Lot 141
CHINESE WHITE JADE 'BUTTERFLY' TEAPOT WITH COVER
QING DYNASTY, DAOGUANG YU YONG MARK, 19TH CENTURY
Auction: 15 May 2026 from 10:00 BST
Description
清 道光御用款 白玉仿古蝶紋帶蓋茶壺
of compressed globular form supported on a short splayed foot, set with a tapered spout opposite a double c-shaped handle incised with stylised longevity symbol at both ends, the exterior finely carved in low relief with a broad stylised butterfly, the domed cover decorated with plantain leaf below a finial in the form of a lotus bud, the stone of white colour with minor russet inclusions, the base engraved with a four-character mark reading ‘Dao Guang Yu Yong’ (for imperial use of Daoguang Emperor)
Dimensions
17cm wide
Provenance
Private English collection, England
英格蘭私人收藏
Footnote
White jade teapots are very rare and the present teapot is remarkable for the refined quality of its material and craftsmanship. The four-character ‘Dao Guang Yu Yong’ mark, meaning 'for imperial use of the Daoguang Emperor', is extremely rare. Three jade pieces similarly engraved with ‘Dao Guang Yu Yong’ mark are in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing: one is a spittoon of plain side, museum no. Gu 故00091584; one celadon jade thumb ring, museum no. Gu 故00099131; and a further plain white jade teapot is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Jadeware (III), The Commercial Press, Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 213, p. 258. Another white jade button, with the same mark, formerly in the Victor Shaw Collection, was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 22-28 February 2023, lot 3068.
Two further jade teapots of comparable design and proportions: one attributed to the first half of the 19th century was included in the Min Chiu Society exhibition: Splendour of the Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1992, cat. no. 245; the other similarly carved with archaistic motif in low relief, dated to the Qianlong period, was offered at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 October 2014, lot 3678.
白玉茶壺極為罕見，而本壺更以材質之精良與工藝精湛見稱。四字「道光御用」款極其稀有。三件同樣刻有「道光御用」款的白玉器，現藏於北京故宮博物院：其一為白玉光素渣斗，館藏編號: 故00091584；另一為带皮青玉喜字扳指，館藏編號: 故00099131。另有一件白玉素面執壺，收錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集．玉器（III）》，商務印書館，香港，1995年，圖版213, 頁258。另有一件帶同款的白玉鈕扣，原屬邵維錫中國玉雕收藏，於2023年2月22日至28日香港蘇富比售出，拍品3068。
另有兩件形制與比例相近之玉茶壺：其一推斷為十九世紀上半葉所作，曾於敏求精舍舉辦之「清代瑰寶」展出，香港藝術館，香港，1992年，圖錄編號245；另一件同樣淺刻仿古紋飾，斷代乾隆時期，曾於2014年10月8日香港蘇富比上拍，拍品3678。