A PAIR OF HUANGHUALI ROUND-CORNER TAPERED CABINETS (YUANJIAOGUI) EARLY QING DYNASTY, 17TH CENTURY

each cabinet top of standard miter, mortise and tenon, tongue-and-grooved floating panel construction, the four main stiles double-tenoned into the top with one tenon exposed, thumb-molded on the outside and squared on the inside, beaded along the edge between the stiles and the side panels and doors, the doors of typical mortise, tenon and floating panel construction, centered by a removable stile, the door frame fitted toward the center with curved and shaped rectangular huangtong plates with square-section lock receptacles and shaped door pulls, the slightly splayed legs joined by a plain spandreled apron, the interior of the cabinet with one removable shelf over two rectangular drawers with huangtong plates and pulls (2)

Property of an American Collector.
Sotheby's New York, 23rd March 1999, lot 39.
Acquired from the above sale by A. Alfred Taubman.

There are small patch repairs to all four front corners of both cabinets. There are patched and filled repairs to splits and knots. This a large patch repair to one lower back side panel and another side panel has a filled tenon. The spandreled aprons are glued in and are likely replaced. The back aprons are missing. The interior shelves and back panels are soft wood. Some of the panels have some splits or gaps due to slight shrinkage. There has been expected and appropriate consolidation but the frame of both cabinets is slightly loose due to age and use. The interior and exterior have been shellacked. The color of the wood is not as dark as pictured but is better deep honey or amber color.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

One of the most ingenious and beautiful designs of classic Chinese furniture is the round-corner tapered, wood-hinged cabinet. The four main stiles are recessed from the corner of the top and slope gently outward in a subtle, almost imperceptible splay. This simple design feature is both aesthetic and functional as it gives the cabinet both a refined elegance and stability. The doors, with extended dowels on both ends, fit into sockets in the cabinet frame members and act as hinges. Free from the necessity of applied hinges, the visual focus lingers on the strong outline and luster and grain of the hardwood.  For detailed information on the development of Chinese cabinets see Sarah Handler, ‘Cabinets and Shelves Containing All Things in China’, Journal of the Classical Chinese Furniture Society, Winter, 1993, pp. 4-29.  

Compare two related cabinets illustrated in Wang Shixiang, Classic Chinese Furniture, London, 1986, pl. 141, from the author’s collection, and pl. 145 from the collection of the Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau which is square-cornered but with similarly concave molded posts. Another slightly larger cabinet of this type, attributed to the Ming dynasty and in the Honolulu Academy of Arts , Honolulu, is published in Gustav Ecke, ‘Notes on Chinese Furniture’, Chinese Furniture. Selected Articles from Orientations 1984-1999, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 87; and another in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, is included in Robert D. Jacobsen and Nicholas Grindley, Classical Chinese Furniture in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, 1999, pl. 52.

A similar pair of cabinets of smaller dimension was sold in our Hong Kong rooms 7th April 2014, lot 3652. Two pairs of comparable cabinets were sold in our London rooms on 6th November 2013, lot 57 and 15th May 2013, lot 65. A pair of square cornered cabinets from the Arthur M. Sackler Collection, of similar dimensions to the present pair was sold in these rooms on 16th September 2009, lot 23. A similar pair of slightly smaller dimensions was sold in our London rooms, 11th November 2015, lot 13.