Description
This tablet is engraved with minuscule characters; the inscribed text is an essay by the Qianlong emperor. The supreme jade quality and similar carving style (for example, the sharp inverted edges) suggest that this jade scepter could have been made during the 1700s with the artistic intent to "model after the past."
Provenance
(John Sparks, London, England, sold to Severance and Greta Millikin) (?–1971); Severance A. [1895–1985] and Greta [Marguerite Steckerl] Millikin [1903–1989], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (1971–1989); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1989–)
Accession Number
1989.327
Medium
white jade with black markings and incised decoration
Dimensions
Overall: 10.5 cm (4 1/8 in.)
Classification
Jade
Credit Line
Bequest of Mrs. Severance A. Millikin
