A rare pale green jade 'Tai Yi' washer


Ming Dynasty The vessel well-hollowed in the form of a large lotus leaf, well carved in high relief towards the centre with the figure of the immortal 'Tai Yi Zhenren' seated leisurely holding a book in his right hand and a ruyi sceptre in the other, the underside carved with ridges as the leaf pattern, the stone of a celadon tone. 16cm (6 3/10in) long.
|明 青白玉雕太乙蓮舟洗Provenance:S. Marchant & Son, London, 1979Sotheby's Hong Kong, 20-21 May 1980, lot 288An English private collectionMarchant, London來源：倫敦S. Marchant & Son，1979年香港蘇富比，1980年5月20-21日，拍品編號288英國私人舊藏倫敦MarchantThe skilfully carved figure seated in the lotus leave can be identified as 'Tai Yi Zhenren', a Daoist immortal who is said to be the reincarnation of the first emperor of the Shang dynasty. The subject of the immortal Tai Yi using a large lotus leaf as a boat was very popular in Song dynasty literature.Compare with a related white jade lotus washer, Qing dynasty, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, demonstrating similar execution of the lotus leaves (acc.no.Gu-Yu-000908); see also a white jade lotus washer of similar form, which was sold at Sotheby's Paris, 9 June 2010, lot 144.青白玉質，青中閃灰，色澤古樸，玉料挖作蓮辦形，薄壁透光，內壁光素，靠柄處留料圓雕太乙真人讀書像，真人頭戴樸頭，開臉盈笑，美髯垂胸，右手捧書，左擎如意，盤腿而坐，蓮辦外壁密鐫經脈，打磨細膩，不露刀鋒。太乙蓮舟，又稱太一蓮舟，是北宋以來流行的仙道題材，相傳北宋李公麟有《太一真人圖》，見《苕溪漁隱叢話前集·韓子蒼》：「李伯時畫太一真人，臥一大蓮葉中，手執書卷仰讀，蕭然有物外思。」今畫不傳。本品之蓮辦造型可參考台北故宮藏一件清代白玉蓮辦洗，館藏編號故-玉-000908。巴黎蘇富比2010年6月9日曾售出一件蓮辦洗，形制類似，拍品編號144。