Cat and butterfly on a leaf

This cat resting on a leaf is carved from grayish jade suffused with white mottling and streaked with brown and black mottling. The cat looks up with an alert expression. Its tail curls along its body, and a bell is tied around its neck. Small hatch lines indicate the hair on its ears, chin, and tail. A butterfly hovers on the edge of the upturned leaf, which shows beautiful veins carved in relief. The butterfly's wings are dark—for the craftworker specifically selected the dark markings in the stone for the wing areas.

Cats and butterflies are symbols of longevity. The cat, mao, is a homonym for "seventy," while the butterfly, die, shares the same sound as "eighty." Together, they form a rebus for maodie. This term implies that one would live to be seventy or eighty — considered old age in ancient China. This carving of a cat and butterfly is thus a birthday present, to wish the recipient longevity.