This figure of a woman carved from ivory is dressed in the costume of the early Qing period. She holds a baby on her knee and a little boy reaches up to the infant. All the surfaces except those representing flesh are elaborately painted and gilt. China has a long tradition of ivory carving, and in the early 20th century vast quantities of African ivory were imported to feed the trade in Chinese ivory carvings. China remains, together with Hong Kong, the leading user of ivory in the world.