Bonhams 1793 : A rare pair of pale green jade 'qilin' boxes and covers 18th century

18th century
Each pale green pebble with attractive russet inclusions shaped as a qilin crouching with its legs and hooves folded underneath its body, the face slightly inclined and smiling gently and the sides decorated with stylised scrolls and a wide cross-hatched border around the edge of each box. Each 5.8cm (2¼in) long (4).

Sold for £85,250 inc. premium

Footnotes

Provenance: an English private collection

十八世紀青玉雕麒麟式蓋盒一對

來源: 英國私人收藏

Compare a single jade box of a similar size and carved as a charming rabbit-like animal, opening to reveal a miniature ivory carving of a boat inside, illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Miniature Crafts in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1971, no.37.