Ɏ A RARE HUANGHUALI RECESSED-LEG WINE TABLE, LATE MING-EARLY QING DYNASTY

拍品描述

Ɏ A RARE HUANGHUALI RECESSED-LEG WINE TABLE, LATE MING-EARLY QING DYNASTY Expert’s note: This side table is a superb example of elegant proportions and exquisite craftsmanship. It is an inspired variation of the standard design and exceptional in several ways. Its most distinctive element is the openwork stretcher design reminiscent of archaic jade pendants. This feature is rare among published tables and compares with only very few examples, chiefly a table carved with stretchers in the form of stylized phoenixes in a similar jade-inspired style, dated to the 17th century at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 13 August 2015, lot 14 (see auction comparison below). The elaborate ruyi-decorated spandrels and feet are similarly archaic elements, derived from the open-panel box construction developed as early as the Tang dynasty. Several small wine tables with such features can be seen in the Song-dynasty painting album, Tianlai ge jiucang Songren huace, part of which is illustrated in Wang Shixiang’s Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture, vol. I, Hong Kong, 1990, p. 55, fig. 2.20. The legs with central ‘incense-stick’ molding under beaded edges are a classic Ming design that was continued in the Qing dynasty into the 18th century, see a Ming-era jiuzhuo wine table from the Mary and Cheney Cowles collection sold at Bonhams New York, 20 March 2023, lot 82 (see auction comparison below); and a Qing-dynasty qiaotou’an at Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 November 2017, lot 2950. China, 17th-18th century. The single-board floating panel top above a beaded apron with ruyi-cloud-form spandrels, supported on slender square-section legs with central ‘incense-stick’ molding under beaded edges and terminating in ruyi-shaped feet, joined by openwork stretchers carved with a scrolling cloud motif reminiscent of archaic jade pendants. Dimensions: Size 85.5 x 135 x 43 cm The present wine table belongs within the broader tradition of the pingtou’an, literally a “flat-end table.” Unlike the qiaotou’an, whose ends rise in everted flanges, the pingtou’an has a level rectangular top and a restrained architectural profile, supported on recessed legs with shaped aprons and spandrels. Such tables were used in domestic, scholarly, and ceremonial settings, serving as side tables, display stands, altar tables, painting tables, and intimate surfaces for wine vessels and refined objects. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Bonhams New York, 20 March 2023, lot 82 Price: USD 1,980,375 or approx. EUR 1,910,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and the related form with similar beaded legs and ruyi feet. Note the size (79.7 x 96.8 x 59.8 cm) Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 13 August 2015, lot 14 Estimate: HKD 9,000,000 or approx. EUR 1,250,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and design with similar openwork stretchers reminiscent of jade pendants. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 11 October 2022, lot 7 Estimate: HKD 3,024,000 or approx. EUR 365,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and design with similar apron and spandrels. 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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