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Lot Essay
Woven for both the Imperial court and nobility, Qing dynasty rugs were often made for a specific place or function. Based on the use of the symbolic motifs and its rectangular format, this carpet was most likely made as a daybed cover that would have been reserved for an important guest.
The Boone carpet belongs to a small group of eighteenth century Lion-dog carpets that display a central medallion with axial points and pinched corners containing two circling lion-dogs around a single central coin. In the Ming period, circling lion-dogs can be found on carpets, but it isn’t until the Kangxi period (1662-1722) that one finds circling lion-dogs around a coin contained within a medallion.
There are five examples from the Kangxi period with similar pinched central medallions providing the prototype for the Boone carpet, the most famous of which is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and originally in Louis Comfort Tiffany’s collection (M. S. Dimand and Jean Mailey, Oriental Rugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1973, p. 315, fig. 282).
Michael Franses notes that there are only eight lion-dog carpets from the early 18th century, with our Boone carpet being among the earliest (M. Franses, Lion-Dogs Hundred Antiques Classical Chinese Carpets I, London, 2000, p. 44). In the Boone carpet, the lion-dog medallion rests on a “longevity field”, a motif composed of four C-motifs around a center evoking stylized clouds. The filler motifs of this lattice design include bats, a sign of good fortune, and peaches, symbolic of a long life. A similar “longevity” carpet without a medallion is in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection (F. Spuhler, The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection: Carpets and Textiles, London, 1998, plate 58).
In the corners of this carpet are highly stylized dragon fret motifs which can also be seen on the Mishel two lion-dog medallion and peony field platform cover that is also from the first half of the 18th century (M. Franses, ibid., plate 9).
The golden coin is one of the eight ordinary symbols of Buddhism and the long ribbons attached to and flowing from it symbolize its rays and aura, warding off evil. The combination of lion-dogs with a coin as well as the symbolic “longevity” field conveys protective qualities, ideal attributes for a daybed cover.
The Boone carpet belongs to a small group of eighteenth century Lion-dog carpets that display a central medallion with axial points and pinched corners containing two circling lion-dogs around a single central coin. In the Ming period, circling lion-dogs can be found on carpets, but it isn’t until the Kangxi period (1662-1722) that one finds circling lion-dogs around a coin contained within a medallion.
There are five examples from the Kangxi period with similar pinched central medallions providing the prototype for the Boone carpet, the most famous of which is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and originally in Louis Comfort Tiffany’s collection (M. S. Dimand and Jean Mailey, Oriental Rugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1973, p. 315, fig. 282).
Michael Franses notes that there are only eight lion-dog carpets from the early 18th century, with our Boone carpet being among the earliest (M. Franses, Lion-Dogs Hundred Antiques Classical Chinese Carpets I, London, 2000, p. 44). In the Boone carpet, the lion-dog medallion rests on a “longevity field”, a motif composed of four C-motifs around a center evoking stylized clouds. The filler motifs of this lattice design include bats, a sign of good fortune, and peaches, symbolic of a long life. A similar “longevity” carpet without a medallion is in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection (F. Spuhler, The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection: Carpets and Textiles, London, 1998, plate 58).
In the corners of this carpet are highly stylized dragon fret motifs which can also be seen on the Mishel two lion-dog medallion and peony field platform cover that is also from the first half of the 18th century (M. Franses, ibid., plate 9).
The golden coin is one of the eight ordinary symbols of Buddhism and the long ribbons attached to and flowing from it symbolize its rays and aura, warding off evil. The combination of lion-dogs with a coin as well as the symbolic “longevity” field conveys protective qualities, ideal attributes for a daybed cover.