Lot 5. A rare black jade ritual vessel, cong, Neolithic Period, Liangzhu Culture; 17.2cm (6 3/4in) high. Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000 (US$51,000 - 77,000). Sold for HK$ 1,375,000 (€158,018). Photo: Bonhams

The thick-walled vessel of slightly tapering square-sectioned tubular form, the sides divided into five registers, each carved with a stylised mask formed by raised bands and incised details, the opaque stone of rich black colour suffused with silvery-white flecks. 

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong in 2010
The Songzhutang collection, no.6

Published and Illustrated: T.Fok, The Splendour of Jade: The Songzhutang Collection of Jade, Hong Kong, 2011, pl.6

Note: Typical of Liangzhu Culture cong, the present lot has a square outer section around a circular inner part, decorated with stylised masks arranged neatly on each of the four corners. The beauty of the present cong is highlighted by the lustrous brilliant black tone which has been altered in the course of its long burial. 

Although the precise meaning and use of the cong is not entirely clear, it was found in extensive numbers in Liangzhu tombs and thus these are believed to be an important burial and ritual artifact. The importance and value of the present lot is further indicated by its substantial weight and solidity.

Compare an example of a jade cong also carved with five registers of stylised masks (14.8cm high), Neolithic period, Liangzhu Culture, illustrated in Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum: Jade 1 Neolithic Age, Beijing, 2011, p.76, pl.31. See another slightly smaller jade cong (14.6cm high), also decorated with five registers, excavated in 1973 from Sidun in Wujin, Jiangsu Province, illustrated in Liangzhu wenhua yuqi, Hong Kong, 1989, p.39, pl.50.

Bonhams. THE SONGZHUTANG COLLECTION OF EARLY JADES from the Neolithic Period to the Yuan Dynasty, 30 May 2017, 14:00 HKT