196 | Bonhams 488
AN EXQUISITE WHITE JADE 'FIVE BATS' TEAPOT AND COVER
Qianlong
Elegantly formed from a fine even-toned white stone, the globular
body crisply carved in low relief with a continuous scene of five bats
flying amidst auspicious clouds, each bat deftly depicted with bulging
eyes, pointed mouth and outstretched wings further detailed with
finely incised lines, the cloud motif skilfully spread over the rounded
spout and the loop handle, the interior expertly hollowed and gently
polished, all supported on a short straight foot, the cover similarly
decorated and surmounted by circular knop neatly carved with a shou medallion.
20.5cm (8 1/8in) across (2).
HKD1,200,000 - 1,500,000
US$150,000 - 190,000
清乾隆 御製白玉五福紋執壺
Provenance:
A distinguished European private collection, assembled in the 1980s
The Chenyuezhai Collection
來源：
顯赫歐洲私人收藏，入藏於1980年代
塵月齋收藏
Exquisitely worked from a generous proportion of white jade
with excellent quality, the present lot is an impressive example of
exquisitely crafted jade vessels which demonstrate the remarkable
craftsmanship and technical virtuosity achieved by the jade ateliers
in Qing dynasty, especially during the Qianlong reign period. The
exquisite quality of the lustrous even white jade stone exemplifies the
finest jade quality made available following the Qianlong emperor's
conquest of the Dzungar Khanate between 1755 and 1759, where
much of the jade was sourced.
Food and drink vessels made of jade were extremely cherished
treasures from as early as the Han dynasty, particularly as they
required great expense and wastage of precious jade to produce.
Therefore, jade teapot carved from high-quality white jade such as
the present lot is notably rare and probably reserved for the imperial.
See five teapots of related form and design in the Palace Museum,
Beijing, from the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in the Compendium
of Collections in the Palace Museum: Jade, vol.10 Qing Dynasty,
Beijing, 2011, pp.178-182, nos.131-135.
Compare a white jade teapot dated to the Qianlong period, but
carved with pine, bamboo and prunus, sold at Christie's Hong Kong,
30 October 2001, lot 704. Compare also two examples dated to the
Qianlong period sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong: an imperial white jade
and cloisonne enamel ram-head teapot, sold on 3 October 2017, lot
3613; another with a circular 'coiled dragon' finial, sold on 3 October
2018, lot 126.
白玉質，潔白淨潔，採用上等白玉，手感厚重，玉質瑩潤細膩，如凝
脂。壺體略扁圓，唇口，直圈足，有流、柄，打磨細緻，蓋附圓鈕，
鈕上有團壽紋。壺身通體淺浮雕蝙蝠五隻於祥雲中，寓意「五福呈
祥」，祥雲巧妙地蔓延至壺流、壺柄，壺蓋亦雕祥雲紋與壺身呼應，
足見工匠之心思。所雕之蝙蝠栩栩如生，五官及翅膀皆以細線加以點
綴，盡顯工匠高超工藝。清朝於1755年和1759年兩征回部，其後大
量優質和田白玉得以流入中原，此件用料或即彼時輸入。
清宮中有大量玉雕宮廷日用器，但執壺的數量相對較少。玉雕飲食器
皿，因雕刻多費玉料，自漢代起就稀世如珍。因此由上佳白玉雕刻而
成之執壺，尤其難得，多為皇家御用。參考北京故宮所藏五件與本品
形制類近之白玉執壺，著錄於《故宮博物院藏品大系：玉器編10：
清》，北京，2011年，頁178至182，編號131至135，尺寸比例與本
品亦相當。
比較香港佳士得售出一件乾隆時期白玉茶壺，但以歲寒三友為紋飾，
2001年10月30日，拍品編號704；又可比較香港蘇富比所售乾隆兩
例：一件御製白玉瓜棱式羊首掐絲琺瑯提樑茶壺，售於2017年10月
3日，拍品編號3613；另一件配以鏤空龍鈕蓋，為利國偉爵士舊藏，
售於2018年10月3日，拍品編號126。
