A RARE GILT-LACQUERED ZITAN DISPLAY CABINET

THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN

Details

A RARE GILT-LACQUERED ZITAN DISPLAY CABINET
QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

The upper portion of the cabinet with tiered shelves of varying height, shape and size, framed by openwork borders depicting bats flying amidst cloud-scrolls, the black-lacquered back panel gilt-painted with figures and pavilions in landscapes, with a small compartment on the left side enclosed by a pair of openwork floral-pattern hinged doors with cloisonne enamel locks, beside a central drawer and above a further pair of larger drawers, all carved with bats amidst clouds and swirling waves, the lower portion of the cabinet with a pair of hinged zitan doors deeply carved with a pair of dragons leaping above crashing waves amidst scrolling clouds, with baitong mounts, all above a shaped apron with a carved 'bats and clouds' design, the lacquered side panels gilt-painted with further landscape views, and the back and interior painted with scattered fruit and flower sprays
76 3/8 in. (194.5 cm.) high, 37 in. (94 cm.) wide, 15 3/8 in. (39 cm.) deep

Lot Essay

Cf. Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (II), The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2002, pls. 213-233, for examples of display cabinets made from various types of woods; with pl. 216, a zitan display case (see fig. 1), the most closely related to the upper portion of the present cabinet; and pl. 228, also of zitan wood, which is quite similar in its overall structure, although lacking the gilt painting.

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