AN ARCHAIC YELLOW & RUSSET JADE DRAGON PENDANT, EASTERN ZHOU DYNASTYOpinion: The quality of this example is perhaps most visible when images of the right and left sides are viewed simultaneously, because only then it bes apparent how much care was given by the craftsman to ensure that the spiral c-scroll clouds were laid out in an identical fashion. The quality is further personified by the rare color of the jade and the magnificent polish.China, 6th-4th century BC. Carved in the form of a sinuous dragon, with head turned looking back, the s-shaped body with spirals carved in relief. The translucent stone of a fine yellow tone with russet shadings at the edges.Provenance: Collection of Pierre Lallier. Pierre Lallier (1946-2021) was a master printer, having run the famous Atelier Georges Leblanc since 1968. He was also a passionate scholar andmitted private collector, spending nearly half a century of his life building his private collection. He started at the age of 12, perusing the Parisian flea markets with his father, extensively researching every piece of interest, while also confirming its dating and provenance. He loved his objects, cherished them, and never wanted to part with them.Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, few minuscule nicks, some of which have smoothened over time. Natural inclusions and fissures.Weight: 21.9 gDimensions: Length 8 cmJade, known as the ‘Stone of Heaven’, represents wisdom, beauty, courage, and perfection. Thisbined with the powerful iconography of the dragon, creates a strong symbol of luck and good fortune. Jades in this form have a long tradition of being used as ritualistic objects, in particular tokens of rank and symbolic aids for the celestial journey thought to be undertaken by the dead. In the Zhou dynasty, the number of ritualistic jades increased significantly in burial sites, as multiple plaques, pendants, and beads were draped over the face and body of the deceased.Literatureparison:Refer to Michael Gulbenkian’s article Archaic Jades, Arts of Asia, May-June 1983, where the carved c-scroll cloud motif is used as a methodology to date archaic jades.Auction resultparison:Type: Closely relatedAuction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 30 May 2017, lot 2719Price: HKD 1,860,000 or approx.EUR 239,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.Description: A white jade dragon-form pendant, Warring States period (475-221 BC)Expert remark: Thisparable shows another iteration of the same design. Particular attention should be paid to the depiction of the lower jaw and snout of the dragon as they are executed in the same manner. While the primary color of the stone is of a different hue, the Christie’s pendant also has an attractive russet tinge around the outer edges, possibly signifying that both these ‘pendants’ were carved from pebbles just slightly larger than their finish