QIANLONG (1736-95)

Details

A CARVED THREE-COLOUR LACQUER 'DRAGON' BOX AND DOMED COVER
QIANLONG (1736-95)
Of compressed spherical form, carved through layers of red, brown and yellow lacquer on the cover with a circular medallion containing a writhing five-clawed dragon surrounded by cloud scrolls, the sides with four five-clawed striding dragons chasing flaming pearls, the box similarly decorated with striding dragons above breaking waves, the interior lacquered black and decorated in gilt with floral sprays
11 in. (28.3 cm) diam.

Provenance

Sotheby's London, 28 March 1995, lot 208

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

A box of identical design and similar size was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 16 January 1989, lot 347; and another with an incised Qianlong six-character mark was also sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 27 October 2003, lot 785.
Smaller boxes with comparable decoration but less pronounced height are published, one is illustrated in Carved Lacquer in the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 1985, pl. 316; and another is illustrated by J. Watt and B. Ford, East Asian Lacquer, The Florence and Herbert Irving Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1991, no. 43.

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