CHINA 1870 QING DYNASTY SOAPSTONE SCULPTURE OF A RESTING GOAT BA

SOAPSTONE SCULPTURE OF A GOAT WITH LITTLE BABYA GORGEOUS CHINESE SOAPSTONE MINIATURE SCULPTURE FROM THE PERIOD OF THE QING DYNASTY (1644-1911), CIRCA 1870.IT WAS FINELLY HAND CARVED FROM A SINGLE PIECE LUSTROUS GREENISH-BROWNISH SOAPSTONE DEPICTING THE SEATED MATERNAL FIGURES OF A GOAT AND HER BABY.HAVE A MEASURES OF 2.75 BY 1.52 BY 1.96 Inches (6.98 x 3.86 x 4.98 Cm).THE GOAT OT RAM HAS APPEARED IN ARTWORKS AND IS CONSIDERED AN AUSPICIOUS ANIMAL SYMBOL THROUGHOUT CHINESE HISTORY THANKS TO ITS AUSPICIOUS IMPLICATIONS. ACCORDING TO SHUOWEN BY XU SHEN, THE RAM, OR YANG羊 IN CHINESE, MEANS AUSPICIOUSNESS OR GOOD FORTUNE (XIANG祥). FURTHER, THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THE BOWL REFERS TO A PROPITIOUS PHRASE “SAN YANG KAI TAI 三陽開泰” , OR LITERALLY “THREE YANG INITIATE THE TAI”. THE YANG HERE REFERS TO THE OPPOSITE OF YIN, BUT IT HAS THE SAME PRONUNCIATION WITH RAMS IN CHINESE. THE SUBJECT OF THE PHRASE DERIVES FROM THE BOOK OF CHANGES. THE TRIGRAM FOR THE FIRST MONTH OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR, TAI, OR PEACE, HEXAGRAM ( AS REPRESENTED BY SYMBOLS), IS COMPOSED HARMONIOUSLY OF YIN AND YANG ELEMENTS, WHILE THREE YANG FORM THE BASE OF IT. IT SYMBOLIZES PEACE THROUGHOUT THE HEAVENS AND EARTH. FURTHER, FOLLOWING THE GRADUAL ECLIPSES OF YIN LINES BY YANG IN PRECEDING HEXAGRAMS, THE TAI HEXAGRAM MARKS THE CUMULATIVE COMPLETION OF THE TRANSIT FROM WINTER TO SPRING, FROM OLD YEAR TO THE NEW, SPECIFICALLY THE INTERVAL BETWEEN THE WINTER SOLSTICE AND THE FIRST LUNAR MONTH. THIS HAPPY COURSE