Page 186 - Bonhams Fine Chinese Art Nov 2013 Hong Kong

377 377
A huanghuali rectangular ‘document’ box and cover
378 Late Ming/ early Qing dynasty, 17th century
184 | Bonhams Of rectangular form with mounted metal fittings at the edges shaped
in barbed ruyi-heads and a vertical flip-lock mechanism at the front, the
sides flanked by a pair of loose ruyi-shaped handles, the cover opening
at the hinge revealing the hollow interior.
39cm wide.
HK$60,000 - 80,000
US$7,700 - 10,000

明末清初 黃花梨拜匣

It is difficult to determine the exact functions of this box and cover;
it probably would have been used for various types of documents,
including handscrolls, writing utensils and precious belongings. The
length of such boxes and covers suggests that they are suitable for
regular-sized handscrolls.

Compare a similar-sized document box and cover, exhibited at the
Oriental Ceramic Society of Hong Kong and Fung Ping Shan Museum at
the University of Hong Kong (24 October 1986 - 13 December 1986),
illustrated in Arts from the Scholar’s Studio, Hong Kong, 2011, pp.256-
257, no.251.

378
A huanghuali ‘cosmetic’ box and cover
16th/17th century
The rectangular container with metal mounts at the edges in the form
of barbed ruyi-head shape, flanked by a pair of ruyi-head handles at the
sides, accessed by opening the vertical flip-lock mechanism and raising
the domed cover opening at the hinge, the double doors opening to
reveal four small drawers and a large drawer, each with a bell-shaped
metal finial forming the handle.
34.6cm high.
HK$100,000 - 150,000
US$13,000 - 19,000

十六/十七世紀 黃花梨官皮箱

Although seal chests are quite standard and common during the Ming
and Qing dynasties, the current lot differs from the rest since the cover
has rare angled sides, as illustrated in a Wanli period woodblock-printed
edition of the novel Xixiang Ji or ‘Romance of the Western Chamber’,
depicting a lady seated at a table reading a letter, surrounded by
scholarly items of an inkstone and an identical chest, illustrated in Arts
from the Scholar’s Studio, Hong Kong, 2011, p.256, no.252, fig.1.

The famous collector Wang Shixiang claimed in his book on Chinese
furniture that these were ‘cosmetic’ boxes rather than seal boxes.