the rim and texture of the dark brown patina on the Palace Museum example closely parallels the current libation cup. The chilong depicted clambering over the rim is similarly carved, but picked out in openwork as a handle. 

The iconography and carving style of the libation cup also closely matches that on early Ming jades. For a small jade disc attributed to the early Ming dynasty in the Palace Museum, Beijing, boldly worked with a chilong, similarly depicted with writhing body and near identical snarling expression, see Zhongguo meishu fenlei quanji. Zhongguo yuqi quanji [Illustrated classification of Chinese art. Collection of Chinese jade]. 6. Qing, Hebei, 1991, p. 138, pl. 205. Compare also a Ming dynasty jade libation cup in the Palace Museum, Beijing. worked with 'double chilong' handles, illustrated, ibid., p. 160, pl. 233, which shows the popularity of this form. 

For similar iconography on porcelain, compare the treatment of the raging torrent on a Yongle period blue and white jue stand from the Frederick M. Mayer and Meiyintang collections, sold in these rooms, 5th October 2011, lot 37. As in the carved decoration on the current libation cup, the crashing waves are depicted swirling up the mountain, similarly depicted to those waves swirling up the exterior walls of the cup. The overall conception of dragons writhing in a raging torrent that rises up the vessel is also captured in a gold and silver jue stand from the tomb of Zhu Zhuanji,  Prince Zhuang of Liang (1411-1441), illustrated by Liang Zhu, ed., Liang Zhuang wang mu / Mausoleum of Prince Liang Zhuangwang, Beijing, 2007, vol. 1, figs. 41 and 42.