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Lot Essay
This magnificent pair of zitan lantern stands and zitan and softwood lanterns was once in the collection of the legendary actor Bela Lugosi (1882-1956), famous for his role in the 1931 movie Dracula. In gratitude for a long friendship and years of assistance, the present pair of lanterns was gifted to the grandmother of the present owner in the 1950s, shortly prior to Lugosi's death, and have remained in the family home ever since.
These types of imperial lantern stands and lanterns would certainly have been amongst the lavish Palace furnishings of the early-mid 18th century. They are superb examples, owing to their size, style and quality of carving, and substantial use of precious zitan. This may also suggest a date of Yongzheng or early Qianlong period, as such refinement is not often seen on later examples. The present pair of lantern stands is very similar to another zitan lantern stand preserved in the Palace Museum, illustrated in Ming Qing Gong Ting Jia Ju Da Guan, Beijing, 2006, pp. 392-93, no. 413, where it is dated to the middle Qing period. (Fig. 1). Both the present pair and the illustrated example feature phoenix-form terminals, cylindrical centre sections, and vase-shaped bases on square plinths. However, the Palace lantern stand, while supporting a slightly more elaborate lantern, is less elaborate in its carved ornamentation.
Lantern stands and lanterns of this kind were used to illuminate one of the myriad rooms in the Palace. See, for example, the pair of closely related lanterns suspended above and flanking a zitan throne chair in the Chang Chun Gong (Hall of Eternal Spring) in the Forbidden City, illustrated in Palaces of the Forbidden City, New York, 1984, p. 104. In the same image, also flanking the above mentioned throne, one can see a pair of feather ornaments on similartall zitan pole supports and bases, and it is quite possible that the present pair of lantern stands and lanterns were intended to be used in similar fashion, flanking a large throne chair in one of the Palace chambers.
These types of imperial lantern stands and lanterns would certainly have been amongst the lavish Palace furnishings of the early-mid 18th century. They are superb examples, owing to their size, style and quality of carving, and substantial use of precious zitan. This may also suggest a date of Yongzheng or early Qianlong period, as such refinement is not often seen on later examples. The present pair of lantern stands is very similar to another zitan lantern stand preserved in the Palace Museum, illustrated in Ming Qing Gong Ting Jia Ju Da Guan, Beijing, 2006, pp. 392-93, no. 413, where it is dated to the middle Qing period. (Fig. 1). Both the present pair and the illustrated example feature phoenix-form terminals, cylindrical centre sections, and vase-shaped bases on square plinths. However, the Palace lantern stand, while supporting a slightly more elaborate lantern, is less elaborate in its carved ornamentation.
Lantern stands and lanterns of this kind were used to illuminate one of the myriad rooms in the Palace. See, for example, the pair of closely related lanterns suspended above and flanking a zitan throne chair in the Chang Chun Gong (Hall of Eternal Spring) in the Forbidden City, illustrated in Palaces of the Forbidden City, New York, 1984, p. 104. In the same image, also flanking the above mentioned throne, one can see a pair of feather ornaments on similartall zitan pole supports and bases, and it is quite possible that the present pair of lantern stands and lanterns were intended to be used in similar fashion, flanking a large throne chair in one of the Palace chambers.