† A CELADON JADE ‘PIG-DRAGON’ PENDANT, ZHULONG, HONGSHAN CULTURE

拍品描述

† A CELADON JADE ‘PIG-DRAGON’ PENDANT, ZHULONG, HONGSHAN CULTURE Expert authentication: Dr. Gu Fang has examined the present lot and confirms its authenticity and the dating above, noting the style of cutting, workmanship, thickness and quality of stone with decomposed areas indicating burial all suggest a dating to ca. 4700-2500 BCE. He assessed it as a piece of notably good quality. A copy of Dr. Gu's signed expertise, dated 15 July 2021, accompanies this lot. Dr. Gu Fang (born 1962) is an internationally renowned scholar of Chinese art and a leading authority on jades. He graduated from the Department of Archaeology at the prestigious Beijing University in 1986 and later studied at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), where he now serves as a Senior Fellow specializing in archaeological excavations and Chinese jade research. A former visiting scholar at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, he has authored several books on Chinese jades, including the 15-volume The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China (2007), one of the most comprehensive studies of its kind, as well as Chinese Jade: The Spiritual and Cultural Significance of Jade in China (2012). China, Neolithic period, 4700-2500 BC. Of iconic form, the coiled body and head subtly detailed with bulging eyes above flared nostrils, the neck drilled for suspension. The translucent stone is of a celadon tone with faint cloudy inclusions and russet veining. Dimensions: Height 6.5 cm This carving depicts a zhulong, or pig-dragon, a modern term that describes the animal’s upturned snout, prominent bulging eyes, and coiled body. Considered to represent the prototype of depictions of mythological dragons in later Chinese art, zhulong are some of the most iconic creations of the enigmatic Hongshan culture, and evidence the existence of a complex system of belief in supernatural forces. Literature comparison: Compare a related jade zhulong, 7.8 cm high, dated to the late Hongshan culture, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, and included in their permanent exhibition Art in Quest of Heaven and Truth. Masterpieces of Jades in the Museum Collection. Compare a related jade zhulong, 9.5 cm high, in the Chinese University of Hong Kong Art Museum, accession number 1997.0418. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 29 September 2021, lot 980 Price: USD 119,700 or approx. EUR 119,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the related subject, color of the stone, and size (6.4 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Christie’s New York, 21 March 2025, lot 1004 Price: USD 63,000 or approx. EUR 54,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject and manner of carving. Note the size (5.3 cm). 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU. 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU.

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