A LARGE NANMU BURL STAND 17TH/18TH CENTURY

In literature from the sixth century AD, naturally crooked wooden armrests and stands were a symbol of the humble life.  By the Tang Dynasty, this type of furniture was the latest fashion.  Chairs made from branches began appearing in Buddhist settings, the humble materials implying a frugal life of hard work.  In the late Ming and Qing, rootwood furniture were used by the literati in their studios and gardens symbolising a life of refined leisure. 

Compare a similar root wood stand in Richard Rosenblum, Art of the Natural World, Boston, 2001, fig. 14.  Also compare a hardwood stool carved in the form of a rootwood stool, sold in our New York rooms, 21st September 2006, lot 177.