A FINE CELADON JADE TABLE SCREEN WITH IMPERIAL POEMS INSCRIBED BY FU LONGAN QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD

of rectangular form with a shallow recessed panel finely carved in low relief on each side, one side depicting bamboo sprays, the other orchids, both incised with a six-column poem picked out in gilding pertaining to these respective plants and signed Fu Longan, with two seals ren and longan, all within a beaded frame and a key-fret border around the edges, the smoothly polished celadon stone subtly mottled with pale streaks; on a matched spinach-green jade stand

Sotheby's New York, 23rd March 2004, lot 517 (the plaque only). 

There is a 2 mm nick near the bottom right corner of the orchid side and some occasional minor nibblings along the edges but otherwise the overall condition is quite good condition. The gilding that filled in the inscriptions is now rubbed off. The stone has some natural veining. The later associated stand has a 1.2 cm chip and some lighter patches, but otherwise in good condition.
"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."

This elegant screen is carved with an orchid on one side and bamboo on the other, each accompanied by a poetic inscription about the plant. Both inscriptions are followed by the line, 'Respectfully written by Fulongan' and the seals ren and longan. Fulong'an (1743-84), a member of the Fuca Clan and the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner, was a brother-in-law of the Qianlong emperor. During his twenty-six years of public life he held many high-ranking posts at court, including minister of the Imperial Household, general commandant of the Gendarmerie, chamberlain of the Imperial Bodyguard, lieutenant-general of various Banners, captain of the company of Russians and superintendent of the Court of Colonial Affairs. After the suppression of the Jinchuan campaign of 1771-76, his portrait was included amongst the group of meritorious officers commissioned by the Qianlong emperor. A portrait of Fulongan is included in the first section from one of a set of handscrolls, depicting portraits of seventeen of the fifty meritorious generals and officers, with a long inscription by the Qianlong emperor and dated 1776, and was sold in our New York rooms, 1st June 1992, lot 77.

Compare a square white jade screen carved with a prunus tree on one side and an imperial poem on the reverse, mounted in a similar green jade stand, sold in these rooms, 30th April 1991, lot 315, and again at Christie's Hong Kong, 29th May 2007, lot 1385; and a screen depicting a landscape and an imperial poem on the reverse, in a spinach-green jade stand with elaborate archaistic motifs, from the collection of Warren E. Cox, published in Charles Stanley Nott, A Catalogue of Rare Chinese Jade Carvings, Palm Beach, 1940, cat. no. 48, sold in our New York rooms, 19th March 2007, lot 45. A pair of slightly larger spinach-green jade table screens, one similarly depicting a spray of orchids and the other a pine and flowering prunus tree, mounted on cloisonné enamel stands, from the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Bernard K. Crawford, was sold in our New York rooms, 1st June 1993, lot 63.