A VERY RARE SILVER BOX AND COVER DEPICTING THE BLACK TORTOISE, XUANWU, TANG DYNASTYChina, 618-907. Both sides of the flat circular box are finely chased, the cover neatly embossed to the center with a tortoise entwined with a snake, their heads confronted, the serpent’s scales and tortoise’s carapace meticulously incised, encircled by two foliate bands divided by a raised line band. The sides of the box and cover with a similar foliate band, the underside similarly decorated with two confronted phoenixes centered by a flowerhead and encircled by a raised line and a foliate band, all against a ring-punched ground.Provenance: Hong Kong trade.Condition: Very good condition with some old wear, traces of use and manufacturing irregularities, expected minor tarnishing to the silver, and few tiny dents.Weight: 50.3 gDimensions: Diameter 6 cmThe Black Tortoise (xuanwu) is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations, which emerged in Chinese cosmology around the third century BC and became firmly established in the following centuries. Despite its English name, it is usually depicted as a tortoise entwined together with a snake. The name used in East Asian languages does not mention either animal. The alternative name ‘Black (or Dark or Mysterious) Warrior’ is a more faithful translation. It represents the north and the winter season, thus it is sometimes called Xuanwu of the North. The creature's name is identical to that of the important Taoist god Xuanwu, who is sometimes (as in Journey to the West) portrayed in thepany of a turtle and a snake.This depiction of a tortoise entwined with a snake is highly symbolic. According to Chinese mythology, tortoises are exclusively female and must be paired with snakes, which have similarly shaped heads, to conceive. Therefore, the adroitly entwined tortoise and snake do not represent a violent struggle, but rather aharmonious balance of Yin and Yang. Interestingly, neither is capable of defeating the other, as the snake is unable to crush the tortoise’s shell and reach its vital organs while the tortoise is unable to attack the serpent due to its short limbs and neck. Furthermore, the creature's name is identical to that of the important Daoist god Xuanwu, who is sometimes (as in Journey to the West) portrayed in thepany of a turtle and a snake.Literatureparison:Compare the mural of the Black Tortoise, dated early 7th century, Goguryeo Kingdom, painted on the northern wall of the Great Tomb of Kangso in Pyongyang.pare a bronze mirror with symbols of the four cardinal directions, including the Black Tortoise, dated 7th century, Sui or Tang dynasty, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 2022.151.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: Christie’s New York, 12 September 2019, lot 544Price: USD 102,500 or approx.EUR 108,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of w