Lot 1133. A carved bamboo ruyi scepter 18th-19th century; 17 in. (43.2 cm.) long. Estimate USD 8,000 - USD 12,000. Price realised USD 125,000. © Christie's Image Ltd 2016

The scepter is carved in the form of lingzhi, with a large cap as the head of the scepter, with several smaller caps below, and a silk tassel knotted through the other end, inscribed Japanese box.

Provenance: Kagedo Gallery, Orcas, Washington, 1993.

Literature: S. Little, Spirit Stones of China, the Ian and Susan Wilson Collection of Chinese Stones, Paintings, and Related Scholars' Objects, Chicago, 1999, no. 49.
M. Knight, 'Scholar's Objects in the Ian and Susan Wilson Collection', Orientations, May 1999, p. 51, fig. 5.

Note: Compare with another carved bamboo ruyi scepter, illustrated in Chinese Bamboo Carving, Part I, Hong Kong, 1978, p. 105, no. 35.

The inscription on the top of the fitted Japanese box may be translated as 'An ancient bamboo ruyi in the shape of a fungus', and the reverse of the cover has an inscription that reads 'Appreciated and inscribed on an autumn day in the year of guimao (1903) during the Meiji reign, Kotani (or Kaya)', with the seals Tomasa and Kotani (or Kaya).

Christie's. The Ian and Susan Wilson Collection of Scholar's Objects, New York, 17 march 2016