A SUPERB WHITE JADE 'BIRD AND MILLET' VASE AND COVER18th centuryOf archaistichu form, carved on both sides in low relief with two birds, the scene further decorated with millet stems issuing from behind jagged rockwork, the lustrous stone of an even white colour with areas of russet inclusions, box.17cm (6 3/4in) high (4).Provenance: 十八世紀 飛鳴宿食圖白玉帶蓋扁壺There are two ways to read the scene depicting on this charming vase: first it is delicately carved with an auspicious motif of two quails among millet sprays. Quail and millet represents suisui ping'an 歲歲平安 'May there be peace year after year', which was a popular motif in the Qing dynasty. Two quails shown together with millet forms the rebus shuang'an jiahe 雙安嘉禾 'May there be peace and prosperity'; the frozen moment of four birds on both sides of the vase can also be interpreted as four aquatic fowls flying, chirping, sleeping and eating, together with the swaying millet sprays and the undecorated background, of which successfully capture a sense of quiet stillness. Theposition follows in the tradition of 'flower-and-bird' paintings that can be traced back to as early as the Five Dynasties period (906-60 AD).Vases of this size and carved with this motif are unusual.pare a related Qianlong marked and period flattened hu vase with aquatic fowl motif in the National Palace Museum collection, illustrated in The Refined Taste of the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch'ing Court, Taipei, 1997, pp.104-105, no.24; see also a flattened jade vase, carved on the body with the same motif, in the Palace Museum collection, Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo yuqi quanji plete collection of Chinese jades], vol.6, Shijiazhuang, 1993, p.594, pl.217; and another in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is published in Ming Wilson, Chinese Jades, London, 2004, pl.50.壺身兩面淺雕麥穗與雙鳥，可解讀為描寫一對鵪鶉，取其「歲歲平安」之意，是清代常用的吉祥圖案，更帶有「雙安嘉禾」之巧思。 兩面通景來看也可見到四只蘆雁，或曲頸酣眠，或引頸高吭，或振翅而翔，或塘邊尋覓，是為自五代時期傳統花鳥畫佈局中的「飛鳴宿食圖」。畫面鋪排疏密有致，刻畫寫實傳神，充分借鑒國畫的筆墨意韻。本品的器型和圖案並不常見。對照臺北故宮博物院一例乾隆玉洙岸水禽扁壺，收錄於《宮廷之雅：清代仿古及畫意玉器特展圖錄》，臺北，1997年，頁104-105，編號24；另見北京故宮博物院藏歲歲平安花鳥扁瓶，載於《中國玉器全集》，卷6，石家莊，1993年，頁594，圖版217。再有一例藏Ą...