AN IMPORTANT AND RARE DATED ZITAN-MOUNTED ARCHAIC JADE BIHAN DYNASTY, THE INSCRIPTION AND THE STAND DATED TO THE JIASHEN YEAR (IN ACCORDANCE WITH 1764) |

the finely worked jade bi disc decorated with an overall array of small raised spirals on both sides, the outer edge inscribed in the jiashen year (corresponding to 1764) with a long inscription composed by the Qianlong Emperor and inscribed to his order, finished with a seal taiyu ('supreme jade'), the stone of a pale honey-brown colour with dark brown inclusions at the rim and with small patches of encrustation; mounted within an exquisitely carved zitan table screen, the front with a central carved wood boss with the trigram qian surrounded by dragons (long) to form the well-known rebus on the Emperor's name, locking into the back panel to secure the jade, the dragons repeated on the reverse around the circular panel carved and picked out in gold in lishu with an almost identical inscription, differing only in the date being zhongchun as opposed to chunri, and followed by two different seals bide ('compare yourself to jade') and langrun ('bright and lustrous'), the frame and stand carved overall in archaistic style and supported at the sides by four dragons carved in the round

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 4th November 1997, lot 1201.

The table screen and stand are preserved in very good condition, with just typical age cracks, and an old split at the upper section of the frame, without significant loss to detail. Other minor flakes, typical chips to the edge of the jade bi, and a 0.5cm loss to the center of the poem at the fragile area where the wood boss is fitted.
"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."

With a personal interest and deep veneration for antiquities, the Qianlong Emperor was known to have been a great collector and connoisseur. His extensive collection was unsurpassed by any other emperor in Chinese history. The Qianlong Emperor had a special reverence in jade, in particular those from the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties. In fact, the surviving collection of archaic jades in the Qing court collection was mostly from the personal collection of the Qianlong Emperor. The Emperor was known to have been authenticating and classifying his own collection; and at times composed poems for special pieces of his endearment. Taking great precautions in keeping his cherished collection safe, he would commission table screens crafted from high-quality timber where his treasured archaic jades would be mounted on, and display them across various palaces and halls, thus creating a unique interior setting in the court. The Qianlong Emperor’s metrical compositions were prolific, amongst his 40,000 poems, over 800 are related to jade. He believed that while paper could last a thousand years, jade — the crystallised essence of heaven and earth — was indestructible. Consequently, he made a number of commissions reproducing calligraphic masterpieces on jade, or engraving his complimentary verses directly on archaic jades.

The poem, entitled Jade ‘grain’ disc of the Han dynasty, is recorded in the Qing Gaozong yuzhi shiwen quanji [Anthology of imperial Qianlong poems and text], Yuzhi shi san ji [Imperial poetry, vol. 3], juan 37, p. 24 (fig. 1) and can be translated as follows:

Jade pattern blurred by mud, its sheen is veiled,
An aspect like a wise old man, weather-beaten but not broken.
The beauty before my eyes more than a thousand years old,  
Proportions calculated, circles well rounded, in admirable harmony. 
Cut and polished, and yet not over-worked, 
Its original spirit is well preserved, 
Its fine grain well protected. What a treasure!

According to the Zaobanchu Archives of the Qing Imperial Household Department, on 19th day of the 3rd month of the 28th year of the Qianlong reign (corresponding to 1763), the Emperor was presented with a Han-dynasty jade bi by the eunuch Ruyi. The Qianlong Emperor commissioned a table screen to be made for the piece, and requested for a drawing to be submitted prior to the making of the screen. On the 28th day of the 3rd month, the table screen for which the drawing had been approved will be made, and the eunuch Ruyi presented the Han-dynasty jade bi for the combination of the works. On the 14th day of the 5th month, the Han-dynasty jade bi mounted in a zitan table screen was presented to the Emperor by eunuch Ruyi.

The present table screen, with the sides of the archaic jade bi and the reverse of the zitan screen both engraved with coherent poems, is a notable work of art combining history and art. It demonstrates the Qianlong Emperor’s artistic soul in advocating antiquity as a source of inspiration for modern designs, and the depth of his personal involvement in his collection.

Several similar zitan screens holding ancient jade bi discs were made for the Qianlong Emperor and inscribed with his poems, most of them today preserved in the National Palace Museum, Taipei. Four related examples with grain-patterned bi, are illustrated in Ch'in Hsiao-yi, Illustrated Catalogue of Ancient Jade Artifacts in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1982, pls 63, 68, 188 and 189. Only two related screens, both with plain bi discs, appear to be known outside the National Palace Museum, both sold in our rooms, one with an inscription dated in accordance with 1774, sold in London, 29th March 1977, lot 180; the other with its inscription apparently undated, sold in these rooms, 15th November 1989, lot 503.