A CHINESE PALE CELADON JADE CARVING OF A GOURD... Lot 23

A CHINESE PALE CELADON JADE CARVING OF A GOURD QIANLONG 1736-95 Formed with the large fruit issuing from a leafy vine, with two delicate flowers amongst the foliage and a bat clinging onto the largest leaf, the stone with minor russet and white markings, 10cm. Gourds symbolise fertility because of their many seeds and they represent the wish of having many sons. They also stand for longevity and happiness. The bat is another symbol of good fortune, as the Chinese word for both 'bat' and 'happiness' is fu. Cf. The Woolf Collection of Chinese Jade, p.188, no.79 for a related jade carving of a gourd from the Qianlong period in the collection of Jonathan Woolf, no.24; see also Spink & Son Ltd, Chinese Jade: An Important Private Collection, pp.80-81, no.164, for a similar piece.