Property of a Gentleman 士紳收藏A yellow jade 'carp and dragon' double vase,Qing dynasty, 18th century清十八世紀 黃玉魚龍形雙聯花插h. 17.4 cm来源: Christie's Hong Kong, 1st April 1992, lot 1224.香港佳士得1992年4月1日，編號1224拍品专文: This remarkable artwork features two dragon fish, dynamically and precisely carved, which skillfully convey movement and strength while maintaining the intricate details and polished finish appreciated by scholars and the court in Qing dynasty. The strong forms of the creatures and the expansive waves emphasize the yellow jade stone used in its creation, a material highly valued by the Qianlong Emperor.The lively carving depicts the crucial moment when two carps transform into dragons as they swim upstream in the Yellow River and leap over the Dragon Gate rapids. This theme was a popular subject in art, symbolizing a scholar who passes the civil examinations and subsequently becomes a high-ranking official. Compare with two related yellow jade vases of this form, one sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 8 April 2014, lot 3062; another one carved the russet tones cleverly into the composition, included in the exhibition Chinese Jade Through the Ages, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1975, cat. no. 421, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 9th October 2007, lot 1210. Compare also with another two green jade examples of this design, one from the from the collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, and sold in our New York rooms, 11th April 1986, lot 229, and again at Christie’s Hong Kong, 27th November 2007, lot 1551; one illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 49.此件魚龍花插取料黃熟溫潤，雕工生動細緻，魚龍綫條婉轉不失力度，山石嶙峋，江水滔滔之勢盡顯於方寸之間。較之青玉、白玉，黃玉更為世人所珍重，蓋其產量稀少，而黃潤如熟栗者更是可遇不可求。又因其黃色，清廷尤偏愛之。本件題材取自鯉魚躍龍門，為明清常見題材，寄意士子們蟾宮折桂，脫胎換骨。可比較兩件相關的黃玉魚龍花插，一件售於香港蘇富比，2014年4月8日，拍品3062號；一件1975年展於倫敦維多利亞及艾伯特博物館，展品編號421，後售於香港蘇富比，2007年10月9日，拍品1210。另可參考兩件青玉魚龍花插，一件為Alan及Simone Hartman舊藏，1989年4月11日售於紐約蘇富比，拍品229號，後售於香港佳士得，2007年11月27日，拍品1551號；一件為清宮舊藏，著錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集·玉器下》，香港，1995年，圖版49。