A large mother-of-pearl and gilt-lacquered box and cover


Probably Ryukyu Islands, 17th centuryThe box of circular form with a flattened cover, finely decorated with a profusion of multi-shaped 'flower-balls' arranged asymmetrically and scattered across the whole surface, some freely floating, others overlapping in small clusters of two to five blooms, all carefully inlaid with mother-of-pearl and connected by leafy tendrils on a brown lacquer ground embellished with gilt flecks, the interior lined with red. 35.9cm (14 1/8in) diam. (2).
|十七世紀 或琉球國 黑漆描金嵌螺鈿團花蓋盒Delicately inlaid with mother-of-pearl clusters of flower heads floating on minute gilded flecks, the present box appears to be closely related to the lacquer wares produced in the Ryukyu Islands, where the lacquer art become increasingly popular between the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century under strong influence from China. From historical and literary records of the time, it is known that lacquer wares decorated with techniques using mother-of-pearl, gold inlay, gold leaf and lacquer painting were exported in large quantities to China.Compare with a related mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer box and cover, Wanli mark and period, from the Collection of Mr and Mrs Fritz Low-Beer, New York, illustrated by R.S.Jenyns and W.Watson, Chinese Art: The Minor Arts, London, 1963, p.367, no.174.By the early Qing dynasty, the roundels became less stylised and more freely rendered as flowers defined by petals radiating or spiralling from a centre, one such example is in the Palace Museum, Beijing, Mid-Qing dynasty, illustrated in Lacquerware in the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2012, no.252. Another related black lacquer and mother-of-pearl box, Mid-Qing dynasty, is illustrated by Chen Lihua, Many Splendors: Yuan, Ming and Qing Lacquerware from the Chao Collection, Beijing, 2010, no.106.圓盒木胎，通體黑漆作地並嵌螺鈿團花紋，間以描金及灑金草葉紋。此盒或為琉球國漆器，琉球漆藝，多受中國影響，兼納百家文化，其漆雕自十五世紀至十六世紀漸興。其嵌螺鈿、戧金、箔繪及彩繪漆器曾大量出口中國。而眾藝之中，嵌螺鈿為琉球漆器主流。類似螺鈿飾團花之漆盒，見Fritz Low-Beer夫婦藏明代萬曆一例，著錄於R.S.Jenyns 及 W.Watson，《Chinese Art: The Minor Arts》，倫敦，1963年，頁367，編號174。清代中期兩例，見北京故宮博物院一件，著錄於《故宮經典：故宮漆器圖典》，北京，2012年，編號252；另見曹氏收藏一例，著錄於陳麗華，《重華綺芳：曹氏藏元明清漆器》，北京，2010年，編號106。