Lot 133. A reticulated celadon jade 'dragon' plaque, Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-221 BC); 4.8 by 5 cm. Lot sold: 378,000 HKD (Estimate: 150,000 - 200,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2022

the slightly curved plaque intricately reticulated with a complex and symmetrical design of a pair of stylised S-shaped animals, each with a sinuous body terminated in a bifurcated tail, the body detailed with interlinked C-scrolls with subtle beveling, all outlined within meticulously striated borders, the reverse undecorated and pierced with four small diagonal perforations.

Provenance: Christie's New York, 2nd December 1985, lot 50.

Literature: Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, pl. 17:14.. 

Exhibited: British Museum, London, on loan, 1995.

Sotheby's. HOTUNG  The Personal Collection of the late Sir Joseph Hotung: Part 1, Hong Kong, 9 October 2022