Pebble-shaped rhyton (qiu)

Wonderfully worked, this piece exemplifies the difficulties connoisseurs face in identifying jades of the eighteenth century and later. Traditionally dated to the reign of the Qianlong emperor, and bearing a long Qianlong inscription on the base, this rhyton (ornate cup in the shape of an animal or animal head) quite likely was created during the early twentieth century. There is no question that the rich color of the surface is dyed; it is also possible that the pebble shape is contrived rather than natural. The high level of polish and finely worked, if somewhat shallow, decoration are also typical of early-twentieth-century work. This piece then represents a twentieth-century interpretation of an eighteenth-century interpretation of an earlier design. It incorporates a variety of archaistic motifs: squared scroll, sprouted grain, rope twist, and C scroll, as well as a goggle-eyed mask at the foot.