AN ALTERED JADE FIGURE OF A BEAST, WESTERN ZHOU
China, 1100-771 BC. Carved in a dynamic pose with one front leg bent and slightly raised, finely incised with angular eyes and gently curved lines to delineate the body, the ears pricked. The stone now completely opaque and of an cream-white tone with patches of cream and black veins and shadings.

Provenance: A noted Austrian private collector, acquired in these rooms in the late 1990s. Thence by descent within the same family.
Condition: Excellent condition, commensurate with age, old wear and signs of weathering and erosion as expected. Hairlines inherent to the mineral, some of which may have developed into minuscule cracks over time. Tiny nicks here and there. The surface with a natural, unctuous patina overall.

Weight: 200.0 g
Dimensions: Length 10.6 cm

Expert's note: The form of this jade figure and manner of carving, particularly the incision work delineating the beast's body, are characteristic of jade animal carvings from the Western Zhou dynasty (see Auction result comparison). The depiction of a beast, especially in jade, is however extremely rare, with comparable examples only found in bronze and earthenware (see Literature comparison).

Literature comparison: Compare a bronze ritual vessel in the shape of a beast, dated to the Shang dynasty, in the collection of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, object number B60B1+. Compare also a bronze garment hook in the shape of a beast, dated to the Eastern Zhou dynasty, in the collection of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery in the Smithsonian, accession number S1987.437. Compare an earthenware figure of beast, dated to the Han dynasty, in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, accession number C.877-1936.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related jade carving of a buffalo, also dated to the Western Zhou dynasty, but of smaller size (4.5 cm), at Christie's Hong Kong, in The Chang Wei-Hwa Collection of Archaic Jades, on 30 November 2020, lot 2763, sold for HKD 937,500, and another in the same auction, lot 2764, sold for HKD 118,750. Compare also a related Western Zhou jade carving of a deer in the same auction, lot 2765, sold for HKD 100,000.

西周玉雕神獸
中國，公元前1100至公元前771年。姿勢充滿動感，一隻前腿彎曲微抬，眼睛雕刻生動，耳朵豎起，身體曲綫流暢。 這塊石料完全鈣化，呈米白色，帶有乳油色和黑色的紋理。

來源：奧地利私人老收藏。維也納Zacke拍賣行，1999年11月23日, lot 15. 奧地利知名私人藏家，購於上述拍賣，至此保存在同一家族。
品相：品相極好，與預期的年代、舊磨損和風化和侵蝕跡象相符。 石料固有的脈理，隨著時間的推移，其中一些細紋可能已經發展成微小的裂縫。局部有微小的磕損。表面整體呈現自然、油潤的光澤。

重量：200.0 克
尺寸：長 10.6 厘米

專家注釋：這件玉器的造型和雕刻方式，尤其是神獸身形的刻工，是西周玉獸雕刻的特色（見拍賣結果對比）。 然而，玉犀牛在玉器造像中極為罕見，僅在青銅和陶器中才能找到類似的例子）。

拍賣結果比較：一件相近玉牛，同樣為西周，但尺寸更小 (4.5 厘米)，見香港佳士得 The Chang Wei-Hwa Collection of Archaic Jades 2020年11月30日 lot 2763, 售價HKD 937,500; 在同一拍賣中 lot 2764, 售價HKD 118,750; 一件西周玉雕鹿，在同一拍賣，lot 2765, 售價HKD 100,000。