Page 156 - Christie's Fine Chinese Paintings March 19 2019 Auction

PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE COLLECTION
~1665
A MAGNIFICENT AND VERY RARE HUANGHUALI PAINTING
TABLE, JIATOUSUN HUA’AN
17TH CENTURY
The single, foating panel is set in the rectangular frame ftted fush at both Any table with proportions of width and depth comparable to those of the
narrow ends with short, everted ends, above the beaded apron and beaded, present table should be considered a painting table. A true painting table
shaped spandrels carved in openwork with ruyi heads. The whole is raised on must have a surface broad enough to accommodate a large painting and
gently splayed legs of round section joined by pairs of stretchers on the narrow the accoutrements associated with painting or calligraphy, such as ink, ink
sides. stones, brushes, and washers, as illustrated by a Ming-dynasty woodblock
32 in. (81.3 cm.) high, 85 in. (215.9 cm.) wide, 24 in. (60.9 cm.) deep print from Xi Xiang Ji. (Fig.1) Tables of this large size would also be ideal for
the appreciation of a painting.
$800,000-1,200,000
The present table is an exceptional example of its type, using thick,
substantial sections of huanghuali for the single-panel foating top, frame,
aprons and legs. As the supply of huanghuali dwindled, tables of this form
generally became thinner and less impressive, owing to the fact that the
material was harder and more costly to obtain. The generous proportions
of the present table would therefore suggest an earlier date. A huanghuali
painting table of similar proportions was sold at Christie’s New York, 22-23
March 2012, lot 1746.
十七世紀 黃花梨夾頭榫畫案

Fig. 1 Woodblock print from Xixiang Ji (Romance of the Western Chamber),
Ming dynasty.

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