A CELADON AND RUSSET JADE BOY AND BUFFALO GROUP LATE 17TH CENTURY

finely carved in the round as a recumbent buffalo with raised head and animated expression, detailed with powerful legs and a bushy tail, the boy in loose-fitted clothes climbing on the beast, clutching a spray of millet, the lustrous stone of a warm celadon tone highlighted with russet inclusions

John Sparks, London.
Collection of The Honourable Mrs. Ronnie Greville OBE.
Collection of Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth, Consort of King George VI.
'Artists Aid China' Sale Exhibition, Wallace Collection, Hertford House, London, 21st May 1943 (donated by the Queen).
Sotheby's London, 14th November 2001, lot 44.

The overall condition is very good, except for a tiny chip to the tip of the right index finger of the boy. There are only some occasional minute nicks, including a 0.2 cm one to the back of the boy.
"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."

Skilfully modelled in the round, the sense of naturalism and movement captured in this charming carving through the twisting poses of the figures is notable. A related carving of larger dimensions was included in the exhibition A Romance with Jade from the De An Tang Collection, Palace Museum, Beijing, 2004, cat. no. 79; a slightly smaller example was sold in these rooms, 8^th October 2010, lot 2800; and another of this size was sold at Christie's London, 4^th November 2008, lot 7. Compare also a carving depicting a boy on a standing buffalo illustrated in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, pl. 265.

The buffalo and herd-boy motif was a popular subject from the Song period (960-1279) and was symbolic of childhood play and bucolic freedom. The poets Su Shi and Huang Tingjian (1045-1105) and their painter friend Li Gonglin (c. 1041-1106) are among those first associated with the genre, and from the 11^th century buffalo herd-boys exemplified for many scholars and officials the simple life far away from ceremony, ritual and social obligation. See a hanging scroll painted by Li Tang (c. 1050-after 1130), Herd Boy with Water Buffalo and Calf (11^th or 12^th century), in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, published in Ann Elizabeth Barrott Wicks (ed.), Children in Chinese Art, Honolulu, 2002, p. 54, fig. 2.6. Two mottled jade carvings attributed to the Song and Yuan periods, from the Victor Shaw collection, were included in the exhibition Chinese Jades from Han to Ch'ing, Asia House Gallery, New York, 1980, cat. nos 46 and 47, together with a white jade carving of two boys and a buffalo, from the Gerald Godfrey collection, cat. no. 48.