A rare tixi lacquer ‘Buddhist lion’ box and cover, Song-Yuan dynasty - Sothebys
of circular form, the flat top carved through the black and red layers to the ochre ground with two Buddhist lions amongst stylised clouds, clasping in their mouths the ends of the ribbons tied to the brocade ball in the centre, the sides of the cover and the box encircled with keyfret bands, the interior and base lacquered black. Quantité: 2 - 27cm., 10 5/8 in. Estimation: 30,000 - 50,000 GBP
NOTE: It is rare to find lacquer boxes of this early attribution, and the present piece is especially fine for its detailed carving and well preserved condition. See a smaller box decorated with the same motif of a pair of Buddhist lions playing with a brocade ball, but attributed to the early 15th century, illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Craved Lacquer Ware in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1971, pl. 2; and another in the British Museum, London, published in Sir Harry Garner, Chinese Lacquer, London, 1979, pl. 40. The British Museum box is similarly attributed to the Ming dynasty. A third related box carved with four Buddhist lions, from the Nezu Institute of Fine Arts, Tokyo, was included in the exhibition Carved Lacquer, The Tokugawa Art Museum, Tokyo, 1984, cat. no. 182. The motif of Buddhist lions playing with a large brocade beribboned ball may also be found on porcelain of the period; for example, see a dish in the Linden Museum, Linden, illustrated in Im Zeichen des Drachen, Linden, 2006, p. 138, pl. 57.
Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. London | 15 mai 2013 www.sothebys.com