A VERY RARE ARCHAIC JADE 'DRAGON AND FIGURE' PENDANT, XI Warring States/Western Han DynastyTHE PROPERTY OF A BRITISH FAMILY英國家族藏品A VERY RARE ARCHAIC JADE 'DRAGON AND FIGURE' PENDANT, XIWarring States/Western Han DynastyMeticulously carved with an intricate reticulated design of a stylised dragon with open jaws and round eyes, a sinuous body and a long tail, surmounted by a figure atop the dragon's head, the calcified stone of buff colour. 11.2cm (4 1/2in) long.戰國/西漢 仙官馭龍玉觽Provenance: The Idemitsu Collection, TokyoRoger Keverne Ltd., LondonA British private collection, acquired from the above on 25 April 2006Published, Illustrated and Exhibited: Roger Keverne Ltd., Summer Exhibition, London, 2004, no.69來源：東京出光美術館舊藏倫敦古董商 Roger Keverne Ltd.英國私人收藏，2006年4月25日從上處購得展覽著錄：Roger Keverne Ltd.，《夏季展覽》，倫敦，2004年，編號69The dragon-shaped arched fang-shaped pendant, which was likely made to be used as a knot-loosener. Xi pendants were usually made as pairs and buried in tombs. While the examples dated to the Spring and Autumn period resembled the shape of an animal's tooth or fang, the pendants made during the Warring States period were usually more slender in form. See a related jade xi, with dragon head, Warring States period, illustrated in the Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum, Jade, vol.3, Beijing, 2011, p.76, no.73. See also a jade phoenix shaped xi, Eastern Han dynasty, illustrated by A.Forsyth and B.McElney, Jades from China, Bath, 1994, p.256, no.156. Compare with a pair of related jade 'dragon' xi, late Warring States/early Western Han dynasty, which were sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 29 November 2017, lot 2772.sold_price_type: £