Chinese Toggle Depicting a Cicada

A cicada resting on its side, folded wings fading from brown to pale green.

This toggle depicting a cicada 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 body is seen in profile, with a swollen head, a raised ridge down the back and a tail that tapers off. Faint incised lines mark the wing. The surface is glossy, and small dark spots show near the head. It is 1.25 inches wide, 2.5 deep and 0.75 high.

Napping soundly, for once.