This pale greyish green celadon jade figure of a crouching lion has its head turned back to the left. His tail has a bushy spade end and there are well defined ribbed ribbons on his haunches. This was sold by Spink as Wei Dynasty, but Major Duberly showed it to the leading authorities of the day, including John Ayres of the Victoria & Albert Museum, who called it Ming, though Desmond Gure thought it could have been as early as Tang.

Literature: Anthony du Boulay, The Duberly Collection of Chinese Art at Winchester College (Winchester, 2019), p. 132

Provenance: Bequeathed as part of the Duberly Collection, 1978; purchased by Major Montagu and Lady Eileen Duberly from Spink & Son Ltd., 13 October 1964 (£285)

Location: Treasury, Gallery 2