17TH-18TH CENTURY

Details

A HUANGHUALI RECESSED-LEG BENCH, CHUNDENG
17TH-18TH CENTURY
The woven mat seat is set within a wide rectangular frame above curved aprons and ruyi-head-shaped spandrels. All supported by rectangular legs terminating in taotie masks feet and joined by double-stretchers to the sides.
18 1/2 in. (47 cm) high, 13 in. (33 cm) deep, 40 1/2 in. (103 cm.) wide

Provenance

Grace Wu Bruce, Hong Kong, 1997

Literature

National Museum of History, Splendor of Style: Classical Furniture from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Taipei, 1999, p. 63.
Grace Wu Bruce, Ming Furniture Through My Eyes, Beijing, 2015, p. 169.

Exhibited

Splendor of Style: Classical Furniture from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, National Museum of History, Taipei, 26 June-5 September 1999.
Crow Museum of Asian Art, Dallas, Texas, on loan from 2007-2014.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California, on loan from 2014-2019.

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory, tortoiseshell and crocodile. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Further details

Please note these lots incorporate material from endangered species which could result in export restrictions. You should check the relevant customs laws and regulations before bidding on this lot if you plan to import the lot into another country. Please refer to Christie’s Conditions of Sale.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Pola Antebi (安蓓蕾) Deputy Chairman, Asia Pacific, International Director

pantebi@christies.com +852 2978 9950

Lot Essay

The present bench is distinguished by the finely carved aprons and well-balanced proportions. It can be compared to a 17th century huanghuali bench with similarly shaped spandrels, but slightly smaller in size, and with straight plain legs illustrated by Curtis Evarts, A Leisurely Pursuit: Splendid Hardwood Antiquities from the Liang Yi Collection, Hong Kong, 2000, pp. 56-57, no. 6. The carved spandrels of the present bench can also be compared with a 17th century bench of slightly larger size, illustrated by Gustav Ecke, Chinese Domestic Furniture, Rutland, Vermont and Tokyo, 1962, pl. 56. A huanghuali example with recessed-legs and plain stretchers and feet was sold at Christie’s London, 10 November 2015, lot 387.

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