A MAGNIFICENT AND RARE IMPERIAL 'QIANGJIN' AND 'TIANQI' LACQUER TABLE |

the mitered rectangular top resting on a scrolling apron and secured by two transverse stretchers on the underside, supported on slightly flared 'sword' legs terminating in metal-capped hoof feet and joined by two parallel stretchers, superbly incised and coloured in varying shades of red, green and burnt umber transmuting to black, all picked out with traces of gold filling within the incisions, the table top with a large barbed panel enclosing a five-clawed en face dragon writhing among ruyi-shaped cloud around a 'flaming pearl', its powerful scaly body contorting in mid-air above tempestuous waves, all within a border of black key-fret repeated around the edges and reserved on an orange ground figured with red leiwen, the four corners similarly decorated with lobed panels enclosing a five-clawed dragon and fitted with ruyi-shaped gilt-metal mounts delicately incised with lotus, the apron and legs further incised on the larger ends with confronting dragons vying for a pearl above a central gold flower and picked out with billows of multi-coloured clouds on the sides and back of the legs, all within borders of black key-fret and beneath wansymbols around the top's outer edge, the underside lacquered red and numbered liu ('six') in black paint

Presented as a wedding gift to the parents of the current owner in the 1960s.

The table has been reduced in height and adapted to a modern coffee table height. The top has re-lacquering to consolidate cracks. There are two long horizontal cracks on the top - one extending near the top left and the other extending from the centre right and extending to the centre. The metal fittings may have been later added. The apron and legs have some re-lacquering to consolidated cracks. The stretchers may be later replacements. The tips of the feet have been fitted in metal to protect the wood and lacquer. The underside of the table was inscribed with the 六 (six) character. The table is of good solid construction and is very sturdy.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In its shape and design this rare table closely follows a type more commonly associated with the Wanli period of the Ming dynasty. The present table shares the same cusped aprons that extend to rectangular sectioned legs each gently flaring to leaves, pad and extending to supports at the feet, with a Wanli marked table of the same type in the Palace Museum Beijing, illustrated in Classics of the Forbidden City. Classics of the Forbidden city. Imperial Furniture of Ming & Qing Dynasties, Beijing, 2008, p. 142, fig. 155. Wang Shixiang observes that forms and designs of Chinese furniture did not change significantly over time, often following earlier prototypes, compare Wang Shixiang, 'Development of Furniture Design and Construction from the Song and the Ming', Chinese Furniture. Selected Articles from Orientations 1984-1999, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 42. A distinguishing feature of these later tables, however, is the small flower bud at the centre of the apron as seen on the present table, a feature that can be found on other examples of late Ming and early Qing tables of this type, compare, for instance, two tables dated to the late Ming or early Qing period also in the collection of the Palace Museum, published in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1), Hong Kong, 2002, pls. 103 and 156. Like the present table, both these examples are decorated with a painted lacquer design of sinuous writhing dragons. Polychrome lacquer furniture that was either brush painted or gold-engraved and filled-in in the qiangjin and tianqi technique was popular in the late Ming dynasty, its popularity continuing well into the early Qing dynasty such as this rare table shows. Although it does not bear a reign mark, the five-clawed dragons suggest that it was made for one of the halls of the Imperial palaces. The superb quality of the design indicates that it may have been made by the Yu Yong Jian, the Imperial Furniture Workshop, located in the Imperial Palace and responsible for making all the furniture used by the imperial family.