A Jade zoomorphic dragon-form burnishing or scraping implement, Iran or Central Asia, Timurid or Safavid, 15th century or later

the dragon with arched back standing on four feet on a long curling serpentine tail, with pronounced teeth swallowing a figure whose bald head and moustachioed face protrudes from the gaping maw, the underside with criss-crossed striations

ex-Collection Henri D'Allemagne (published Paris 1948)

Illustrated in M. Guillaume Janneau, La Maison d'un Vieux Collectionneur [Henri D'Allemagne], Paris, 1948, vol 2, Pl. CIII.

patination and surface rubbing consistent with age and extensive use, some minor losses to extremities, as viewed
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This curious implement, most likely used as a burnishing tool or a foot-scraper, is vigorously carved from pale Khotanese jade. The Chinese influence is manifest in both material and iconography, and the form suggests a date in the Timurid or Safavid period, though the dragon itself had entered the decorative repertory of Iranian art at even earlier date, in the Yuan (1279-1368) or Ilkhanid period (1256-1335): see, for instance, Komaroff and Carboni 2002, pp.26-27, 65, 95, 97 and 110.