Page 264 - Important Chinese Art Hong Kong April 2, 2019 Sotheby's

This exquisite box is remarkable for its elaborate form and
meticulous carving, and epitomises the Qianlong Emperor’s
fondness for objects that simulated other materials. The
Emperor actively challenged craftsmen working in every
media to create pieces that were technically innovative and
unconventional in their aesthetic. In this case the depiction
of bound books and scrolls is particularly suited as the box
would have contained such artworks.
The Qianlong Emperor was an avid collector of paintings
and calligraphies by revered masters, and was a versed
calligrapher and poet himself. During his reign he undertook
numerous projects to document his vast collection, including
the Bidian zhuli (Pearl Forest of the Secret Hall) and the
Shiqu baoji (Precious Collection of the Stone Moat), a
two-part catalogue of the imperial collection of paintings
and calligraphies compiled between 1744 and 1745. As the
collection continued to grow, a supplement was compiled in
1793. The fragile nature of works on paper and silk, and the
Emperor’s personal fascination with this art form, fostered
the creation of exquisitely crafted boxes intended for their
preservation.
A very similar box in the National Palace Museum, Taipei,
is illustrated in Carving the Subtle Radiance of Colors.
Treasured Lacquerware in the National Palace Museum,
Taipei, 2014, pl. 151; another in the Shanghai Museum, was
included in the museum’s exhibition In a Myriad of Forms:
The Ancient Chinese Lacquers, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai,
2019, cat. no. 107; one carved in the form of three scrolls
stacked on books, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, was
included in the Museum’s exhibition The Imperial Packing
Art of the Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 1999, cat. no. 33; and a third
also in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Carved
Lacquer in the Palace Museum, Beijing, 1985, pl. 390.
Three boxes carved in the form of books are in the Palace
Museum, Beijing, the first is illustrated as part of a lacquer
writing set in Zhongguo qiqi quanji [Complete collection of
Chinese lacquer], vol. 6, Fuzhou, 1993, pl. 232, the second
is illustrated in Classics of the Forbidden City. Lacquerware
in the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2012, pl. 96,
and the third is published in Carved Lacquer in the Palace
Museum, op. cit., pl. 395; a further a box, in the National
Palace Museum, Taipei, is illustrated op. cit., pl. 150; one
in the Tianjin Art Museum, is published in Zhongguo qiqi
quanji, op cit., pl. 221; two were sold in these rooms, 23rd
October 2005, lots 390 and 394; and another was sold at
Christie’s Hong Kong, 31st October 2000, lot 1012. A display
cabinet including boxes carved in the form of books, from
the Toms collection, was sold at Christie’s London in 1995,
at Christie’s Hong Kong in 2002, and most recently in these
rooms, 9th October 2007, lot 1645; and a rectangular box
on wheels with three scrolls at the top, from the collection
of Lord Hollenden, was sold in our London rooms, 18th-19th
December 1973, lot 464.
Boxes carved in the form of books and scrolls were also
made in wood; see for example one in the Palace Museum,
Beijing, included in the exhibition The Imperial Packing Art
of the Qing Dynasty, op. cit., cat. no. 36; and a wood and
ivory cabinet with scrolls and books, in the National Palace
Museum, Taipei, illustrated in A Garland of Treasures:
Masterpieces of Precious Crafts in the Museum Collection,
Taipei, 2018, pl. IV-72.