19TH CENTURY

Details

A Chinese ivory carving of a doctor's lady
19th Century
Carved as a naked woman lying in recumbent position supporting her head with her right arm, her left arm resting demurely on her body, wearing bangles at her wrists, her black hair tied back in a knot, her face with delicate features
20.5 cm. long

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

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Lot Essay

Figures of this type have in the past been known as 'medicine ladies' or 'doctor's models', based on the notion that when a doctor visited a woman she would reach through the curtains of her bed and touch the ivory figure to indicate the spot causing her trouble. Figures like the present one are now believed to have had a more erotic intention, and their nakedness and specific position to be based on Sino-Spanish ivory figures of the infant Jesus that would have been seen by Chinese craftsmen during the Ming dynasty.

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