A SERPENTINITE ‘BUDDHIST LION AND CUB’ GROUP, QING DYNASTY China, 1644-1912. Boldly carved as a recumbent Buddhist lion with neatly incised mane, tail, and brows, bulging eyes, and articulated spine, its front paws resting on the back of the cub with similarly detailed features. The translucent stone is of an elegant pale ivory tone with few milky inclusions.

Provenance: The Ezekiel Collection, no. K/43 (old collector’s label to wood base). Purchased by Victor Ezekiel on 13 June 1958. The underside of the wood base with an old label, ‘Chrysotile. Form of Serpentine Hydrated Magnesium Silicate’. A handwritten and typed note by Victor Ezekiel, stating the collection no. K/43 and the purchase date of 13 June 1958 and describing the piece as ‘An agate carving of a female Lion of Fo, with young, and the stand’, accompanies this lot. The Ezekiel Collection was formed by Marcus Ezekiel (1854-1927) and his son Victor (1905-1976), two leading figures in the formative years of Chinese art collecting in London in the first part of the 20th century, and important early members of the Oriental Ceramic Society. Among the pieces Victor inherited from his father were two jades, two lapis lazuli carvings, a rock crystal elephant, and a turquoise pendant, along with a cabinet of snuff bottles. This may have played a part in directing his attention towards hardstone carvings, and jade in particular.
Condition: Good condition with minor wear, small nicks, and minuscule losses. The stone with natural fissures, some of which have developed into small hairline cracks over time.

Weight: 84.0 g (excl. base)
Dimensions: Length 7 cm

With an old fitted wood base dating to the Qing dynasty. (2)

Expert’s note: Serpentinite is a rock composed of one or more serpentine group minerals. Antigorite and lizardite are the main minerals, with chrysotile today being considered a growth ‘habit’ of lizardite and not a separate mineral.

清代蛇紋岩太獅幼獅擺件
中國，1644-1912年。精美石雕一隻太獅，鬃毛、尾巴和眉毛等細節刻畫生動，眼睛凸出，脊椎關節清晰，前爪擱在幼崽的背部，幼崽五官也很細緻。半透明的石料呈現淡象牙色調，些微可見白色的絮狀物。

來源：Ezekiel收藏，收藏編號no. K/43（木底座上有收藏標籤）。Victor Ezekiel于1958年6月13日購置。木底座上的標籤上“Chrysotile. Form of Serpentine Hydrated Magnesium Silicate’Ezekiel” 。隨附一份收藏由Victor Ezekiel 購買時做的注釋的副本，他描述此拍品為“An agate carving of a female Lion of Fo, with young, and the stand“ （瑪瑙太獅少獅擺件）。Ezekiel收藏由Marcus Ezekiel (1854-1927) 和他的兒子 Victor (1905-1976) 創立，他們曾是20世紀上半葉倫敦的中國藝術收藏形成及穩定時期的兩位領軍人物，同時也是東方陶瓷學會早期重要成員。在Victor從他父親那裡繼承的收藏品中，有兩件玉器、兩件青金石造像、一尊水晶大象和一件綠松石掛件，以及一系列的鼻煙壺。這可能對他關注硬石雕刻、特別是玉石造像方面，起到了一定作用。
品相：狀況良好，有輕微磨損、小刻痕和微小缺損。石料有著天然的裂紋，其中一些已經發展成細小的裂縫。

重量：不含底座84.0 克
尺寸：長 7 厘米

清代木底座 (2)