Adam's Fine Asian Art Preview 23 November 2021

14 A WHITE AND RUSSET JADE ‘DEER AND PINE’ ARCHER’S THUMB RING CHINA, QING DYNASTY, ATTRIBUTED TO QIANLONG PERIOD The cylindrical ring, carved out of desirable pure white stone with light russet inclusions, is adorned in low relief with a deer standing four square and a pine tree, rocks and a lingzhi (longevity) fungus. The skilful craftsman used the russet inclusion to complete the design, thereby giving a colour to the autumn forest soil. H: 2,4 cm – w: 3,1 cm Weight: 27,6 grams €5,000 - 10,000 NOTES: 1. From ancient times, archery in Asia was well developed for warfare, hunting, and sport. Archery implements have been unearthed in Chinese tombs going back at least 4000 years. A number of technological developments contributed to the success of archery in north-eastern China. Among these was the use of archer’s rings, called "she" in ancient China (modern term "banzhi"). The archer’s ring is used on the thumb of the stronger hand, the one that pulls the bowstring. In addition to protecting the thumb, the ring provides a precise release action for the bowstring. The sidebar explains how these thumb rings were actually used. Originally an implement of warfare, archer’s rings have evolved into an item of jewellery. Ours is a good examples of that evolution. 2. The Chinese character for deer is 鹿 which is pronounced lu. The Chinese character 禄 , which refers to the salary a government official receives, is also pronounced lu. A picture of a deer is therefore expressing a wish for a top government office with a high salary. The deer is traditionally believed to be the only animal able to find the magical lingzhi fungus of immortality. 3. This piece has been skilfully made by a talentuous carver. Indeed, the russet is picked out to highlight a river running against an embankment. The front left hoof of the deer is dripping and muddied in dark inclusions as if from being in wet edge of the water and the rear left foot is equally picked out as the leg extends to a dark inclusion in the shape of a hoof. Fig. 1 - Side view of the ring Fig. 2 - A view of the ring with the light going through, thereby showing all the details and the skilfull use of the inclusions