CHINESE BUDDHIST RUYI SCEPTER

17 ¾” length, celadon green jade. The primary terminal scalloped in sixths with the cardinal one pointed toward the center. Opposite, the terminal in eight symmetrical scallops. Each relief carved with calligraphic cipher in foliage. Rectangular central medallion with large calligraphy in stylized foliate surround. Arched central handle with double calligraphy segments on stipple ground. Anthropologist Berthold Laufer said in 1912 that the Chinese accounts of the ruyi are "more unsatisfactory" than for any other object in Chinese culture. Their origins are somewhat obscured and their eventual function, complex. They are symbols of authority and wealth and treasured as works of art which when bestowed as gifts, bring best wishes of the highest order.