A very rare white and russet jade 'boy and cat' brush rest


Yuan/Ming DynastyFinely carved as a recumbent boy, lying in a relaxed posture with his legs crossed, wearing a tunic belted at his waist over trousers exquisitely adorned with a diaper ground stopping short of his bare feet, his head raised looking up with a cheerful expression, caressing and holding a recumbent cat tucked between his arms, the stone of even white tone with russet inclusions cleverly utilised to denote the trousers, box. 7.5cm (2 15/16in) long (2).
|元/明 白玉帶皮雕童子戲貓Provenance: Durwin Tang Collection來源：鄧德雍收藏The theme of boys playing with animals represents a traditional motif developed over a thousand years and favoured on account of the implied wish for the prosperity of male offspring and continuity of the family. In the present carving, cleverly carved to form a brush rest for the literati desk, the recumbent boy is holding a cat. The cat is a pun for 'age eighty to ninety', making this piece appropriate for a birthday gift.Compare with a related jade standing figure of a boy holding a black cat, illustrated by A.Forsyth and B.McElney, Jades From China, Bath, 1994, pl.242; compare also with a related white jade 'boy and cat' group, attributed to the 18th century, from the Muwen Tang Collection, which was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 1 December 2016, lot 15.