CHINA, LATE 16TH-17TH CENTURY

The elegant simplicity of this table derives from its pure form and balanced proportions, characteristics that define the restrained, yet sophisticated aesthetic associated with Ming furniture. The dramatic, undulating line of the apron draws the eye in one sweeping motion across the table. The subtly splayed legs join the apron with a flush mitre joint. The use of the rarer flush-mitre joint produces a striking design, whereby the apron and legs meet on a single plane, creating a smooth, unbroken surface and decorative line. This distinct design of the leg is often called ‘sword legs,’ a poetic reference to the pointed mitred tip at the top of the leg and the delicate, carved designs at the knee and feet, akin to the chape and pommel of a sword. Finely carved beaded aprons and legs further accentuate this subtle and commanding silhouette. The present huanghuali table is a Ming-period masterpiece marrying sophisticated construction techniques and innovative design.

Tables of this specific construction can be found dated to the Tang dynasty (618-906 AD) and were constructed in various materials, including lacquer, softwood, huanghuali and zitan. The form of the present table is referred to as a jiuzhou by Wang Shixiang in Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture, Hong Kong, 1990, vol. I, pp. 54-56, where he illustrates a closely related example in black lacquer in vol. II, p. 78, no. B36. While the author notes that the exact origin of the name jiuzhuo is unknown, it was associated with tables of this general form which appear in Ming-dynasty paintings and are used to serve wine and food. Wang continues to say that these wine tables typically have raised, beaded edges on the top frame, presumably to prevent run-off from spilled wine. A mother-of-pearl-inlaid black lacquer table decorated with carved dragons, and bearing a six-character Wanli mark in gilt and of the period, is in the Qing Court collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (I), Hong Kong, 2002, p. 128, no. 108.

A very rare demountable huanghuali table with flush mitre joint, carved with an elongated, cusped apron and double-incense beading on the legs is illustrated in M. Flacks, Classical Chinese Furniture, New York, 2012, pp. 182-185. Another rare huanghuali table of similar construction, with deeply cusped aprons and stylized foliate spandrels is illustrated in M. Flacks, Classical Chinese Furniture, New York, 2012, pp.182-185. Another huanghuali table, with deeply cusped aprons and stylized foliate spandrels is illustrated in Grace Wu’s catalogue, Ming Furniture: 30 October – 18 November 1995, p. 6, no. 2.