A large and impressive jade carving of The Twin Immortals, Hehe Erxian, 17th/18th century

和合二仙玉雕, 17/18 世纪

the two figures carved in the round, one squatting with one knee bent and one standing with one foot raised, both dressed in flowing robes with elaborate tassel belts open at the waist exposing their full stomachs, one holding a covered vessel and the other a lotus pod, the composition set in a niche frame in the form of a lotus leaf, the curling edges of the leaf delicately and skilfully carved, the impressed veining carefully detailed and the reverse with the veining carved in high relief and extending from a finely modelled stalk.

By tradition it was not until the seventeenth century that jade boulders of a substantial size were excavated in China. The discovery of the piece from which this group was carved clearly prompted much reflection as to how this prize item was to be worked. The dark grey/green tones of the stone suggested a high relief sculpture which would allow the deployment of light and shade effects. While a free standing group would probably not have been a possibility, the 'niche' design allowed a fully three dimensional composition. The carving effects, with heavy use of undercutting, must have been planned carefully at the outset. Mistakes would have been hard to rectify and the carver clearly tested his skills to the limit even thinning the background in some places to allow for translucent effects. Where possible, the composition matches the colouring of the stone as is particularly evident in the patterning of the reverse.

The Twin Immortals of Harmony and Joy, also known as the 'laughing twins', are a common theme within Chinese art and are thought to preside over, or be patron saints of, happy marriages. The twins are most often depicted as laughing boys, with one holding a flowering lotus stem and the other holding a box, as seen here, with the lotus 'he' and the box 'he' forming the double rebus of 'harmony' and 'union'. According to legend these two figures were inspired by, or based upon, the two famous Tang poets Hanshan and Shide, who were known to be reclusive Buddhist monks. Most often rendered in porcelain and frequently a subject of paintings, the two immortals are very rarely seen, if at all, in such a composition as this and on such a scale in carved jade. The lotus is a very prominent part of this carving with the figures contained within the lotus leaf, which again reinforces the symbolic representation of harmony. In general the lotus is a widely revered flower in China, and is one of the Eight Daoist symbols.

Provenance:

The collection of which the HeHe Twins is a part was begun in the 1950s by an expert in the field of Chinese Antiquities for whom Jade specifically has been a passion for the duration of his life. The HeHe Twins carving joined the current private collection in 1993 when it was bought from a Stone Trader who was selling Jadeite primarily. The Nephrite Twins were dirty and left in a corner amidst the trader's wares, but the current collector spotted their importance and concluded a deal very swiftly before leaving the trader for a moment longer with the treasure. The HeHe Twins carving's original owner was a late Qing Government Officer who fell on hard times and sold it to the trader's father in the 1950s and it had remained a little regarded oddity for the next forty years until it joined the current collection of Jade Antiquities.  It now comes for the first time to an international audience for sale.

Literature:

For examples showing a similar carving style of the faces and body compare some other pieces such as 'Hehe Immortals', 'Liu Hai and Toad ', Chinese Jade Carving (Hong Kong: Urban Council and the Min Chiu Society:1983), and 'Liu Hai and Toad',  Asian art in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery (Washington, D.C. : Arthur M.Sackler Gallery, 1987)

For examples showing a similar delicate and naturalistic treatment of the lotus leaf, see Roger Keverne, Jade, 2010, p.144 fig.39 and 40, and p.160, fig.82, 'Cicada on leaf'  Chinese Jade Carving (Hong Kong: Urban Council and the Min Chiu Society:1983), and 'Leaf-shaped writing-brush washer carved out of jadeite', The Jade-carving art in the Ch‘ing dynasty (Taipei: National Museum of History, 1990)

和合二仙各具姿态，一蹲踞而坐，手捧圆盒， 一提腿单足而立，手捧荷花；衣衫袍带宽松，俱露出胸腹。玉雕以荷叶为背景，荷叶铺展，二仙站立其中。荷叶叶缘卷曲柔美，叶背以浮雕技法刻出叶脉，线条圆转有劲。人物与荷叶背景相称合宜，浑然一体， 是十七/十八世纪，明末清初时期玉雕工艺的精美之作。

十七世纪大型玉石的开采，为玉雕工艺发展提供了基础。此件和合二仙玉雕正是在这个时代背景下创作的。 此玉雕呈灰绿色，以剔底法作之。玉雕色泽斑驳，有深浅变化，玉工巧妙地将玉色变化运用于雕刻中，使玉色与明暗空间浑然结合。整件作品剔刻透彻，极富立体感，荷叶柔卷纤薄，能见玉石半透明色；二仙丰润厚实，宛若站立眼前。此玉石硕大，却能见如此效果，可见当时玉工精湛超绝的工艺。而以荷叶作背景，营造出壁龛空间的创作构思，也与十七/十八世纪大件玉石得以开采，及和合二仙摆件流行的两项历史时代条件符合。

宋代以降，绘画及雕艺中多能见和合二仙主题。和合，传为唐代诗僧寒山拾得二人，两人友爱如兄，后为民间喜爱，并奉为“和合二仙”。和合二仙玉雕常见于历代玉雕作品，但多以小件出，类似此件以大幅荷叶承托背景，以荷叶作壁龛空间装饰的，则绝少见于收藏界。

收藏出处：

此和合二仙玉雕的目前藏家自1950年代始，已开始收藏研究中国古董，尤以收藏玉器为专。

追溯玉雕的最早所有者，是一名晚清政府官员所。此官员后遭遇困顿，故1950年代将玉雕变卖给一位玉石商人，后传为其子所有，其子专营硬玉玉石生意。其后四十余年，此玉雕一直为玉商所有，不曾见世。

1993年，藏家从这位玉商手中买下此玉雕。说起彼时玉雕转手经过，颇有意思。当时玉雕堆置于玉商的货仓某角落，灰尘满布。藏家发现玉雕，透知其珍贵之处，因此在玉商没有留心前，迅速从他手上买下玉雕。自此，玉雕一直为藏家珍藏，不再流入市场。

廿年后，藏家决定将玉雕流回市场。此次拍卖，为玉雕首次公开亮相于艺术品市场。

作品类比：

此件玉雕风格能与多件明末清初作品类比：

面容形象圆润优美，头发指甲刻画仔细的特征能见于：“和合二仙” 及 “刘海戏蟾”两件作品,  见于《中国玉雕》（香港：市政局，1983）； 另一件 “刘海戏蟾” 则见于 Asian art in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery (《阿瑟米赛克勒画廊藏亚洲艺术品》，华盛顿: 阿瑟米赛克勒画廊, 1987年)

荷叶流转之刻工的特征能见于： Roger Keverne 古玩, 玉器, 2010年, 页144， 图录 39 与 40, 页160，图 82； “荷叶夏蝉”， 见于《中国玉雕》（香港：市政局，1983）；“翠玉叶形笔洗”， 见于《清代玉雕艺术》 (台北：国立历史博物馆，1990)