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Lot Essay
This finely carved lacquer box and cover appears to be the only known example of its type, and is in remarkably good condition. It is especially rare to find all the gilt-decorated trays in the interior intact. There are several lacquer boxes of this shape and size known, but they are either of qiangjin lacquer or inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
Unlike the Eight Buddhist Emblems (bajixiang) or the Seven Regal Symbols (qizhengbao), which always comprise of the same set of objects, the Eight Precious Objects (babao) is a more haphazard selection of objects from a long list of auspicious symbols. However, each of the eight symbols depicted on the present box represents one of the Eight Daoist Immortals, commonly known as the Eight Concealed Immortals (anbaxian), and is a set combination. The Eight Daoist Immortals are commonly associated with the Birthday celebration of Shoulao, therefore the depiction of these symbols on the present box expresses the wish for the recipient's longevity.
A red qiangjin lacquer box of similar shape and decorated with lotus scrolls is illustrated in Empress Dowager Cixi - Her Art of Living, Hong Kong, 1996, p. 74. A black qiangjin lacquer box of the same form but decorated with butterflies in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Zhongguo qiqi quanji, vol. 6, Fuzhou, 1993, p. 20, no. 20. A mother-of-pearl inlaid black lacquer box, also of similar form, is decorated with the Eight Concealed Immortals both on the outside and on the trays in the interior. This box was said to be Emperess Dowager Cixi's personal box, and is illustrated in Women in the Forbidden City, Nishi-Nihon Shimbun, 1999, no. 118. A blue and white and yellow-enamelled moonflask in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is similarly decorated with these symbols and is illustrated in Good Fortune, Long Life, Health and Peace: A Special Exhibition of Porcelains with Auspicious Designs, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1995, no. 40 p. 114-115.
Unlike the Eight Buddhist Emblems (bajixiang) or the Seven Regal Symbols (qizhengbao), which always comprise of the same set of objects, the Eight Precious Objects (babao) is a more haphazard selection of objects from a long list of auspicious symbols. However, each of the eight symbols depicted on the present box represents one of the Eight Daoist Immortals, commonly known as the Eight Concealed Immortals (anbaxian), and is a set combination. The Eight Daoist Immortals are commonly associated with the Birthday celebration of Shoulao, therefore the depiction of these symbols on the present box expresses the wish for the recipient's longevity.
A red qiangjin lacquer box of similar shape and decorated with lotus scrolls is illustrated in Empress Dowager Cixi - Her Art of Living, Hong Kong, 1996, p. 74. A black qiangjin lacquer box of the same form but decorated with butterflies in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Zhongguo qiqi quanji, vol. 6, Fuzhou, 1993, p. 20, no. 20. A mother-of-pearl inlaid black lacquer box, also of similar form, is decorated with the Eight Concealed Immortals both on the outside and on the trays in the interior. This box was said to be Emperess Dowager Cixi's personal box, and is illustrated in Women in the Forbidden City, Nishi-Nihon Shimbun, 1999, no. 118. A blue and white and yellow-enamelled moonflask in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is similarly decorated with these symbols and is illustrated in Good Fortune, Long Life, Health and Peace: A Special Exhibition of Porcelains with Auspicious Designs, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1995, no. 40 p. 114-115.