Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art

all between key-fret bands at the rim and base. The cover with a central ‘yinyang’
knob surrounded by three recumbent rams separated by three ‘taotie’ mask motifs.
The stone of light celadon tone with brown and russet inclusions.
Compare a similar cup without a cover, sold at Sotheby’s New York, 20 March
2007, lot 623. Another similar cup can be found in René-Yvon Lefebvre
d’Argencé, ‘Chinese Jades in the Avery Brundage Collection’, San Francisco,
1972, plate L, p. 115. A comparable cup excavated from a Ming dynasty tomb
dated 1676 and located outside of Beijing, is illustrated in ’Wenwu’, Beijing,
1963, fig. 18, no. 1, p. 42.