5.5cm.（2 3/16 in.）wide

Provenance
Feng Wen Tang，Hong Kong
The Collection of Raymond and Frances Bushell，acquired in the early 1990s from Feng Wen Tang，Hong Kong

Russet white jade with partial suffusions. The bird is in a recumbent posture carved in the round，with the head slightly raised，round eyes，sharp beak and long neck. The curved body is imbued with a sense of curvilinear charm. The two wings fold with the feathers at the wings carved in relief. Flanges and feathers at the tail are represented in engraved slim lines. At the bottom of the two legs are incised designs of squares and parallel slim lines. The whole work is skillfully modeled with fluent carved lines and finely polished，showing superb craftsmanship. The work looks like a staff finial of the Han dynasty，but there is no round groove or perforation beneath the belly to fit into the staff and therefore it must be assumed that it was made as a decorative piece instead. Emperor Wu of the Han built the Shanglin Garden，in which rare species of birds and animals were kept，and the image of this turtledove might have been inspired by the one of these rare bird breeds.

An identical example in National Palace Museum，Taipei，is illustrated in Art in Quest of Heaven and Truth Chinese Jade Through the Ages，Taipei，2012，p. 38，pl. 3-3-36.，and compare，also，an example in Beijing Palace Museum，illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum：Jade Ware（I），Beijing，2008，p.144，no. 147.（fig.1）

Price estimate:
HKD: 150,000-200,000
USD: 19,400-25,800

Auction Result:
HKD: 590,000