A CARVED CINNABAR LACQUER TRILOBED TRAY MING DYNASTY, 16TH CENTURY

shaped like an arrowhead leaf, the interior deeply carved with the gathering of scholars at the 'Lanting' (Orchid Pavilion), Wang Xizhi sits alone at the window of a small cottage as his friends congregate along the banks of the stream and servants prepare wine cups to float down stream upon lotus leaves, the shallow sides of the exterior carved with a dense ground of flowers of prunus, camellia, and hibiscus, the base lacquered in black

There are a few minor chips to the tips and short minor age cracks, one running across on the underside from one corner horizontally across to the opposite corner. The foot has a minor 8mm chip. The overall condition is very good with no warping and the original lacquered base.
"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."

The scene on one side depicts the famous gathering of literati at the Orchid Pavilion near Shaoxing in Zhejiang during the Spring Purification Festival in 353 AD, immortalized in Wang Xizhi's Lanting Xu ('Preface of Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion').  A group of forty-two scholars met to compose poems and enjoy wine.  One of the drinking games that they played was to float wine cups down a river, when a cup stopped in front of a scholar, he was required to drink the wine and compose a poem.  In the end twenty-six of the participants wrote thirty-seven poems. 

Lacquer trays in this form are very rare.  A tray of similar shape with a Jiajing mark painted in gold and red with a carp on a water weed ground in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 45, Hong Kong, pl. 154.  The depiction of the Lanting gathering is found elsewhere on cinnabar lacquer boxes, such as a circular box in the National Palace Museum depicting the scene also set in a bamboo grove, illustrated in Emperor Ch'ien-lung's Grand Cultural Enterprise, Taipei, 2002, cat.no.38, and a larger rectangular one sold in Christie's Hong Kong, April 28, 2003, lot 730.  See a Qianlong period cinnabar lacquer screen illustrating this scene offered in our current Imperial sale, lot 2862.

Wang Xizhi was held in high esteem by the Qianlong Emperor who treasured the calligrapher's Kuai Xue Shi Qing Tie (Sudden Clearing after a Lively Snowfall) alongside two other great masterpieces of calligraphy, in the Sanxitang named after them (The Hall of Three Rarities). The calligrapher, known for his fondness for geese, also appears as a subject-matter on his own on various pieces produced at the Imperial workshops, see for example a jade screen carved on one side by Yao Zongren with Wang Xizhi and a goose, and with a copy of Wang Xizhi's Kuai Xue Shi Qing Tie by the Emperor carved on the reverse by Zhu Cai, sold in Sotheby's Hong Kong, The World of Qianlong, April 27, 2003, lot 23.