Page 232 - Bonhams, The H Collection, Classical Chinese Furniture, May 13, 2021 London

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A FINELY-CARVED CINNABAR LACQUER The term jiuru, meaning ‘nine wishes’, 蓋盒桃形，子母口，通體髹朱漆 ，盒內髹黑
PEACH-SHAPED BOX AND COVER also refers to boxes shaped as a peach, 漆。蓋面隨形開光，內雕山水亭台。盒底亦
Qianlong underscoring auspicious symbolism relating 桃形開光，雕蝙蝠一隻。蓋面及盒身邊沿於
The cover finely carved through thick layers to birthday wishes. Combined with the 六角形錦地之上交替分佈五蝠祥雲。此器朱
of cinnabar lacquer with a peach-shaped imagery of the peach (symbolic of longevity), 漆色澤肥厚鮮麗，紋飾繁複精細，極富立體
medallion depicting a landscape dotted with and the bat (conveying happiness), this 感，盡顯乾隆一朝的華美風尚。
pavilions and pine trees along a river bank, would have made the present vessel an
the rounded sides of the cover and box appropriate birthday gift. Peach blossoms are 桃在中國傳統文化中的象徵意義源遠流長，
embellished with hexagonal diaper enclosing mentioned in the ‘Book of Poetry’, Shijing, 無論是桃形用器還是裝飾主題都極受歡迎。
bats interspersed with clusters of vaporous where they were treated as a symbol for the 先秦古籍《山海經》記述神荼與鬱壘二神人
arrival of Spring. The ‘Record of the Peach
ruyi clouds, the foot encircled with a band of Blossom Spring’ Taohua yuan Ji, by Tao Qian 居東海度朔山桃樹下，閱領萬鬼，成為後世
upright lappets surrounding key-fret borders (365-427) describes a fisherman entering a 門神的原型，桃符也從而被附加了辟邪之功
around a recessed base with a central bat on paradisiacal world through a peach orchard. 用；《詩經·桃夭》篇則以桃花喻女性之美
a diaper ground. At later times, peaches became associated 好，「桃花源」更是文人逸士理想世界的指
17cm (6 2/8in) long. (2). with Daoism and with man’s concern of 代。明清以來，以桃為長壽象徵的裝飾母題
attaining Immortality. Beautiful peaches were 十分流行，這與其在道教語境下長生不老之
£12,000 - 15,000 believed to grow in the luxurious garden of 寓意息息相關。蓋面及盒身邊沿雕飾五蝠，
CNY110,000 - 140,000 the Queen Mother of the West, the main 意指「洪福齊天」，五蝠音同五福，即代表
Daoist deity, and Shoulao, also known as the 「高壽、康寧、富貴、好德、善終」，搭配
清乾隆 剔紅山水亭台桃式蓋盒 God of Longevity, is often depicted holding 壽桃形制，象徵福祿壽三喜兼備。

a peach. Compare with a similarly-shaped
cinnabar lacquer peach-shaped box and 參考清宮舊藏一件清中期剔綠加彩渡海圖桃式
Provenance: cover, mid Qing period, decorated with a 盒，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系：清代漆
Sotheby’s Paris, 12 June 2013, lot 56 central panel depicting the Immortal Zhang 器》，香港，2006年，圖版67。另見一例漆
An important European private collection Guolao crossing the sea, illustrated in The 器收藏世家李氏家族舊藏清乾隆剔紅桃式九如
Complete Collection of Treasures of the 寶盒，「大清乾隆年製」楷書款，售於香港佳
來源： Palace Museum. Lacquer Wares of the 士得，2012年11月28日，拍品編號2108。
巴黎蘇富比，2013年6月12日，拍品編號56 Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong, 2006, pl.67. A
歐洲重要私人收藏 related cinnabar lacquer peach-shaped box
and cover, Qianlong six-character mark and of
the period, decorated with an Immortal under
a tree on a river bank, was sold at Christie’s
Hong Kong, 28 November 2012, lot 2108.

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