A twelve-fold Chinese coromandel lacquer screen Qing Dynasty, Kangxi period, dated 1681

the front elaborately decorated with figures amongst pavilions in a landscape, all framed by a band of dragons and ruyi strapwork, encircled by shaped panels variously enclosing flowers, figures and precious objects within a band of stylised lotus scroll, the reverse with a long inscription dedicated to the an official on his birthday and dated 20th year of the Kangxi reign (corresponding to 1681)

With Pelham Galleries, London, 1982.
Acquired from Garrick C. Stephenson, New York, in 1983. Christie’s New York, Michael Taylor and the Alchemy of Design: The Diana Dollar Knowles Collection, 22 October 2013, lot 77.

The screen in good general condition, with the exception of minor flakes/losses to the lacquer, particularly evident around the edges/extremities and the areas along the hinges. There are considerable vertical cracks, as consistent with age. Traces of minor discolouration.
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The well-preserved rich polychrome decoration and complex compositional details place this screen among a distinguished group of surviving works from the first half of the reign of the Emperor Kangxi (1661-1722), a period that represented a golden age of coromandel lacquer, when production was destined for the domestic market and not for export.

The scene on the recto represents a reception or banquet given by Guo Ziyi (697-781), a celebrated general who served under four emperors and is credited with saving the Tang Dynasty by putting down the An Shi rebellion. He was later made a prince and eventually deified in popular culture as a god of wealth and happiness. The subject was a popular one the visual arts of the Ming and Qing dynasties and often depicted in painting and other media, including on an 18th-century coromandel screen sold Christies New York, 24-25 March 2011, lot 1367, and on a Kangxi famille verte rouleau vase in the Metropolitan Museum, New York. The scene also incorporates two banners depicting the shuai character, denoting a high-ranking military or government official, and such flags appear on other screens from the Kangxi period, including one in the Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Cologne dated c.1671-70 and another dated 1680 sold Sotheby’s 1998 (ill. W. De Kesel and G. Dhont, Coromandel Lacquer Screens, Ghent 2002, figs. 27-28 p.42-4).

The subject was highly appropriate for this screen, as the lengthy encomium on the reverse, written by Tong Zhaoqiang indicates that it was commissioned as a 36th birthday present for the Imperial government official Guo Shilong (1645-1716), who claimed to be a descendent of Guo Ziyi. Guo Shilong inherited the office of censor from his father in 1665 and was appointed inspector in 1690 and then governor-general of the Fujian and Zhejiang region in 1695. The inscription outlines Guo Shilong’s numerous achievements in reducing crime and taxation, administering justice and supervising examinations and concludes with birthday wishes on behalf of local magistrates, governors and army officials in his jurisdiction, effusively proclaiming ‘People all over the prefecture are grateful for your contributions and pray for your well-being…You are just like the sun that rises in the morning.’

The term ‘Coromandel’ derives from the name given to the south eastern Indian coast (today forming part of the present-day states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu), where trading posts were established by the Portuguese, Dutch, French and English in the late 16th and 17th centuries. Lacquer wares were transported there on Chinese junks and transferred to European vessels for shipment to the West. The technique refers to a type of lacquer the Chinese call ke hui (literally ‘incised ash’), consisting of a smooth surface in which designs were carved out and coloured with oil or lacquer pigments. Large screens were manufactured from planed panels of softwood coated with 
a mixture of glue, lacquer and bone ash and covered with a fabric to which were painstakingly applied repeated layers of lacquer and ash, followed by further coats of lacquer which were then burnished to obtain a lustrous veneer that could be incised with the designs for colouring. They are believed to have been principally manufactured in Fujian province south of Shanghai to serve the domestic market and were aimed at well-off merchants and civil servants who were unable to afford the lacquer screens with tortoiseshell and mother-of-pearl inlay produced in the Imperial workshops. Seventeenth century examples tended to be between 2.5 and 3 metres high and consist of twelve panels, and were usually employed in entrance halls or as room dividers or windscreens for gardens and terraces. They were often commissioned as birthday or retirement gifts and depicted court scenes, episodes from the world of the immortals, panoramic or landscape views and flora and fauna.

Full translation of the inscription:

A birthday encomium for Censor Guo

Guo ji[1], the prefecture magistrate of Bingzhou in East Han dynasty, has been regarded as a role model by the subsequent officials at all times. The story that hundreds of youngster gathered to welcome Guo’s inspection visit in Hexi Prefecture is still popular and admired nowadays. People in Bingzhou suffered from invasions of bandits for years; however, Guo earned the respects and support of the people for his integrity, compassion and dedicated work ethic. Also, because of his great contributions, Guo’s descendants are still allowed to stay in the enfeoffment after his death.

Gaozhou locates at the southern border of the empire and commands a strategic position connecting Guandong and Guangxi regions. In recent years, Gaozhou has gone through warfare and rebellions so often that people cannot fall asleep during night and more and more people became homeless. In such a chaotic time, most local officials showed carelessness to the situation and deserted soon. Things have been changed since last autumn, when you arrived. You sympathized with the people who were suffering and blamed the chaotic situation on pervious officials’ irresponsibility. You introduced and promulgated a series of new rules in order to restore order and improve people’s life.

Troops were reorganized and retrained in a new way and safety inspection was carried out. The new actions came into effect within a few months. Thereafter, crime has been prevented and reduced; people have stopped crying and complaining and gradually gathered back to the city. Finally, we are able to benefit from a good ruler.

Due to its crucial position, a maritime ban was issued in Gaozhou to limit foreign trade with severe punishment imposed. The local government captured a big boat at sea and the investigation was conducted for two years but failed to come to a closure. Hundreds of people, including local officials and constables, were implicated and were worried about harsh punishments from the court. You were appointed as chief Provincial Judge at that time. You took charge of the case and conducted the reinvestigation and the truth finally came to the light.

You reported the case in detail to the emperor and by doing so the lives of innocent people were finally saved. You received great praises from the emperor and his majesty therefore trusted you with the investigations of all serious and difficult criminal cases. Due to your diligent work, the innocent was released and perpetrators were brought to justice in most cases, which made you a great legendary figure.

Later, the governor of Xinyi Prefecture retired and you succeeded as people in Xinyi demanded. When you arrived, the situation after the rebellion[2] in Xinyi was still bleak and difficult and only a few people lived there. The tax and corvée labour burdens made their life even more miserable. You felt pity for people and petitioned the court for tax exemption. You worked day and night. In three months from January to March, the social order has been restored and the life of people has significantly improved.

Therefore, you are admired and honoured by people in Xinyi. On the day you left, all people in Xinyi gathered spontaneously around the road to pay homage for you. They stopped the carriage and wept for your leaving. You had to comfort them over and over in order to continue the journey.

Provincial-level exam receives great attentions from the court and the central bureaucracy tries to recruit the most intelligent and prestigious candidates to serve as administrative officials. You were elected as the prime supervisor during the exam and under your supervision all the qualified graduates were well-known local educational elite. With your efforts, the cultural environment has been improved and gradually reached the level of the most developed regions of the state.

At that time, I also worked in exam faculty under your supervision. I saw your loyalty and dedication to the court with my own eyes. When you worked in the local government, people honoured you; when you worked in imperial exam faculty, scholar officials supported you. If you have chance to work in the central bureaucracy, you will be a valuable addition to the whole empire.

Today, the 23^rd day of October, is your birthday. People come far and near to pay their homage to you for your virtue and merits. Your subordinates open the ‘spring wine’ and toast for your health and longevity; the common people also raise their wine cups and pray for your wellbeing. I am your subordinate and older than you. The local people asked me to write you the birthday encomium. I am not a bright and clever person, but I will write it in all sincerity and with careful consideration.

In the past, Guo Ji, the magistrate of Bing Zhou, built his reputation through years.

You has been in Gaozhou for just a few years and the people here have already benefit from your rules. You housed the homeless in settled accommodations. People all over the prefecture are grateful for your contributions and pray for your wellbeing. People here love and honour you so deeply, just like the people for Guo Ji in Bingzhou.

The Book of Han says the person who can save thousands of people’ lives can enjoy the long prosperity. In the Classic of Poetry, it is said that only the person who is able to bring prosperity and happiness to people will deserve health and longevity. You are the person of this very kind indeed.

Now you are in the prime of life, a few years older than the General Xun Xian, but one year younger than Xie Tiao, the governor of Xuanzhou[3]. You are just like the sun that rises in the morning. Is there anything else I can write to wish your longevity?

Your ancestor, Guo Ziyi[4], the prince of Fenyang, has made a remarkable contribution to the empire of Tang. However, after his seventies, his descendants failed to continue his glory and prosperity.

Fortunately, after hundreds of years, the emperor acknowledges your talent, listens to your advice and trusts you with important duties. You indeed inherit your ancestor’s glory and continue to contribute to the court. As early as you arrived in Gaozhou, I know by divination that you would make a glorious future just as what you have done. Today I write it down in return for your contribution to the people and the state.

(It is) written on a nice day of the late October of the 20^th year of Kangxi Reign (1681)

by Qiang Zhaotong, the graduate who ranked second class in court exam, the prefecture governor of Dianbai, Gaozhou county, Guangdong province

in all sincerity

 

Three seal marks of Qiang Zhaotong (from above to below)

‘Geng Xu Jing Kui’, the graduate ranking first in the provisional exam of the year of Geng Xu (1670)

‘Qiang Zhaotong Yin’, the seal of Qiang Zhaotong

‘Zai Jian’, (it is) my work

 

on behalf of

Hu Bingxian, the county governor of Huazhou

Shen Delang, the former county governor of Huazhou

Li Heng, the prefecture magistrate of Maoming

Yang Qifeng, the former prefecture magistrate of Maoming

Yu Guangmin, the prefecture magistrate of Xinyi

Tai Songru, the prefecture magistrate of Wuchuan

Yu Jixun, the prefecture magistrate of Shicheng

Yang Yunxi, the government Secretary of Gaozhou County

Tang Xiwu, the Commandant of Guards of Gaozhou County

[1] Guo Ji (39BC-47BC), the regional governor during the reign of Guangwu emperor, well known for his filial piety, diligence and honesty.

[2] The rebellion refers to ‘The Revolt of the Three Feudatories’, a rebellion in the Qing Dynasty during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor. The revolt was led by the three lords of the fiefdoms in Yunnan, Guangdong and Fujian provinces against the Qing central government.

[3] Xun Xian (322-359), the general of the palace in East Jin period; Xie Tiao (464-499), one of the foremost Chinese poets of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Both of them are famous for their talents and achievements at the very young age.

[4] Guo Ziyi (697-781), Prince of Fenyang, was a general during the Tang Dynasty who ended the An Shi Rebellion, and played an important role in expeditions against the peoples of the Uyghur Khaganate and the Tibetan Empire. Guo Ziyi is reputed to be one of the greatest generals in Chinese history and was revered as the best general in East Asia during his lifetime.