A RARE CLOISONNÉ ENAMEL AND GILT-BRONZE 'DRAGON' RUYI SCEPTRE 17TH CENTURY

cast with a curved shaft leading up to a ruyi-shaped head, the shaft brightly decorated on a turquoise ground with a stylised shou character in the centre, between a pair of stylised dragons soaring sinuously above crashing waves and rockwork, the head similarly decorated with two ruyi blooms flanked by a pair of coiling stylised dragons within a yellow ruyi-shaped border, the reverse of the shaft and head with multi-coloured lotus blooms borne on undulating leafy scrolls, all enclosed within gilt-bordered edges, the arrow-shaped end pierced with an aperture

The ruyi is in good overall condition. The point where the ruyi head meets the shaft has been strengthened.
"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."

Ruyi (‘as you wish’) sceptres were presented to the emperor or other members of the imperial family as auspicious gifts to bring good fortune. Their origins are associated with Buddhism and they are thought to have developed from back-scratchers used by monks and holy figures during pre-Tang times. With the temporary decline of Buddhism, sceptres were later adapted by Daoists who introduced the heart-shaped head rendered as a lingzhi or longevity fungus. Sceptres gradually lost their original practical purpose, and came to take any form deemed suitable to express well-wishing. During the Qing dynasty, it was the Yongzheng Emperor who revived the auspicious tradition of the ruyi.

A ruyi sceptre decorated with a similar motif on the shaft, the ruyi head enamelled with a pair of dragons encircling a shou character, was included in the exhibition Chinesisches Cloisonné. Die Sammlung Pierre Uldry, Museum Rietberg, Zürich, 1985, cat. no. 165; one is illustrated in Chinese Cloisonné. The Clague Collection, Phoenix, 1980, pl. 30; another was sold in our London rooms, 12th May 1989, lot 651; and a further example, decorated on the shaft with multiple shou characters, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is published in Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum, Enamels, vol. 4, Cloisonné in the Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, pl. 125.