the rounded body supported on a slightly splayed circular foot, carved and intricately pierced with a meandering scroll of flowering peony blossoms, enveloped by curled leaves issuing from winding stems, above a lappet border, set with four clusters of peonies carved in high relief rising to the rim to form the handles, the domed cover similarly carved and pierced, with a circular and compressed openwork peony spray knop, the stone of pale celadon color with creamy-white and yellow inclusions and gray speckles, wood stand (3)

Francis Ralston Welsh Collection.
Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., New York, 25th-27th May 1938, lot 346.
Mrs. Georg Vetlesen Collection.
Stanley Charles Nott Collection.
The Estate of Mary Dunbar Bridegroom, acquired in Hong Kong, 1976, and thence by descent.

Stanley Charles Nott, Chinese Jade Carving of XVIth to the XIXth Century in the Collection of Mrs. Georg Vetlesen, London, 1939, Volume Two, no. 92, p. 208.

The censer has a small chip to the interior rim and exterior foot ring. Both the censer and the cover have scattered minute nicks to the rims. The tip of one petal on the knop has a knock. Otherwise, in overall good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The carving of this jade censer and cover is exceptional. It is intricately done, demonstrating the quality of eighteenth century craftsmanship. Two white jade examples are in the Beijing Palace Museum collection and illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum – Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, nos. 42 and 43, pp. 53 and 54. Other similar examples were sold in these rooms 29th September 1989, lot 420 and our London rooms 17th December 1996, lot 264 and at Christie’s New York, 20th September 2005, lot 16.

The provenance of this piece is notable for having been in two important collections. Stanley Charles Nott, a recognized connoisseur and author of several books on jade, was a famous dealer in New York and Florida. The majority of his collection is now held in the Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, Florida. Mrs. Georg Vetlesen, an American philanthropist, gifted much of her jade collection to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. which has presented it as a long term loan to the Birmingham Museum of Art in Alabama.