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PROPERTY FROM THE MEE-DIN AND ROBERT W. MOORE COLLECTION OF CHINESE LACQUER
A Ming-style cinnabar lacquer 'Lychee' cylindrical box and cover
18th CenturyThe cover carved in deep relief with a dense design of leafy foliage and gnarly branches supporting fecund lychee fruit each individually carved, some with cell-grounds, others more realistically, the continuous design continuing down the vertical cylindrical sides and stopping at a thin band above the plain short foot of the box which is very neatly carved to the base with a geometric T-shaped pattern divided by small wan symbols, the box with indented vertical cylidrical sides which neatly slide within the domed cover 3in (7.6cm) diameter
注脚
十八世紀 剔紅荔枝紋圓蓋盒The Chinese word for 'lychee' is homophonous with 'establishing a son', lizi, meaning to have a son so as to continue the family name. The word is also a pun for 'clever', li. See Terese Tse Bartholomew, Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2006, p. 73, 3.19., where it is noted that from the Han dynasty onwards, the rulers of China demanded it as tribute. Legend has it that lychees were rushed by 'pony express' up to the capital (present-day Xian) to satisfy the whims of Yang Guifei, the favorite concubine of the Emperor Minghuang (713-756 CE.). It is synonymous with fertility, and even today, dried lychee fruit are scattered on the wedding bed. It was particularly popular on Ming dynasty lacquerware.For an eigtheenth century lobed cinnabar example with lychee carved in three colors to the cover and with vertical sides carved identically to the base of our example with a T-pattern ground, see Chiswick Auctions, London, 23 February 2016, lot 33.For a Ming pre-cursor see see Masterpieces of Chinese Carved Lacquer Ware in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1971, no. 19. Two very similar boxes also carved with lychee fruits, dating to the 16th century are illustrated in Carving the Subtle Radiance of Colors: Treasured Lacquerware in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, May-July 2008, no's 48 and 49.For another Ming dynasty example, see Christie's, New York, 16-17 September 2010, lot 1417.
