Chinese Toggle Depicting a Bird

A slim insect-shaped plaque with a crosshatched lower body like a woven mat.

This toggle depicting a bird is from China, and dates to the 20th century. It is jade. The dragon is a popular toggle motif symbolizing wisdom, ambition and prosperity, a five-clawed version represented the emperor, and a dragon with a phoenix suggested marriage and was a wedding gift. The upper section shows two large round eyes and a ridged collar, while the lower half is covered in a neat diamond lattice. The stone is a pale mint green with faint brownish shadows. Edges are smooth and rounded. It is 1.5 inches wide, 3 deep and 0.5 high.

The crosshatching alone must have taken some patience.