登录
Expert’s note: This side table is a superb example of elegant proportions and exquisite craftsmanship. It is an inspired variation of the standard design and exceptional in several ways. Its most distinctive element is the openwork stretcher design reminiscent of archaic jade pendants. This feature is rare among published tables and compares with only very few examples, chiefly a table carved with stretchers in the form of stylized phoenixes in a similar jade-inspired style, dated to the 17th century at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 13 August 2015, lot 14 (see auction comparison below). The elaborate ruyi-decorated spandrels and feet are similarly archaic elements, derived from the open-panel box construction developed as early as the Tang dynasty. Several small wine tables with such features can be seen in the Song-dynasty painting album, Tianlai ge jiucang Songren huace, part of which is illustrated in Wang Shixiang’s Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture, vol. I, Hong Kong, 1990, p. 55, fig. 2.20. The legs with central ‘incense-stick’ molding under beaded edges are a classic Ming design that was continued in the Qing dynasty into the 18th century, see a Ming-era jiuzhuo wine table from the Mary and Cheney Cowles collection sold at Bonhams New York, 20 March 2023, lot 82 (see auction comparison below); and a Qing-dynasty qiaotou’an at Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 November 2017, lot 2950.
China, 17th-18th century. The single-board floating panel top above a beaded apron with ruyi-cloud-form spandrels, supported on slender square-section legs with central ‘incense-stick’ molding under beaded edges and terminating in ruyi-shaped feet, joined by openwork stretchers carved with a scrolling cloud motif reminiscent of archaic jade pendants.
Provenance: From an important Dutch private collector and connoisseur of Chinese art, acquired before 1955 and thence by descent in the family. The collector assembled his collection during an extended period of residence in China, acquiring works with a discerning and scholarly eye before returning to the Netherlands in 1954. Preserved in its entirety within the same family thereafter, the collection was distinguished by its remarkable breadth and scholarly character, encompassing imperial porcelain, bronzes, furniture, silk robes, jade, books, and scrolls. No object from the collection, including the present lot, had appeared on the market prior to its dispersal in 2026.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear and manufacturing irregularities. Few minor dents and few elements slightly loose. Fine, exceptionally beautiful grain and naturally grown patina overall. A huanghuali table of this age in such well-preserved condition must be considered rare.
Weight: 31 kg
Dimensions: Size 85.5 x 135 x 43 cm
The present wine table belongs within the broader tradition of the pingtou’an, literally a “flat-end table.” Unlike the qiaotou’an, whose ends rise in everted flanges, the pingtou’an has a level rectangular top and a restrained architectural profile, supported on recessed legs with shaped aprons and spandrels. Such tables were used in domestic, scholarly, and ceremonial settings, serving as side tables, display stands, altar tables, painting tables, and intimate surfaces for wine vessels and refined objects.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 20 March 2023, lot 82
Price: USD 1,980,375 or approx. EUR 1,910,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A huanghuali recessed-leg wine table, Jinzhou, Ming dynasty, late-16th/early-17th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and the related form with similar beaded legs and ruyi feet. Note the size (79.7 x 96.8 x 59.8 cm)
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 13 August 2015, lot 14
Estimate: HKD 9,000,000 or approx. EUR 1,250,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: Long pingtouan table, Huanghuali wood and huamu Late Ming to early Qing (1600-1700)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and design with similar openwork stretchers reminiscent of jade pendants.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 11 October 2022, lot 7
Estimate: HKD 3,024,000 or approx. EUR 365,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A large huanghuali recessed-leg altar table, Late Ming dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related manner of carving and design with similar apron and spandrels.
|
|
| Galerie Zacke | |
| 地址： | Zelinkagasse 6, 1010 Vienna, Austria |
| 电话： | 0043-1-5320452 |
| 邮编： | 1070 |
| 向卖家提问 | |
