A Finely Carved Rhinoceros Horn 'Landscape' Libation Cup, 17th-18th Century. Photo Sotheby's

decorated with a scholars and their attendants within a luxuriant mountain landscape crossed by a stream and punctuated with a variety of trees, three undercut and entwined to form the handle, with boughs of pine spilling into the interior, the horn of a rich amber color darkening towards the base, wood stand Length 5 3/8 in., 13.5 cm. ESTIMATION 150,000-200,000 USD

PROVENANCE: Acquired in Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1980.

NOTE DE CATALOGUE: Four examples of rhinoceros horn cups carved with figural landscapes, dated to the early Qing dynasty, are illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures from the Palace Museum: Bamboo, Wood, Ivory and Rhinoceros HornCarvings, Shanghai, 2001, pls 145-148. An 18th century example with a similar stand was sold in these rooms 23rd September 1997, lot 53.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, New York | 11 sept. 2012 www.sothebys.com