The Rat is the first of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The Year of the Rat is associated with the Earthly Branch symbol 子. Reference: Wikipedia. It is often associated with Daikoku, the god of wealth and is often depicted in such a pose.
Two greenish-white jade seated Zodiac human figures 18th Century The first with a rat’s head, dressed in voluminous robes with hands obscured by the long sleeves, the pale greenish stone with some opaque white inclusions; the second with a monkey’s head dressed as a pugilist with a staff in one hand, the celadon hued stone flecked with brown inclusions at the base of the figure. 3.8cm (1 1/2in) high. A complete set of twelve zodiac animals from the 18th century is illustrated in Jadeware (III), The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 111 (fig 1). Astrology used to be a very important part of life in traditional China. Marriages, the opening of a business, relocation, travel, and burial, were just some of the activities dictated by the astrological signs of those involved. The rat is the first zodiac sign and represents zi, the first of the earthly branches, while the monkey represents shen which is the ninth.
Sold for HK$ 108,000 (£ 10,331) inc. premium at Bonhams in 2007
Two greenish-white jade seated Zodiac human figures 18th Century
Sold for €1,300 at Galerie Zacke in 2018
Zodiac Figure: Rat Period:Qing dynasty (1644–1911) Culture:China Medium:Porcelain, in the biscuit and with turquoise and aubergine glazes
Reference: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Netsuke, Japanese toggle, mouse gnawing on a chestnut, wood, maker unknown, Japan, 1700-1900 Made in Japan, 1700-1900. Netsuke, Japanese toggle, mouse gnawing on a chestnut, wood, maker unknown, Japan, 1700-1900. Hand carved wood figure. Depicts a mouse or rat gnawing on a chestnut. The mouse/rat is sitting on its haunches and is leaning over and gnawing a chestnut which it holds in its forepaws. It has large shiny ears and eyes with incised fur and whiskers. This figure is probably a rat which was a popular Netsuke subject as it is an animal of the Zodiac and is associated with Daikoku, the god of wealth and is often depicted in such a pose.
Reference: Museum of Applied Art and Sciences
Rat, from the series Fashionable Twelve Zodiac Signs (Fûryû jûni eto) 「風流十二恵登（えと）」 子 Japanese Edo period about 1770–72 (Meiwa 7–An’ei 1) Artist Isoda Koryûsai (Japanese, 1735–1790)
Reference: Museum of Fine Arts Boston
A WHITE AND RUSSET JADE ZODIAC FIGURE OF A RAT QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD carved seated with the right hand holding a fan and the left hand raised, the back pierced with two small connected holes, the smoothly polished stone with faint russet patches 5.6 cm, 2 1/4 in.
Sold for 212,500 HKD at Sothebys in 2016
Figure with the head of a rat, one of a set of twelve representing the signs of the zodiac. Earthenware with traces of pigment over a white slip. It is represented as a human figure with the head of a rat, hands folded across the chest, draped in a long cloak. Early 8th century (made)
