China. The box finely carved as a lotus leaf with neatly incised veins, surmounted by an intricately carved and open worked cover in the form of a crab, the interior of which is also incised with veins of a lotus leaf. The superbly polished and highly translucent stone is of an even white tone.

Provenance: Charlotte Horstmann, Hong Kong, 18 November 1959. Swiss private collection, acquired from the above. Ben Janssens Oriental Art, London, 2011, offered for GBP 12,000 (according to price list). British private collection, acquired from the above. A copy of the original invoice from Charlotte Horstmann, dated 18 November 1959, accompanies this lot. Charlotte Horstmann was a legendary art dealer in Hong Kong, widely recognized as one of the three doyennes of the Asian art world, together with Helen Ling in Singapore and Connie Mangskau in Bangkok. She was born in Berlin to missionaries who moved with their daughter to Beijing shortly after her birth. In the 1920s and 1930s, she worked as an interpreter, meeting important art collectors and academics such as John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Lawrence Sickman. She became an antiques dealer in Beijing and in 1950 moved to Bangkok, taking her now-famous collection of Ming furniture with her. In 1955, she moved to Hong Kong and opened a small shop on Ice House Road. Over time, this shop became a destination for stars, politicians, business magnates, and high-ranking government officials from around the world.
Published: The Scholar's Desk, Ben Janssens Oriental Art, London, 2011, no. 46, pl. 96.
Condition: Good condition with old wear, tiny nicks to edges, minuscule cracks and losses.

Weight: 44 g
Dimensions: Length 6.5 cm, Height 5.5 cm

An old name in Chinese for crab was jia, a reference to the creature’s shell, and the word for lotus is lian. Together, the crab and lotus formed the rebus lian ke jia di, meaning ‘first place in consecutive examinations’. The lotus is also called hehua, and the common name for crab, xie, also combines to form the phrase hexia which means ‘harmony’.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related white and russet jade figure of a crab, 7.7 cm long, dated to the 19^th century, at Christie’s Hong Kong in Chinese Art on 30 November 2017, lot 384, sold for HKD 106,250.


十八世紀白玉雕刻蟹形印泥蓋盒
中國。盒子上雕刻精美的荷葉紋，紋路清晰，蓋上鏤雕螃蟹，盒內亦刻荷葉紋。白玉表面光滑，半透明，色澤均勻潤澤。

來源：香港Charlotte Horstmann藝廊，1959年11月18日；瑞士私人收藏，購於上述收藏； 倫敦Ben Janssens Oriental Art藝廊，2011年，開價 GBP 12,000 (根據價格表)；英國私人收藏，購於上述藝廊。隨附一份Charlotte Horstmann的原始發票複印件，注明為1959年11月18日。Charlotte Horstmann 是香港傳奇的藝術品經銷商，與新加坡的 Helen Ling 和曼谷的 Connie Mangskau 一起被公認為亞洲藝術界的三大元老之一。 她出生於柏林，她的父親是傳教士，在她出生後不久就帶著女兒搬到了北京。在 1920 年代和 1930 年代，她擔任口譯員，曾見過重要的藝術收藏家和學者，如小John D. Rockefeller和Lawrence Sickman。她在北京成為一名古董商，並於 1950 年搬到曼谷，帶著她著名的明代傢俱收藏。 1955年移居香港，在雪厰街開了一家小店，慢慢成爲來自世界各地的明星、政治家、商業巨頭和高級政府官員的必去之地。
出版：The Scholar's Desk, Ben Janssens Oriental Art, London, 2011, no. 46, pl. 96。
品相：狀況良好，有舊磨損，邊緣有微小的刻痕，有微小的裂縫和缺損。

重量：44 克
尺寸：長6.5厘米，寬5.5厘米

拍賣結果比較：比較一件十九世紀白玉留皮雕蟹，長7.7 厘米，見香港佳士得Chinese Art 2017年11月30日 lot 384, 售價HKD 106,250。