Page 90 - Bonhams Hong Kong The Skinner Moon Flasks

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A VERY RARE PAIR OF IMPERIAL POLYCHROME
AND QIANGJIN LACQUER ‘DRAGON’ BANQUET BOXES
AND COVERS
Qianlong
Each of rectangular form, the covers with gilt-wire mesh quatrelobed
windows on each side, colourfully decorated in polychrome and
gilt with a ferocious front-facing five-clawed dragon holding the
flaming pearl enclosing the character sheng, surrounded by further
eighteen sinuous three-clawed dragons in flight amidst lingzhi-shaped
vaporous clouds and emerging from crashing waves and rockwork
at the sides, the interior with gilt-lacquered trays set with ten circular
divots, all carefully incised and painted in gilt, red and green colours
above a black lacquer ground, fitted boxes.
Each 53.5cm (21in) long x 23.5cm (9 1/4in) deep x
24.8cm (9 3/4in) high (6).

HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
US$130,000 - 190,000

清乾隆 彩漆描金雲龍紋看盒一對

Provenance:
J.Lester Jervis, San Francisco
Bonhams San Francisco, 21 June 2011, lot 8242

來源：
舊金山J.Lester Jervis舊藏
舊金山邦瀚斯，2011年6月21日，拍品8242

The highly prosperous reign of the Qianlong emperor, combined with The Imperial archives record in the 11th month of the 8th year of the
the Imperial taste for outstanding works of art in every field, allowed Qianlong reign (corresponding to 1743), as follows:
for the development of technical virtuosity, necessary to supply the
exacting Imperial standards. These elements are all demonstrated ‘[The] Eunuch Hu Shijie presented a carved red lacquer dragon-
in the very rare present lot, which was most probably made in decorated sheng (聖) box and cover, together with a rectangular-
accordance with the direct instructions of the Qianlong emperor. shaped polychrome lacquer kanhe (看盒) box containing ten silver
base cloisonné cups...

By Imperial decree of the emperor: make a pair of boxes after the form
of the polychrome kanhe (看盒) and following the style of the carved
lacquer dragon and sheng box and cover...’.

The archives also record that the Qianlong emperor further ordered
brass base instead of silver base cloisonné enamel cups, with gilt
characters of wanshou wujiang (萬壽無疆), and with an inscription as
noted above, to be made and placed in the boxes.

The pair of boxes was completed and presented to the emperor in
1746.

See The World Rejoices As One: Celebrating Imperial Birthdays in the
Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 2015, pp.298-299; and Zhang Rong, ‘Carved
Red Lacquer ‘Flying Dragon’ Banquet Box’, Forbidden City, Beijing,
1989, p.16, no.4.

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