A BOXWOOD 'LINGZHI' RUYI SCEPTRE QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

naturalistically carved from a single branch with large lingzhi head and several attendant shoots, the curved stalk with knots and burls, the smooth patina of warm ochre tone, together with an ink on paper painting by the Master of the Water, Pine and Stone Retreat, with three seals of the artist

Arts from the Scholar's Studio, Fung Ping Shan Museum, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1986, cat. no. 6.

The overall condition is very good with an attractive patina.
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Made of huangyangmu (boxwood) the present sceptre is a masterpiece of naturalism while in its form it closely replicates a lingzhi fungus. Despite the dense quality of the material, boxwood is said to be denser than water, the present sceptre is surprisingly light and delicate. The carver has skilfully used the natural curving of the material to shape his piece with one stalk supporting one main head and several smaller heads branching out from the stem and main head in different points. The result is effective, giving the piece a continuous line that is most pleasing to the eye.

The sceptre itself and the lingzhi fungus make this piece especially rich in auspicious symbolism. Ruyi sceptre is a talisman presented to bestow good fortune. The origins of the sceptre are associated with Buddhism and it is thought to have developed from back-scratchers used by monks and holy figures during the pre-Tang times. The sceptre was later adapted by Daoists who introduced the lingzhi fungus form head. Lingzhi fungus, a type of bracket fungi known as Ganoderma Lucidum for its lobed appearance, was thought to have magical and supernatural powers. It was used for medicinal purposes and was one of the important ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine. Daoists associated the fungus with immortality, hence it came to represented longevity, making it an ideal auspicious gift. Over time sceptres lost their original practical purpose and came to take any form deemed suitable to express well-wishing. It was the Yongzheng emperor of the Qing dynasty that the auspicious tradition of the ruyi, that literary means 'as you wish' was revived. Sceptres became an imperial object and were presented to the Emperor or members of the imperial family and high officials as auspicious gift on occasions such as promotions, birthdays and new year celebrations.

For related examples of boxwood sceptres imitating a lingzhi fungus see one included in the exhibition Arts of the Scholar's Studio, Fung Ping Shan Museum, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1986, cat. no. 7; another, from the Wellington Wang collection, exhibited in Palm Universe – Ruyi Sceptres from the Wellington Wang Collection, Natural History Museum, Taipei, 2004, cat. no. 115; and another example sold in these rooms, 27th April 1993, lot 319. Compare also two birch sceptres in the form of a fungus published in Masterpieces of Chinese Ju-I Scepters in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1974, pls. 22-23.