A superb imperial green jade memorial seal of the Yongle Empress Wen Ming dynasty, Hongxi period | 明洪熙 永樂仁孝文皇后青玉龍鈕諡寶 印文：……天齊聖文皇后寶

Property from an Important Hong Kong Collection

A superb imperial green jade memorial seal of the Yongle Empress Wen

Ming dynasty, Hongxi period

重要香港收藏

明洪熙 永樂仁孝文皇后青玉龍鈕諡寶 印文：……天齊聖文皇后寶

with one half preserved intact, the fragmentary seal powerfully worked with a ferocious horned dragon squatting on a square pedestal, its long face rendered with a flattened snout flanked by a pair of rounded eyes below elongated brows flowing backwards beside his horns towards a finely incised mane and spine, each limb skilfully portrayed with toned musculature, the base of the seal originally worked with four columns of four characters with seven characters tian qi sheng Wen Huanghou bao presently remaining, the mottled greyish-green stone textured with deeper charcoal coloured inclusions, an area to the back and side of the seal lightly calcified to a pinkish-white colour in a fire

10 by 7.2 by h. 10.2 cm