Page 66 - Bonhams FINE CHINESE ART London November 2 2021

THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 紳士藏品
248 TP Y
AN IMPORTANT PAIR OF HONGMU FOUR-PART COMPOUND
HAT-CHESTS ON CABINETS, DINGXIANG’GUI
17th/18th century
Each cabinet of massive rectangular form constructed from large
panels beneath the hat chests made of two single panel doors, all
similarly decorated in high relief with four sinuous chilong amidst
a profusion of ruyi fungi issuing from meandering leafy stems, all
supported by rectangular-section legs joined by shaped beaded
aprons and spandrels, the hinged doors fitted with shaped lock plates
and pulls, opening to reveal two shelves in each compartment.
Overall 260cm (102 2/8in) high x 127cm (50in) wide x 61cm (24in)
deep. (4).

£150,000 - 200,000
CNY1,300,000 - 1,800,000
十七/十八世紀 紅木浮雕螭龍靈芝紋頂箱櫃成對

Provenance: Charlotte Horstmann and Gerald Godfrey Ltd.,
Hong Kong
A British private collection, acquired from the above on 21 July 1998

來源：香港古董商Charlotte Horstmann and Gerald Godfrey Ltd.
英國私人收藏，於1998年7月21日購自上者

Compound cabinets combine a large square-corner cabinet with a The Portuguese Dominican friar Gaspar da Cruz notes the dominant
smaller upper cabinet or ‘hat cupboards’. Fitted with shelves and often positions of wardrobes in the reception rooms of a house he visited
times with drawers, their generous size made them ideal for storing in 1556, ‘Entering in the first of these houses (which is large) it has
long scrolls, fabrics, garments and books. The upper cabinets, as the therein some huge cupboards very well wrought and carved...’; see
name suggests, would have contained hats or less frequently used S.Handler, Austere Luminosity of Chinese Classical Furniture, Berkley,
items. Although the upper cabinets are of separate construction, their 2001, p.262.
unfinished undersides suggest that the top-cabinets were an integral
part of the design and were never meant to serve as independent Apart from their impressive size, the decoration of lingzhi and
pieces of furniture. On some cabinets, the top sections were so high archaistic chilong is also exceptional. The lingzhi fungus, represents a
that a ladder was needed to access them. In the 18th century novel, combination of spiritual potency and the essence of Immortality, and
Story of the Stone, Granny Liu, a poor distant relative visits the wealthy so naturally regarded as the herb of spiritual potency, symbolising
Jia family compound and is astonished by the size of the furniture: success, well-being, divine power, and longevity. The archaistic
dragons or chilong reflects intellectual trends of archaism that were
‘When I first went into your Ladyship’s apartment yesterday and saw prevalent at the time, as the literati sought new approaches to
those grand chests and cupboards and tables and beds, the size of understanding their ancient heritage which in turn led to a greater
everything fairly took my breath away. That great wardrobe of yours is fascination for decorative designs from ancient bronzes.
higher and wider that one of our rooms back home. I’m not surprised
you keep a ladder in the back courtyard. When I first saw it, I thought Compare with a related hongmu cabinet, mid Qing dynasty, carved
to myself, ‘Now what can they need a ladder for?’...And then of course with motifs of dragons, bats, musical stones and double-fish,
I realised: it must be for getting things out of the compartment on top illustrated by Tian Jiaqing, Classic Chinese Furniture of the Qing
of that wardrobe of yours, for you could never reach it else.’ Dynasty, Hong Kong, 1996, pp.220-221, no.100. See also a related
See D.Hawkes, trans., Cao Xueqin, The Story of the Stone, London, zitan dingxiang gui cabinet carved with ornate floral scrolls, Mid Qing
1974, chapter 40. dynasty, from the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in Imperial Furniture
of Ming and Qing Dynasties: Classics of the Forbidden City, Beijing,
In grand houses like the Jia familiy’s, cabinets such as the present lot 2008, p.24, no.17.
might be used in the inner woman’s apartments and in the reception
rooms to which male visitors were invited. If the master of the house See a related large pair of hongmu compound cabinets, 19th century,
was an official, the wardrobes might contains Court robes and hats. which were sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 2047.

For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
64 | BONHAMS please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue.