2cm. （13/16 in.）wide

Provenance
The Collection of Raymond and Frances Bushell，acquired in the early 1990s

Lustrous，translucent and delicate white jade with yellowish and brownish suffusions. The seal is in square shape and the knob is modeled in the distinctive shape of a chi tiger in high relief with its body twisted to show its head is turning back，bulging eyes and a raising tail in the form of leaves. The surface of the seal is engraved with characters which are now indecipherable. According the book Ancient Rites of the Han Dynasty written by Wei Hong of the Han dynasty，the practice of using white jade imperial seals with chi tiger knobs by the Emperor and Empress was commenced in the Qin dynasty. In the early Western Han dynasty，the practices and state systems of the regional kingdoms mirrored those of the Emperor and therefore they could also use seals with chi tiger knobs to represent their high positions. Extant examples of such seals are very rare.

A very similar uncarved example from the Songzhutang Collection，published by T.Fok，The Splendour of Jade，Hong Kong，2011，p.78，pl. 69，was sold at Bonham’s Hong Kong，30th May，2017，lot 52.

Price estimate:
HKD: 20,000-30,000
USD: 2,580-3,870

Auction Result:
HKD: 49,560