Ɏ A FINELY INLAID ZITAN ‘MONGOL HUNTSMAN’ BOX AND COVER, BY SHEN YIRU, MING DYNASTY

拍品描述

Ɏ A FINELY INLAID ZITAN ‘MONGOL HUNTSMAN’ BOX AND COVER, BY SHEN YIRU, MING DYNASTY China, 16th century. The circular box and cover finely carved from dense, dark zitan wood, the cover minutely inlaid with mother-of-pearl, lapis, cinnabar lacquer, stained bone, lacquered wood, soapstone, horn, silver, and gilt bronze with a superbly rendered scene of a Mongol equestrian bowman turning backwards in his saddle, gazing into the distance as his horse stands with its left foreleg raised. The base neatly inlaid in silver wire with a four-character inscription. Inscriptions: To the base, ‘Shen Yiru zhi (made by Shen Yiru)’. Dimensions: Diameter 9 cm Expert’s note: This exquisite box belongs to a rare group of richly inlaid zitan boxes first produced during the Ming dynasty and continued into the Qing, several of which are decorated with comparable Mongolian hunting and equestrian scenes. Works of this exact type are closely associated with Zhou Zhu, the celebrated Ming-period master carver and artist active in Yangzhou during the Jiajing reign. Zhou was renowned for an extraordinarily sophisticated technique—later known as Zhou zhi, or ‘Zhou’s work’—combining hardstones, mother-of-pearl, horn, lacquer, precious metals, and other materials in complex, frequently layered inlays that create a striking sculptural effect. The varied materials, intricate workmanship, and distinctive subject of the present example strongly support a sixteenth-century date. This dating is further confirmed by comparison with a closely related box in the Shuisongshi Shanfang Collection, inscribed with a date corresponding to the dingyou year, 1537, and decorated with a similar Mongolian hunting scene. The design was evidently inspired by contemporary or slightly earlier painting; compare a late fifteenth-century fragment depicting a mounted huntsman holding a falcon, exhibited in Turks: A Journey of a Thousand Years, 600–1600, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2005, cat. no. 162. Shen Yiru was a renowned Ming dynasty carving master specializing in bamboo, wood, ivory, and horn. His works represent the pinnacle of craftsmanship in the Suzhou region at that time and some of his rhinoceros horn cups were exhibited in the Jiangxi Provincial Museum. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: China Guardian, Beijing, 12 May 2024, lot 1156 Price: RMB 3,450,000 or approx. EUR 468,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related decoration, motif, and size (8.7 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 3 April 2012, lot 116 Price: HKD 462,500 or approx. EUR 72,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related decoration and motif. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 23 October 2005, lot 90 Price: HKD 288,000 or approx. EUR 32,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related decoration and motif. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: China Guardian, Beijing, 11 November 2025, lot 1954 Price: RMB 2,070,000 or approx. EUR 267,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the fine inlay work, materials, and Shen Yiru zhi mark. Note the form and size (19 cm). This item contains ivory, rhinoceros horn, tortoise shell, and/or some types of tropical wood and is subject to CITES when exporting outside the EU. It is typically not possible to export such items outside of the EU, including to the UK. Therefore, after this item has the necessary trade certificate, it can only be shipped within the EU or picked up in our gallery in person.

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