Dynasty, 17th century, calligraphic & scenic, 1 1/4" x 5 1/4"... Hu tablets, also known as shouban (‘hand tablet’ in Chinese)1 were used as early as the Tang period, 618 – 906.2 During the Ming period officials from the first to the fifth rank used ivory tablets on which to write notes on during an audience with the Emperor.3 The use of the hu tablets was very much confined to the imperial grounds, since they were handed out to the officials by designated doorkeepers upon entry into the palace and later collected for safekeeping.4 Similar ivory hu tablets of longer size and dated to the 16th century, are in the collection of Simon Kwan5 and the National Museum of Wales, in Cardiff.6 The comparably smaller size of this ivory hu tablet suggests that it might have been made earlier than the 16th century, as the sizes increased as the dynasty progressed........These tablets of ivory were carried by court officials whilst actually standing in the Imperial presence. They helped direct the eyes down the length of the Hu and discreetly away from the face of the emperor. They were used at least as early as the Tang period and as late as the 17th century. They were retained and preserved by court door keepers and collected only on entering the palace as it was an offence to keep them as they gave access to restricted areas of the palace. In the 16th century there were numerous complaints that their distribution was only laxly supervised. By the Qing dynasty they had fallen out of use at court, but continued to be a sought after antiquarian curiosity, being collected and displayed in all the most important European 'wunderkammer'. THIS ITEM CANNOT BE SHIPPED INTERNATIONALLY