A SUPERB AND VERY LARGE CELADON AND RUSSET ‘SEVEN IMMORTALS’ JADE MOUNTAIN, 17th – 18th CENTURY

Nephrite of intense celadon color with several areas of deep russet cleverly highlighting the carving as well as a few opaque sand-colored veins. Excellent patina and smooth surface polish, as expected on a late Ming / early Qing jade. Exquisitely carved in high relief with several areas of openwork and some reticulated sections.

China, 17th-18th century

Depiction of the seven immortals e. g. the Seven True Daoists of the North, followed by two assistants carrying a pile of books and a scroll, climbing a mountain path towards a pavilion near the summit, all within a craggy landscape of layered rocks and crevices with scattered wutong and pine trees, a waterfall emerging beneath. Two of the scholars are taking a short break from the climb to play a game of weiqi inside a small grotto.

The reverse with a pair of deer under a dominant pine tree on a rocky outcrop, sided by several lingzhi fungi and a smaller wutong tree, and two cranes, one standing on a rock and holding lingzhi in his beak, the other flying above the scenery, the massive rockwork rendered in varying layers of relief.

Jade is a material that from ancient times has been associated with longevity and immortality. It is therefore a particularly appropriate medium from which to carve representations of the mountainous realm of the Daoist immortals. During the Qianlong reign, the emperor requested that jade mountains, as well as plaques and panels with mountainous landscapes, should take their artistic influence from the work of famous painters.

Carvings of mountains can be found in a number of different sizes and depicting varied scenes representing idealized landscapes upon which the collector could contemplate. The virtuosity of the carver is demonstrated here with the remarkable depth and use of the relief carving to depict the layered mountain and three-dimensional scenes, cleverly using the intense russet inclusions to even enhance the latter.

On the present boulder the theme of longevity is clearly evident with the depiction of the immortals on the main side and the deer under a pine tree on the reverse. The elongated form of the boulder and the skillful layering of rockwork help to create a magical atmosphere, thereby contributing to the Daoist themes of mysticism and immortality.

Shape: Boulder
Dimensions: Length 32 cm. Height 21 cm
Weight: 7700 grams
Condition: Excellent condition. Several natural veins, which over time may have developed into minor hairlines. A few of these show tiny remainders of old wax fill
Provenance: Property from an old Swiss private collection. Previously bought at Nagel auctions, Stuttgart

Literature comparison: A slightly smaller boulder of similar shape and composition of three sages, is illustrated by Roger Keverne (ed.), Jade, London, 1991, p. 174, fig. 117. Jade boulders of this type range considerably in size, with the largest and most famous in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, measuring over seven feet tall and three feet wide; cf. Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji, vol. 6, no. 255; and nos. 252-256 for the series of boulders in the Palace collection. Cf. a boulder of similar shape and size, included in the exhibition The Refined Taste of the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch'ing Court, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1997, illustrated in the Catalogue, no. 47. An extensive range of large white, celadon and spinach green jade boulders is illustrated in A Romance with Jade from the De An Tang Collection, Hong Kong, 2004, pls. 41-42, 47, 49-51, 55, 60-61, 66, and 69-70. Specifically compare this scene with one depicted on a massive jade mountain in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Complete Treasures of the Palace Museum, Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, no. 77.

Auction results comparison: A number of large boulders, sometimes even with imperial inscriptions, have been sold at auction. For example: The Imperial Sale Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Christies, Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 1900. (for a large jade mountain, showing a similar pattern of russet and celadon colors) Important Chinese Jades from the Personal Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman Part II. Christies, Hong Kong, 27 November 2007, lot 1509. (for a comparably large celadon jade mountain)

17至18世紀青玉雕”全真七子”玉子
和田青玉，褐色沁點綴整顆山子，增添幾分色彩。以晚明/清初的年代而言，此山子具有極佳的包漿及光滑的表面。精細的高浮雕，及部分鏤雕。
中國，17-18世紀
全真七子在崇山峻嶺的高山上，環繞的梧桐樹下，壯碩的瀑布旁，賞景吟詩。道院就在不遠處。兩位弟子則在一旁的巨石下對弈。
背面則是一對仙鹿在碩大的松樹下休憩，四周環繞著靈芝及較小的梧桐樹，以及兩隻仙鶴，其中一隻嘴啣靈芝，另一隻則展翅高飛。峰巒雄偉的群山，層次分明，重巒疊嶂。
玉料自古便有長壽與永生的寓意，非常適用於雕塑山水與道教人物。乾隆在位時期，非常重視玉器文化，不僅有多首詠玉詩，更親自撰寫《搢圭說》、《圭瑁說》，對玉之熱愛，可見一斑。
雕山子有非常多種大小及多元的題材。此山子的雕功精湛、工法細膩，運用浮雕呈現群山的層次，強化視覺立體感，並巧妙的利用褐色沁點綴整件作品，天然玉石紋理融入高山美景，增添幾分色彩。
形狀：山子
尺寸：長32厘米，寬21厘米
重量：7700克
品相極佳，些許天然絲狀紋理。
瑞士私人收藏，於德國司徒加特Nagel拍賣行購入。
文獻比較：一個小型但相似形狀的山子，見Roger Keverne 著《玉》，倫敦，1991年，第174頁，圖117。一個最大型且知名的山子於北京故宮博物院所藏，見《中國玉器全集》，卷6，編號225，其他北京故宮博物院藏山子，可見編號252至256。另一個相似造型與大小的山子，展出於台北故宮博物院《宮廷之雅：清代仿古及畫意玉器特展》，收錄於該目錄，編號47。一個大面積的白清碧玉山子則被收錄於《玉緣：德安堂藏玉》，香港，2004年，圖版41-41、47、49-51、55、60-61、66以及69-70。另一個描繪相似景色的山子，收錄於北京故宮博物院《玉器(下)》，香港，1995年，編號77。
類似拍品：一個大型玉山子，具有類似的褐色紋理及青色底，見佳士得《重要中國御製瓷器與工藝精品》，香港，2010年5月31日，拍品編號1900。另外一個大型玉山子，見佳士得《Alan與Simone Hartman個人收藏重要中國玉器(二)》，香港，2007年，拍品編號1509。