Lot 1724. A famille verte rouleau vase, Kangxi period (1662-1722); 17¾ in. (45cm.) high. Estimate USD 60,000 - USD 80,000. Price realised USD 134,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2011.  

The sides decorated with a scene of four scholars in a pavilion set amidst trees being served wine by an attendant as they watch Shoulao holding a ruyi scepter while seated astride a crane in flight amidst trailing clouds, with monster mask terminals at the tips of the pavilion roofs, below a diaper band incorporating stylized blossoms on the shoulder and boatmen in a river landscape on the neck, with gilt highlights.  

Provenance: J.P. Morgan Collection.
Acquired by Mrs. J.B. Trevor from Duveen Brothers, New York, March 1915.
Emily Trevor, New York.
Christie's, New York, 19 September 2007, lot 355.

Literature: Catalogue of the Morgan Collection of Chinese Porcelains, Vol. 2, New York, 1904, p. 60, no. 1205.

Note: This vase would have made an appropriate birthday gift as the decoration conveys wishes for a long life. Shoulao and the crane both symbolize longevity, and Shoulao holding a ruyi scepter forms the rebus, changshou ruyi (May you be granted long life).