Lot 1. A pale green jade 'dragon' rectangular pendant, Western Zhou Dynasty (1050-771 BC); 11.5cm (4 1/2in) long (2). Sold for HKD 89,250 (Estimate HKD 80,000 - HKD 120,000). © Bonhams 2001-2022

The rectangular plaque finely carved on both sides with double-line incisions and bevelled cuts with two confronted dragons, intertwining with two smaller phoenixes with striated bands weaving between the bodies, box.

Note: The present ornament displays an elegant combination of two zoomorphic elements, depicting a phoenix perched on top of a coiling dragon, the contours rendered in double-line grooves, a style characteristic of the Western Zhou dynasty. A very similar example depicting the same motif is in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated by Yang Boda, Zhongguo yuqi quanji, Shijiazhuang, 2005, pl.281.

Lot 2. A green jade circular disc, yuan, Warring States Period (475-221 BC); 7.9cm (3 1/8in) diam. (2). Sold for HKD 89,250 (Estimate HKD 80,000 - HKD 100,000). © Bonhams 2001-2022

Carved on both sides with three borders of 'grain' patterns, the stone of celadon tone with light russet veining, box.

Provenance: Sidney Ashkenazie, San Francisco
An Asian private collection, acquired from the above in early 1990s.

Note: See a mid Warring States period jade pendant in the National Museum of China also decorated with three borders of 'grain' patterns, illustrated by Gu Fang, The Pictorial Handbook of Ancient Chinese Jades, Beijing, 2007, p.200.

 Lot 3. A large green jade circular disc, bi, Neolithic Period; 33.5cm (13 1/4in) diam. (2). Sold for HKD 1,326,000  (Estimate HKD 250,000 - HKD 500,000). © Bonhams 2001-2022

Of slightly irregular circular form with a small central aperture drilled from both sides to form an encircling ridge, the greenish grey stone with dark green areas and extensive veining, box.

Provenance: Vallin Galleries, New York, 1975
An Asian private collection.

Exhibited: The Museum of Oriental Ceramics Osaka, Four Treasures of the Study: Essentials of the Chinese Literati Culture, Osaka, 6th April-30th June 2019

Published and Illustrated: T.Degawa, Four Treasures of the Study: Essentials of the Chinese Literati Culture, Osaka, 2019, p.98, no.67.

Note: Among the large variety of the artefacts of the Neolithic period, the present jade disc is close to those of the Liangzhu culture in the Yangtze River Delta, which flourished from the late 4th to the end of the 3rd millennium BC, and was one of the most prominent Neolithic Chinese civilizations. Compare with a closely related Liangzhu culture jade disc in the British Museum, 35cm diam., illustrated by Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, p.133, pl.4:3; another late Liangzhu period jade disc in the National Palace Museum was made of a similar stone as the present lot, illustrated by S.P.Teng ed., Select Jades in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 2019, vol.1, p.402, pl.I-157; compare also with a Liangzhu period jade disc excavated in Zhejiang province with similar tool and polish marks, illustrated by Gu Fang in The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, Beijing, 2005, vol.8, p.58.

 Lot 4. A white jade 'dragon and phoenix' pendant, Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD); 8cm (3 1/8in) high. (2). Sold for HKD 318,000 (Estimate HKD 300,000 - HKD 500,000). © Bonhams 2001-2022

The flat plaque with a pair of stylised dragon and phoenix, their long bodies with pierced scrolling limbs surrounding an oval panel carved with a pointed end and a large central circular aperture, the stone of greenish white tone with russet veining, box.

Note: For a related Han dynasty 'winged figure and dragon' pendant, see the example in the Tianjin Museum, illustrated by Bai Wenyuan ed., Jade Wares Collected by Tianjin Museum, Beijing, 2012, p.114; the carving style of the 'dragon and phoenix' motif on the present pendant is close to that found during the late Western Han to Eastern Han period. Compare also with the late Western Han period pendants excavated in Ganquan, Yangzhou, illustrated in Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji, Beijing, 1993, pls.199-201.

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART, Hong Kong, 30 November 2022