A WHITE JADE ‘LYCHEE’ BOX AND COVER, LATE MING DYNASTYChina, 16th-17th century. The shallow box of oval form, carved and incised to the top with two lychees borne on a leafy branch, one lychee with a lozenge pattern, the other with double lined hexagons, all encircled by a line border. The sides carved with bands of stylized phoenixes and key-fret borders. The translucent stone is of a fine white color with a russet and dark gray vein. Note the broad foot rim.Provenance: West Berkshire, United Kingdom, local trade. By repute acquired from a private estate.Condition: Very good condition with expected old wear, little nibbling, a minuscule hairline and loss. The stone with natural inclusions and fissures.Weight: 70.8 gDimensions: Length 6.6 cmLiteratureparison:Compare a closely related celadon jade box and cover with lychee motif, Ming dynasty, in the National Palace Museum of Taiwan, image numbers K1C000839N000000000PAC and K1C000839N000000000PAB. Alsopare a pale celadon jade ‘lychee’ box and cover of related form and decoration, 6.3 cm, Ming dynasty, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, accession number FE.154-1988.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 30 November 2016, lot 3446Price: HKD 625,000 or approx.EUR 85,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A carved white jade 'lychee' box and cover, Qing dynasty, 17th-18th centuryExpert remark:pare the similar color of the jade, the patterns of the lychees, and the size (7 cm). Note the slightly later dating of the piece.明末白玉荔枝紋小蓋盒中國，十六至十七世紀。橢圓形淺盒，盒蓋開光雕刻枝頭兩顆荔枝，紋理不同。蓋盒側面刻有卷葉紋。半透明白玉，帶有赤褐色和深灰色的紋理。橢圓形圈足。