Lot Essay
A number of gilt-bronze and cloisonné enamel lanterns remain in situ in the Palace Museum, Beijing.
The present lot can best be compared to a pair of hanging lanterns of double-gourd form and glass panels which can be seen in the bedroom behind the 'Hall of Mental Cultivation' (Yang Xin Dian). Another example, although of quadrangular shape, is still in the second west room of the 'Palace of Eternal Spring' (Chang Chun Gong). They are all illustrated in Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (II) - The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong 2002, pl.249 and 255.
The present lot can best be compared to a pair of hanging lanterns of double-gourd form and glass panels which can be seen in the bedroom behind the 'Hall of Mental Cultivation' (Yang Xin Dian). Another example, although of quadrangular shape, is still in the second west room of the 'Palace of Eternal Spring' (Chang Chun Gong). They are all illustrated in Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (II) - The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong 2002, pl.249 and 255.