Page 99 - Bonhams, The H Collection, Classical Chinese Furniture, May 13, 2021 London

Made of rich and dense huanghuali, the
present picnic box is a classic form which has
been constructed in an unusually small and
graceful size.

The shape of tiered boxes appears to have
remained unchanged since at least the
Song dynasty (AD 960-1279), when they
were, however, larger and probably made
of bamboo or soft woods, used to transport
food and wine. An illustration from ‘The
Golden Lotus’ Jin Ping Mei, Ming dynasty,
in the National Museum of History, Taipei,
depicts a man carrying a sack across one
shoulder and a picnic box in his right hand;
see Wang Shixiang, Connoisseurship of
Chinese Furniture, vol.1, Hong Kong, 2016,
pp.95-96.

By the Ming dynasty, tiered boxes started to
be made in smaller sizes and could be easily
carried in one hand. These smallest versions,
such as the present example, were generally
made of valuable precious hardwoods,
such as huanghuali and zitan, and usually
employed to carry small valuable objects.
This is reinforced by the presence of a lock
mechanism securing the lid to the sides of the
handle, rendering the box trays inaccessible.

Compare with a similar but larger huanghuali 23
two-tiered box, Ming dynasty, illustrated by
G.Wu, Living with Ming. The Lu Ming Shi
Collection, Hong Kong, 2000, p.203, no.65.

提盒形狀經典，以袖珍型式呈現。長方框造
底座，兩側端樹立柱，有站牙支撐，上安橫
梁，構件相交處均嵌鑲銅葉加固。提盒兩
撞，連同盒蓋共三層。下層盒底落在底座槽
內。沿口起燈草線，以加厚子口。盒蓋兩側
立牆正中以及立柱相對應的部分打眼，以銅
條貫穿，使各層無脫落之虞。

此種分層而有提樑的長方形箱盒樣式自宋
代定型，以軟木或竹製居多，用於出行時
盛放酒食。且體積不一，較大的槓箱需兩人
抬運，較小的食格則可一人肩挑兩具，或只
須一手提擎。明刊本《金瓶梅詞話》第七回
插圖，繪一人肩頭荷物，一手提盒，即為示
例。見王世襄著，《明式家具研究》卷一，
香港，2016年，頁95-96。

及至明代，提盒外型益發小巧，並開始選用
如黃花梨、紫檀等名貴木材製造。形如本例
的袖珍提盒並非用作盛放食物，而是貯藏玉
石印章、小件文玩之具。本例層層銜扣，並
以銅條貫穿盒蓋，更利於財物保管。

比較一例明黃花梨雙層提盒，造型相似但尺
寸稍大，見伍嘉恩著，《侶明室家具圖集》
，香港，2000年，頁203，編號65。

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