A CELADON JADE DRAGON PENDANT, HUAN, HAN DYNASTY

A CELADON JADE 'DRAGON' PENDANT, HUAN, HAN DYNASTY
Jade. China, Han dynasty, 2nd century BC to 2nd century AD
Finely carved as a coiled dragon forming a near-circular shape, the face neatly detailed with curled ears and almond-shaped eyes, the body incised with fine lines and detailed with a furcated tail. The translucent stone of a celadon tone with cloudy white and russet inclusions.
Museum comparison:
Compare a closely related black jade carving in the Shanghai Museum, dated Eastern Han period, illustrated by Zhang Wei, The Splendour of Chinese Jade, Orientations, May 1997, pp. 34-8, fig. 7. It is referred to as a huan (ring), and the type of dragon as a panchi (coiled serpent). Compare a closely related jade dragon carving dated to the Warring States period in the Palace Museum, Taipei.
Auction comparison:
Compare a closely related jade dragon huan, dated Eastern Han dynasty, 6.8 cm high, at Christie's New York in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 16 September 2010, lot 979 (
sold for USD 13,750
). Compare a related celadon jade dragon pendant, dated probably Western Han dynasty, at Sotheby's Hong Kong in Chinese Art on 28 November 2019, lot 737 (
sold for HKD 437,500
).
HEIGHT 4.8 cm
Provenance:
Private collection of Professor Filippo Salviati.