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Lot Essay
The massive size of the present table suggests that it would have held a place of great importance at the centre of an altar, or against the wall of a grand hall. See, for example, the placement of a related recessed trestle-leg table, although embellished in mother-of-pearl on a lacquer ground, in the Palace of Gathering Excellence, illustrated in Ming Qing Gong Ting Jia Ju Da Guan, Part II, Beijing, 2006, p. 698, pl. 800. One distinct feature of the present table is the thickness of the top plank, which measures approximately two inches thick, and suggests that the table would have been immensely costly even at the time of manufacture.
A similar huanghuali table of related size (357 cm.) and style, although dated to the Ming dynasty, is illustrated ibid., vol. I, pp. 250-51, no. 287. Of particular note is the similarity of the shape of the spandrels and deep style of carving, which also features dragons amidst tendrils.
A similar huanghuali table of related size (357 cm.) and style, although dated to the Ming dynasty, is illustrated ibid., vol. I, pp. 250-51, no. 287. Of particular note is the similarity of the shape of the spandrels and deep style of carving, which also features dragons amidst tendrils.