A RARE CARVED CINNABAR LACQUER BRUSH AND COVER16th/17th century The shaft expertly carved around the exterior with a writhing scaly dragon chasing a flaming pearl of wisdom, all amidst wispy clouds, the cover similarly decorated. 24cm (10in) long. (2). Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價 十六或十七世紀 剔紅云龍紋筆及蓋 Provenance : Spink & Son Ltd., London, 6 January 1995 Published, Illustrated and Exhibited : Spink & Son Ltd., Far Eastern Art at Spink , London, Summer 1994, no.36 來源 ：倫敦古董商 Spink & Son Ltd.，1995年1月6日 展覽及錄著 ：Spink & Son Ltd.，《Far Eastern Art at Spink》，倫敦，1994年夏，編號36 The brush is the most important implement for the scholar according to The Four Treasures of the Study ,posed by Song dynasty literatus Su Yijian in 986. Over the centuries, the brush was not just a functional tool for writing and painting, but became a work of art in itself, with the decoration on the shafts bing ever more diversified in various materials. pare with a similar carved cinnabar lacquer brush and cover, 16th/17th century, illustrated in Karamono: Imported Lacquerwork- Chinese, Korean and Ryukyuan: Selections from the Tokugawa Art Museum , Nagoya, 1997, p.47, no.70. See also a related carved cinnabar lacquer 'dragons' brush and cover, late Ming dynasty, which was sold at London, 11 May 2021, lot 136.