Lot 444
444
AN UNUSUAL EIGHT-PANEL COROMANDEL SCREEN
THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 
AN UNUSUAL EIGHT-PANEL COROMANDEL SCREEN

KANGXI PERIOD, INCISED WITH CYCLICAL RENZI YEAR DATE, CORRESPONDING TO AD 1672 AND OF THE PERIOD

Details
AN UNUSUAL EIGHT-PANEL COROMANDEL SCREEN
KANGXI PERIOD, INCISED WITH CYCLICAL RENZI YEAR DATE, CORRESPONDING TO AD 1672 AND OF THE PERIOD
The screen finely carved on one side with an extensive scene, probably representing Yaochi or the Turquoise Pond in the Daoist paradise on Mount Kunlun, depicting numerous immortals and attendants, including Shoulao, the Eight Daoist Immortals, and Xiwangmu seated in a deer-drawn chariot accompanied by the Jade Maidens and a host of celestial female musicians in the clouds above, the reverse with various water birds, including a pair of mandarin ducks and egrets in a setting of a lotus pond and various trees and plants growing amidst rocks, with smaller birds on the ground and in flight above, with a colophon bearing the cyclical date, Kangxi renzi jiu qiu yue, corresponding to the ninth month in the autumn of the renzi year in the Kangxi period
72 in. (188 cm.) high; 126 in. (320 cm.) wide

Lot Essay

Large screens decorated with landscape scenes were popular during the Kangxi period, and were an important part of household furnishings, often displayed on special occasions. The present lot is an excellent example of an unusual type, decorated with an elaborate scene of Daoist immortals.

The scene depicted may be that of a celebration on the auspicious occasion of Shou Lao's birthday. The god of Longevity is shown seated as the landscape opens up to the vast Eastern Sea to the right, and rises to the undulating Kunlun mountain ranges to the left, from which Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West, arrives with her retinue on billowing clouds. Originating from Song dynasty plays, variations of this image have been a favorite recurrence in Chinese art throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties.

A similar coromandel lacquer screen depicting the birthday celebration for Shou Lao, but of twelve panels, was sold in our London rooms, 8 June 2004, lot 471.

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