AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 1
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 2
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 3
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 4
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 5
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 6
AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS - photo 7

AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS

Starting price
€ 4 000
Auction dateClassic
29.09.2017 16:00UTC +02:00
Auctioneer
Galerie Zacke
Event location
Austria, Wien
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 7370
Lot 32 | AN EXCEPTIONAL OPENWORK ORNAMENT WITH AN INTRICATE DESIGN OF DRAGONS AND BIRDS
Jade. China, Eastern Zhou, 5th – 4th century BC
鏤空龍鳳紋玉佩- 東周時代, 公元前5世紀-前4世紀

WIDTH: 9.7 cm
寬 9.7 厘米

The design of this intricate openwork ornament requires an attentive look to discern the pattern. The complex design, formed by four dragons and four stylized phoenix-like birds with undulating bodies, is identical on both sides and demonstrates the carver’s amazing skill: the rigorous sense of symmetry is typical of ornamental plaques of this type that, during the Eastern Zhou period, were mostly crafted in southern China and in the cultural sphere of the Chu state.

At the top centre, two dragons with addorsed heads are flanked by two stylized upside down curling birds, whose heads are recognizable by the circle-shaped eyes and curved beaks with an incised line at the centre. The tails of the pair of central dragons are also carved as two additional bird heads, whose crests join right in the middle of the openwork pendant. Two more dragons are carved at the bottom left and right of the pendant: their s-shaped bodies recall the form of the dragon-shaped pendant JAK917-034 in this auction.

Although the ornament appears flat, there is actually a very slight sense of low relief to the carved patterns. In fact, eighteen small, bold curls in relief, carved in correspondence to the dragons’ snouts and ears, mark the points where the truncated limbs of the animals protrude from their bodies. Many additional incised details complete the surface decoration: strips filled with parallel, diagonal lines are incised at the centre of the dragons’ bodies; etched areas are carved on the tails of the two dragons at the bottom; and sets of equidistant double-incised lines complete the decoration of the animals’ bodies.

The jade is of a translucent darker brownish color in the centre with a more altered, lighter brown, almost beige tint on the outer area.

Literature comparison/Archaeological sites: Four plaques of a similar style and jade are illustrated in F. Salviati, 4000 Years of Chinese Archaic Jades, Edition Zacke, Vienna 2017, nos.217-220. For two more additional examples see M. Loehr and L.G. Fitzgerald Huber, Ancient Chinese jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA) 1975, nos.501 and 503.

Expertise: Prof. Dr. Filippo Salviati

From an Austrian collection
奧地利老佔有

All jades in this catalogue have been professionally examined, authenticated and described by Prof. Fillipo Salviati. Professor Salviati teaches Chinese and Korean art at Sapienza University in Rome, in the Italian Institute of Oriental Studies. He is a world expert on archaic Chinese jades, having released multiple publications and being cited by renowned auction houses such as Sotheby’s.
Address of auction Galerie Zacke
Mariahilferstrasse 112
1070 Wien
Austria
Preview
26.09.2017 – 28.09.2017
Phone +00 4315-320 452
Fax +43-1-5320452-20
Email
KS.YTQSJ@YQGOOF@
Buyer Premium 27.000
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase
Business hoursBusiness hours
Mo 13:00 – 18:00   
Tu 13:00 – 18:00   
We 13:00 – 18:00   
Th 13:00 – 18:00   
Fr 13:00 – 18:00   
Sa closed
Su closed

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.