composé d'une base rectangulaire reposant sur quatre roues ajourées décorées de têtes de ruyi et cerclées de bronze doré, s'ouvrant à un tiroir latéral, les côtés sculptés de fleurs de lotus sur fond géométrique, supportant une partie centrale légèrement en retrait encadrée aux quatre angles de colonnettes en bronze doré, entièrement habillée de panneaux verticaux sculptés de diverses fleurs sur fond noir, surmontée d'une troisième et dernière partie plus large composée d'un plateau accueillant quatre boîtes en angle droit autour d'une boîte centrale, toutes très finement sculptées de lotus et rinceaux sur le dessus et d'un motif géométrique se répétant sur les côtés (24)
Collection of Dottore Bruno Canto, Milan.
Presented to his daughter on her marriage in 1948 and thence in the family by descent.
The chariot comprises 19 parts: The base with 4 wheels, the box, the tray carrying five double boxes and four gilt-bronze supports. The base shows a horizontal crack along one side of the box where the wood and lacquer have split along the joints (ca. 25cm). There is a ca. 9.5x7cm triangular loss the black lacquer and underlying cloth covering the base, a 8x2.5cm triangular loss to the black lacquer inside one of the drawers in the base and a small 2x3cm large loss the the black lacquer covering the inside of the second drawer. The upper surface of the base shows a horizontal crack to the wood and lacquer along the width of the base (ca. 25cm) and some areas of loss to the lacquer (the largest ca. 5x3cm) where the box was glued to the base at some stage in its history.
There are small areas of loss to the carved lacquer on one corner of the box and a ca. 1cm wide chip to the carved lacquer on the lower edge of the box on one side. There are also some small areas of loss to the lacquer along the inside edge of the box.
There are losses to the carved lacquer on the four corners of the tray and one of the small gilt-bronze finials is missing. The inside surface of the tray is finely incised with a lotus scroll and the surface shows slight overall traces of wear where the boxes were placed. There are light losses to the edges and corners of the boxes and covers.
"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."
Carved lacquer containers in the form of a four wheeled cart were made to satisfy the Qianlong emperor’s passion for unusual boxes made to hide or camouflage objects in a curios way or to contain small objects he much treasured, hence often referred to as ‘curio or treasure boxes’. The emperor also had a great interest in objects that looked like something else or appeared to have been made in a different material. Boxes of this type served a number of functions; they were collector’s boxes made to contain scholarly objects, possibly a writing set, such as the cart in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in
Masterpieces of Chinese Carved Lacquer Ware in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1971, pl. 41, the top of which is similarly fitted with five smaller containers; or functioned as wheeled incense boxes, an example of which can be found in the Palace Museum, Beijing, published in
Carved Lacquer in the Palace Museum, Beijing, 1985, pl. 361, of similar form, top and wheels, but the side made in openwork to allow the incense smoke to exit.
While a number of carved cinnabar-lacquer wheeled carts of this type are known in important museum and private collections, the present example is especially fine with its intricate and deep carving. Its form is modelled after imperial carriages, as depicted on the court painting titled Emperor Kangxi’s Tour of the South by Wang Hui and others, published in Court Painting of the Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 1992, pl. 16, where four similar carriages are shown in a lined procession.
Further examples of cart-form containers of this type include one from the collection of Her Majesty Queen Mary, Buckingham Palace, with twelve side panels carved with a flower design emblematic of each month, included in the International Exhibition of Chinese Art, the Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1935, cat. no. 2334; one from the collection of A.W. Bahr, illustrated in A. W. Bahr, Old Chinese Porcelain and Works of Art in China, London, 1911, pl. CXVII (Fig. 1); another offered in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th October 2008, lot 2213, with double tiers; and a further example, the cover simulating three scrolls piled on an album, property of the Right Honorable Lord Hollenden, sold in our London rooms, 18/19th December 1973, lot 464, attributed to Qianlong’s reign.
