Lot 4034. A fine kesi civil official's rank badge of a mandarin duck, buzi, Qing dynasty, 18th century; 9 7/8 x 10 3/8 in. (25.2 x 26.5 cm.). Estimate 80,000 - HKD 120,000. Price realised HKD 81,250. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.  

Made for a civil official of the seventh rank. The bird shown facing the sun as it alights on a rock protruding from a grassy ground with narcissus, lingzhi, chrysanthemum and bamboo, beside a river and flanked by further rockwork with an additional pine tree, the sky filled with ruyi-shaped clouds, all in shades of blue, coral, green, white and brown with painted details, within a gold border, mounted.

Provenance: Judith Rutherford.

Note: The seventh rank included the post of District Magistrate, the most important official with whom the vast majority of ordinary Chinese people would not have any dealings.

A very similar badge from the collection of Judith Rutherford is illustrated by B. Jackson and D. Hughes, Ph.D., Ladder to the Clouds, Berkeley, 1999, p. 240.