A PALE CELADON JADE ‘CHILONG’ RETICULATED PLAQUE, MING DYNASTY China, 15th-16th century. Finely carved in openwork within a beaded oval frame, the slightly domed plaque with a central sinuous two-clawed chilong with bifid semi-concave tail and flattened ears forming scrolls, twisting its slender body amid scrolling vines and leafy foliage, the haunches with scrolls and hairwork extending towards the claws, all enclosed by 32 stylized pearls forming the oval frame. The translucent stone is of a pale celadon hue with icy inclusions. Provenance: A private collection in Ann Arbour, Michigan, USA. S. Marchant & Son, 12 June 2006, stock number R7563. Dr. Kenneth P. Lawley, acquired from the above. A copy of the original invoice from S. Marchant & Son, dated 12 June 2006, confirming the dating above, and stating a purchase price of GBP 4,250 or approx. EUR 9,800 (converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing), accompanies this lot. Marchant & Son was founded in 1925 by Samuel Sydney Marchant (1897-1975). It held a large stock of Asian art, but also dealt in arms and armor, paintings, and continental porcelain. In 1953, Richard Marchant joined his father and from that time onwards the partnership specialized in Asian art. Nowadays the company’s focus is on Imperial Chinese Ming and Qing porcelains, jades, cloisonné, pottery, and works of art. Dr. Kenneth P. Lawley (1937-2023) was a chemical physicist in The School of Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh. His collection started in the early 1960s, and for the first twenty-five years of his collecting career Dr. Lawley made the majority of his purchases from the Davies Street gallery of Bluett and Sons. Working within a fairly small budget – Lawley had a small private income as well as his emoluments from the University of Edinburgh – he often sold pieces back to the firm to finance more expensive purchases. Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear and minuscule nibbling to edges. The jade with natural fissures, some of which may have developed into small hairline cracks. Weight: 79 g Dimensions: Width 9.2 cm Literature comparison: Compare a related rectangular jade plaque with a central chilong amid scrolling vines enclosed by a similar frame, 7 cm long, dated to the Ming dynasty, in the British Museum, registration number 2022,3034.202. Compare a related reticulated jade plaque with a central dragon, dated to the 16th century, in the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number 1643-1882. A belt slide with a goose encircled by stylized pearls and an openwork rectangular dragon plaque also with a sinuous dragon and stylized pearl border, with some certainty dated to the Yuan period, are illustrated by James C. Y. Watt, Chinese Jades from Han to Ch’ing, Asia Society, 1980, p. 190-191, nos. 175 and 176. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s London, 10 May 2017, lot 52 Price: GBP 22,500 or approx. EUR 37,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: A pale celadon reticulate jade ‘dragon’ plaque, Ming dynasty, late 15th/16th century Expert remark: Compare the related form with a sinuous dragon amid similar scrolling vines and leafy foliage. Note the size (10.5 cm).