A Chinese white jade brushwasher, xi, Qianlong mark and of the period, carved to the interior in low relief with three butterflies and a flowering begonia branch, issuing from the exterior, slightly flared footrim, incised seal mark to base 17cm diameter, on associated hardwood stand set with stained ivory reticulated panelsProvenance: Justus Blank, Dutch East India Company, and thence by descentNote: A combination that can be found on Chinese porcelain as early as the Yongle reign (1403-24), the butterfly and begonia combination was often utilised in Qing dynasty decoration in order to suggest a duplication of auspicious wishes, owing to the fact the word for butterfly 蝶 (‘die’) is a homophone of the word 疊, which means ‘to repeat’, and also 耋, which means ‘over seventy or eighty years of age’, an auspicious expression of longevity. The begonia, known as ‘qiuhaitang’, is a flower than blooms in autumn; with ‘tang’ being a homophone for ‘clan’. The combination of the pair of butterflies hovering around the begonia blooms expresses the wish for heightened honour and distinction for the family.Butterflies are also symbolic of love and everlasting happiness in marriage, owing to the fact that butterflies play a important part in many traditional Chinese stories. Of these stories, one of the most notable is The Butterfly Lovers 梁山伯 by the Ming dynasty writer Feng Menglong (1574-1646), in which the lovers Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai are transformed into butterflies after death.Cf. For a comparable brushwasher, see Sotheby's London, Important Chinese Art, 10th May 2017, Lot 114清 乾隆款及時代 白玉雕花卉蝴蝶紋洗 隨座

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