清十八世紀 青白玉「夔鳳捧壽」圖蓋瓶

of flattened baluster form rising from a splayed foot to broad shoulders and a narrow oval neck, carved in high relief on each side with a pair of archaistic phoenix flanking a shou medallion, their long curling tail feathers rising up to a mythical beast head projecting a central loop, the shoulders set with two handles carved in openwork in the form of qilins, each with a ruyi-shaped tail and incurved horns, resting their snout on the mouthrim and their forepaws on a raised band girding the waisted neck, the mouthrim and footring accented with key-fret, the stepped cover surmounted by a gadrooned finial, the smoothly polished stone of even pale celadon colour streaked with a russet vein carefully incorporated in the design on one side

There are a few icy inclusions and typical veins well incorporated in the design, a few tiny nicks to the rim edges and minor nibbles to the tips of the animal handle tails, but overall the vase is in very good condition. The actual colour is a little bit deeper and warmer compared to the catalogue illustration.
"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 vessel is an adaptation of an archaic bronze model. So varied are the modifications of the original that the analogy is almost ambiguous. The ‘C’-shaped tails of the archaistic phoenix that culminate in a protruding mythical head follows the composition and style of an archaic bronze hu which was cast with a twin-bodied dragon; see one illustrated in the exhibition catalogue The Refined Taste of the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch’ing Court, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1997, p. 98, and two Qing jade imitations of the original vessel, cat. no. 21, and the other published in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, pl. 182.