A RARE WHITE JADE RECTANGULAR CENSER AND COVER QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

modelled after the archaistic vessel fangding, of rectangular form with bulging corners, raised on four legs decorated with pendant plantain leaves, carved in low relief around the exterior with a frieze of stylised intertwining kui dragons, above a horizontal band of formal design interspaced with shou characters above the legs, flanked by a pair of openwork handles, each in the form of a mythical animal's head with long curved tongue suspending a loose ring, the fitted cover of conforming shape with a low-relief chilong roundel at each corner, centred by a reticulated coiled dragon knop, the milky white stone with natural inclusions

Sotheby's New York, 25th February 1983, lot 231.
Collection of Cyrus and Mildred Churchill, Concordia House, Illinois.
Sotheby's New York, 19th March 2007, lot 15.

The overall condition is quite good. There are some nibblings to the edges of both the censer and the cover, including a 0.4 cm shallow chip to the mouth of the censer. The stone is with some natural russet inclusions. The actual colour of the stone is slightly paler and more tinged to grey than the catalogue illustration.
"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."

Vessels of this unusual form derive from archaic bronze vessels of the Warring States (475-221BC) and Han (206BC-AD220) periods and appear to have been in great demand during the second half of the Qing dynasty. Compare related examples with squat legs and rounded feet, such as one from the Avery Brundage collection and now in the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, illustrated in Rene-Yvon Lefebvre d'Argence, Chinese Jades in the Avery Brundage Collection, San Francisco, 1977, pl. LV, pictured together with a spinach green example; a spinach green jade censer in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, published in Ming Wilson, Chinese Jades, London, 2004, pl. 52; and another in the Palace Museum, Beijing, included in Chinese Jade Throughout the Ages. Connoisseurship of Chinese Jades, vol. 11, Hong Kong, 1996, pl. 94.