A fine pale green and russet jade 'Three monkeys' boulder


17th/18th centuryThe irregular stone carved in openwork with a fruiting peach tree beside a taihu rock, with three monkeys grasping at peaches borne on the branches, the reverse with a stream, the stone of pale green tone with areas of russet inclusions. 10cm (4in) high.
|十七/十八世紀 青玉帶皮雕猴戲圖山子Provenance:Milwaukee Art Museum, no.73.275 S. Marchant & Son, LondonA distinguished English private collectionExhibited, Published and Illustrated:S. Marchant & Son, 75th Anniversary Exhibition of Post-Archaic Chinese Jades from Private Collections, London, 2000, no.79來源：密爾瓦基美術館舊藏，編號73.275 倫敦S. Marchant & Son英國顯赫私人收藏展覽：S. Marchant & Son，《75th Anniversary Exhibition of Post-Archaic Chinese Jades from Private Collections》，倫敦，2000年，編號79'Monkey' in Chinese is a homophone with 'Duke' and symbolises high rank, while the peach is a symbol of longevity. Together, the monkey and peach group symbolise prosperity. The underside of the present jade boulder is carved with three apertures, indicating it may have been used as large finial for the cover of an incense burner. For a related white jade carving of three monkeys and peach, see R.Kleiner, Chinese Jades from the Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, Hong Kong, 1996, no.185. See also a related white jade carving of a monkey, 18th century, which was sold at Bonhams Hong Kong, 29 November 2016, lot 14. 青玉質，青中透白，鏤空雕山石，山石背面一孔流出溪水，水波細密，一側生桃樹靈芝各一株，盤幹虬枝，枝上生四桃，另雕三猴攀援其間，作摘桃之勢，猴子鏤空圓雕並用，上中下三方佈局，動態十足。猴諧音「侯」，桃意在壽，猴和桃的組合便有祿壽的吉祥寓意。此件三子底部鑽有三孔，抑或曾作爐頂。三猴戲桃的形象可參考一件乾隆白玉雕母子猴，見R.Kleiner著《Chinese Jades from the Collection of Alan and Simone Hartman》，香港，1996年，编號185；亦可参考一件十八世紀白玉巧色雕靈猴獻壽擺件，2016年11月29日售於香港邦瀚斯，拍品編號14。