Lot 3688. A Tianhuang 'Immortals' seal, Qing dynasty; 6.1 by 3.5 by 2.4 cm., 2 3/8  by 1 3/8  by 7/8  in., weight 116 gr. Estimate 600,000 — 800,000 HKD. Lot sold 1,500,000. ©  Sotheby's

of rectangular section, the shaft thinning irregularly towards the top, finely carved in low relief with three Daoist Immortals at rest with censers issuing wispy vapour, in a rocky landscape continuing around the sides, with a swooping crane in flight amid pine trees, the seal with thirty-six versions of the shou character, the stone of yellowish-brown colour with amber and black mottling skilfully used to highlight the design.

Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 2nd November 1998, lot 487.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Works of Art, Hong Kong, 07 april 2015