Bol en jade de Khotan vert épinard et laque rouge sculptée. Chine, Dynastie Qing, marque à six caractères en cachet et époque Qianlong (1735-1796)

de forme légèrement tulipée, reposant sur un petit pied, l'extérieur couvert d'un décor de fleurs et rinceaux stylisés en laque rouge sculptée, marque de l'Empereur Qianlong gravée à la base. diam. 12,3 cm, 4 13/16 in. Estimate 8,000—12,000 EUR. Lot Sold 66,750 EUR

NOTE: The present bowl is an extremely rare example of jade bowls decorated with lacquer carving and no other similar example appears to be recorded. Plain spinach jade bowls with a Qianlong reign mark and of the period can be found in many important museums and private collections; for example see a pair of bowls deaccessioned from the Art Institute of Chicago and offered in our New York rooms, 22/23^rd September 2004, lot 227; another illustrated in The Collection of Chinese and Other Far Eastern Art Assembled by Yamanaka & Co., New York, 1943, pl. 104; and one included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Chinese Jade Throughout the Ages, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1975, cat. no. 434. Compare also an undecorated spinach jade bowl with an incised Qianlong four-character reign mark, from the Qing Court collection and still in Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo yuqi quanji,vol. 6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, pl.nos. 49-50.

For examples of bowls carved of lacquer see a rare imperial bowl and cover, with a Qianlong six-character reign mark, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Lacquer Wares of the Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong, 2006, pl. 22; and another bowl and cover carved with medallions, from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, published in Sir Harry Garner, Chinese Lacquer, London, 1979, pl. 92. A pair of lacquer bowls, with a carved Qianlong reign mark and of the period was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27^th April 1997, lot 20. 

Sotheby's. Asian Art. 18 Dec 08. Paris. photo courtesy Sotheby's. www.sothebys.com