A SOAPSTONE 'PHOENIX' SEALOf square section, surmounted by a phoenix finial, the seal face carved with fourzhuwen characters in seal script, readingxi you dao ren, signed to the side with two characters in regular script, readingZhou Bin, the stone of an opaque honey colour.3cm (1 1/8in) high, 24.3gProvenance: 壽山石雕鳳鈕印章《周彬》款印文：「息遊道人」Zhou Bin,zi Shangjun, a native of Zhangzhou, Fujian province, was one of the most renowned carvers of soapstone and was active during the 17th century. He belonged to a small group of carvers who excelled both technically and artistically and were considered master carvers in this medium. He was famous for his fine votive figures, seals, small paperweights and other objects for the scholars' studio.周彬，字尚均，福建漳州人，活躍於十七世紀，擅長人物雕刻，尤精印鈕、紙鎮及文房雅玩製作。