A carved rhinoceros horn 'lotus leaf' libation cup Qing dynasty, 18th / 19th Century

carved in the form of an open lotus leaf delicately incised with thin veining, emerging from a thick stem entwined with attendant stalks and small lotus buds to form the reticulated tip, with tall slender leaves, lotus blossoms and further lotus leaves wrapped around the exterior, some of the tips curling over the edge of the rim naturalistically folded over in some places, the horn of golden amber tone, stand (2)

Collection of Kenyon V. Painter, Cleveland, Ohio & Arusha, Tanzania, circa 1910s-40s.
By descent to the present owners.

There is a 7/8 x 1/2 inch chip to the outer rim, a chip to the tip of a petal on the bottom of the tip, as well as a few expected nicks and bruises overall from age and general use. The surface has several vertical age cracks. The projecting stem is intact and sturdy.
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A similar rhinoceros horn libation cup is illustrated in Thomas Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, no. 96. Compare also one similarly carved in the form of a curled lotus leaf issuing from a long stem, sold at Christie's New York, 4th June 1992, lot 119, and another sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 15th May 2007, lot 44.