Rhyton en jade céladon pâle sculpté de style archaïsant, Longwei Gong Chine, dynastie Qing, époque Qianlong (1736-1795), inscrit d'un poème impérial daté 1779

à décor de volutes archaïsantes sur fond de rinceaux à l'évocation d'une queue de dragon, les bords soulignés d'une frise de grecques surmontant une bande de motifs géométriques délimitée par une fine cordelette, le pourtour intérieur gravé d'un poème impérial et daté 1779

Good overall condition. A hairline crack 9cm to one side, possibly original to the piece, a tiny bruise to the front edge, a few other natural linear inclusions in the stone. The actual colour is darker and more celadon green than the illustration would suggest in the catalogue.
"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 inscription on this vessel includes Qianlong yihai zhongxia yuti, which can be translated as 'inscribed by His majesty Qianlong in the second month of the summer of yihai year' (corresponding to 1779). The poetic inscription praises Hetian jade, the stone from which this vessel has most probably been carved. Found in Hetian, Xinjiang province in northwest China, Hetian jade was treasured as an 'imperial gem' and frequently inspired lines of praise from the Qianlong emperor.

Two Hetian jade rhytons inscribed with a poem by the Qianlong emperor and dated to 1787 are known, one in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, published in James C. Lin, 'Khotan Jades from the Collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge', Journal of Inner Asian Art and Archaeology, London, 2008, pp 117-122, and the other, included in the Special Exhibition of the Georges Estoppey Collection of Jade, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., 1942, sold in these rooms, 9^th June 2011, lot 23. A related example commissioned by the Qianlong emperor and inscribed with one of his poems, dated to mid-spring of 1785, is illustrated in Rene-Yvon Lefebvre d'Argence, Chinese Jades in the Avery Brundage Collection, San Francisco, 1977, pl. LIX. See also a spinach-green jade version in the Palace Museum, Beijing, included in Chinese Jades Throughout the Ages. Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, vol. 11, Hong Kong, 1996, pl. 38.

For a rhyton cup attributed to the 13^th and 14^th centuries, which possibly became the prototype copied by Ming and Qing carvers, see one in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, illustrated in Ming Wilson, Chinese Jades, London, 2004, pl. 35. Wilson notes that there exists a group of similar cups made in the subsequent periods, all of which can be traced back to the Victoria and Albert Museum cup, ibid., p. 39.