Lot 3682. A white jade Mughal-style incense burner and cover, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795); 12.5 cm., 5 in. Estimate 700,000 — 900,000 HKD. Lot Sold 875,000 HKD (89,237 EUR). Photo Sotheby’s

delicately carved with a compressed globular body rising from a short splayed foot in the form of floral petals, the sides flanked by a pair of handles carved in the form of leafy floral sprigs, the exterior elaborately decorated in low relief with a leafy floral scroll bearing large Indian lotus blooms and stylised florets, the countersunk base detailed with concentric rows of petal lappets, the domed cover intricately carved with foliate lappets and surmounted by a finial in the form of a floral blossom, the stone of a pale celadon-white tone with faint russet streaks.

Provenance: C.T. Loo, New York, 10th May 1950.
Harry B. Braude, Brookline, Massachusetts.
Collection of Dorothy Braude Edinburg, Boston.

Exhibited: Exhibition of Chinese Arts, C.T. Loo & Co., New York, 1941-2, no. 357.

Note: Deftly carved in the Mughal style popularised during the middle of the Qianlong reign, this incense burner is notable for its broad blooms and leaves that encircle the bowl and cover. The low-relief carving and finely polished surface highlight the delicacy of the florid motifs as well as the crisply carved floral knop and handles. Compare a similarly carved censer, but with ringed handles, included in the Special Exhibition of Hindustan Jade in the National Palace Museum, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1983, cat. no. 76; and another illustrated in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, pl. 128.

The first Mughal jades are recorded to have been introduced to the Qing empire during the Qianlong Emperor’s reign in 1756 and thereafter tribute gifts continued to arrive throughout his reign and beyond. Qianlong is known to have admired their highly translucent and lightweight vessels due to their paper-thin carving. He marvelled at their florid designs of acanthus and lotus patterns, delicately carved to give an illusion of depth but delicate to the touch. Chinese craftsmen were soon commissioned to fashion wares in a similar style, often merging Chinese and Mughal form and designs as seen in this piece, which combines the traditional Chinese censer with Mughal decorative motifs.