Lot 159. A jade dragon pendant, Shang dynasty (c. 1500-1050 BC). Length 10.3 cm, 4 in. Lot sold: 60,480 GBP (Estimate: 15,000 - 20,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

the arc-shaped pendant carved from a thin slice of ochre-brown jade, incised on both sides to represent a dragon, with traces of cinnabar, the slightly splayed 'tail' and inner edge sharpened like a blade, the open mouth with a single hole for attachment.

Provenance: Collection of Mr and Mrs Richard C. Bull.
Sotheby's New York, 6th December 1983, lot 138.

Literature: Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, pl. 12:12.

Exhibited: Anthology of Chinese Art, Min Chiu Society Silver Jubilee Exhibition, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1985, cat. no. 19.  

Sotheby's. HOTUNG | 何東 The Personal Collection of the late Sir Joseph Hotung | Part II: Day. London, 8 December 2022