A POTTERY TORTOISE-FORM INK STONE AND COVER EASTERN HAN DYNASTY |

the base cleverly modeled in reptile form, animal standing four square with the head raised, gazing upward with rounded protuberant eyes, the domed shell forming the removable cover, incised with tessellated hexagons and outlined with a similar pattern at the rim, the oblong lower body recessed to function as the inkstone (2)

Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 1st October 1948.
Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d.1978).

The shell with a restored and consolidated U-form break across the lower section and small scattered chips to the rim. The figural section with a restored break to one back leg and small scattered nicks chips to the rim. The ink stone and cover with expected wear to the surface overall and minor losses along edges and extremities.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Traditionally regarded as a symbol of strength, wisdom, endurance and longevity, the tortoise is associated with auspicious connotations in China since Neolithic times. With the upper shell representing the domed heavens and the lower shell representing the earth, the creature has been regarded as a symbol of the cosmos. During the Shang dynasty, the lower shell of a tortoise was used in divination rites. Also associated with water, it is apt that the turtle's form has been appropriated for the mixing of ink and water by a scholar.  See a slightly larger version in the collection of the Miho Museum, Kyoto, with a similarly incised upper shell and face, illustrated in Catalogue of the Miho Museum (The South Wing), Kyoto, 1997, pl. 119. A buff pottery example inscribed with trigrams is also in the collection of the Minneapolis Institute of Art, obj. no. 32.54.4A,B. Other smaller example also inscribed with trigrams are illustrated in Cary Y. Liu, Michael Nylan and Anthony Barbieri-Low, Recarving China's Past: Art Archaeology and Architecture of the "Wu Family Shrines", New Haven, 2005, pl. 54, and Robert D. Jacobsen, Celestial Horses & Long Sleeve Dancers: The David W. Dewey Collection of Ancient Chinese Tomb Sculpture, Hong Kong, 2013, pl. 65.