’THE LORD CUNLIFFE CONG` 康裏弗勛爵藏玉琮 A RARE CHINESE NEOLITHIC JADE FOUR-TIERED CONG, LIANGZHU CULTURE, CIRCA 3300 - 23OO BC 良渚文化 四層獸面紋玉琮 公元前3300-2300 Of cylindrical slightly tapering form with square rounded corners, carved with four registers with simplified human masks, the stone of mottled green and brown tone with some crystalline inclusions, the patina soft, tactile and ancient Height: 11cm Provenance: Sir Ernest Debenham Collection, acquired prior to 1928 The Rt. Hon. Rolf, 2nd Baron Cunliffe of Headley (1899 - 1963), collection no. JA6, acquired from Bluetts in 1946 Private collection, Chicago, acquired in the early 1990’s Ernest Debenham  爵士收藏，  購於 1928 年  Cunliffe  勛爵 收藏 (1899-1963)   收藏編號 JA6 1946  年購於  英國古董商 Bluetts  芝加哥私人收藏，購藏于1990 年早期  A similar four-tiered jade cong was sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 27th November 2019, lot 2720, The Chang Wei-Hwa Collection of Archaic Jades, Part I, Neolithic Period, acquired in Hong Kong in 1992. Sold for HKD 2,375,000. Another four tiered cong from Masterpieces of Ancient Chinese Jades: The Zan Ji Xuan Collection, was sold at China Guardian, Hong Kong, 10th Anniversary Autumn Auctions 2022, lot 1521, for HKD 624,000. Jade Neolithic congs and bi discs are probably some of the most intriguing objects from ancient Chinese culture. They were carved by the Liangzhu people who lived around the current Lake Tai in Jiangsu province. Scholars are not sure of their actual purpose, although they have been found included in the Liangzhu tombs of noblemen as burial goods for the after-life. There are several examples known in western and Asian museums, in particular the British museum has fine examples. Jessica Rawson has suggested that these pieces may all have come from one or two tombs discovered in the late 19th or early 20th century, see Rawson, J. Chinese jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, British Museum, London, 1995, pg.122 & 128. According to Davids & Jellinek, Provenance, 2011, pg.132, Wing Commander Lord Cunliffe, `was one of the best-known of the mid 20th century collectors of Chinese works of art and a prominent member of the Oriental Ceramic Society from 1946. He first strode into the pages of Bluett’s Day Books on Thursday 30th November 1944, purchasing a small Han dynasty pottery jar with a notable iridescent glaze for £15. Over a period of almost twenty years he bought more than 400 pieces from Bluett’s.` 相似一件四層獸面紋玉琮售于香港佳士得2019年11月27日張偉華高古玉收藏專場（一）拍品號2720.此拍品于1992年購於香港，落槌價為兩百三十七萬五千港幣。 另一件相似的四層獸面玉琮于2022年售于香港嘉德玄禮四方-暫集軒珍藏中國古代玉器，拍品號1521，落槌價為六十二萬四千港幣。 新石器時代的玉琮和玉璧可能是中國古代文化中最引人入勝的物品之一。由居住在今江蘇太湖一帶的良渚人雕刻而成。儘管在良渚貴族墓葬中發現它們主要作為下一來世的陪葬品，但學者們並不確定它們的實際用途。在西方和亞洲的博物館中有幾個例子，特別是大英博物館中的玉琮收藏質量精美。傑西卡·羅森 (Jessica Rawson) 認為，這些玉琮可能都來自於 19 世紀末或 20 世紀初發現的一兩個貴族墓葬中。見傑西卡·羅森 (Jessica Rawson) 大英博物館藏中國玉器，從石器時代到清。 于1995年出版于倫敦，頁122，128. 据David&Jellinek，Provenance一書中描述，Cunliffe 二世勛爵，是二十世紀中葉最爲著名的中國藝術收藏家之一，同時于1946年成爲東方陶瓷協會的永久成員。1944年11月30日當他第一次走進當時倫敦著名古董商Bluett’s的古董店中，購買了一件漢代彩陶花費十五英鎊，至此開始了他的中國藝術品收藏生涯，此後的二十年閒，他從著名古董商Bluett’s 那裏購入了超過400件中國古代藝術品。此次拍賣的良渚文化四層獸面玉琮也是于這一時期購入。