A fine and rare Huanghuali wasted daybed (Ta). 17th century. Photo Sotheby's

the rectangular soft cane sleeping surface within a frame with molded edge, above a wide apron and beaded lower edge, on square-section tapered cabriole legs ending in ball feet with pointed hoof toes, the underside with four transverse braces, the wood a warm, honey-brown color with a smooth patina. Height 20 1/4 in., 51.4 cm; Width 85 1/2 in., 217.2 cm; Depth 43 1/2 in., 110.5 cm. Estimate 400,000-600,000 USD

PROVENANCE: Property from a European Collection.

Sotheby's New York, 23rd March 1999, lot 30.

NOTE: Daybeds are extremely rare, and this example appears to be unique. An example in elm with shorter legs resting on a bead is illustrated by Nancy Berliner and Sarah Handler, Friends of the House: Furniture from China's Towns and Villages, Peabody Essex Museum, 1995, cat. no. 21. For a lowback bed with similar legs, see Gustav Ecke, ChineseVillages, Peabody Essex Museum, 1995, cat. no. 21. For a lowback bed with similar legs, see Gustav Ecke, Chinese Domestic Furniture, Hong Kong, 1979, p. 26, pl. 20. The Ecke bed has a latticework back and arms which clearly are later additions. It is possible that the Ecke bed originally was also a daybed and was modified into a lowback bed at a later date. The large ball feet supporting the cabriole legs are not often found on beds, however, an elaborately carved lowback bed with the same feature, is illustrated by Robert Hatfield Ellsworth et al., Chinese Furniture: One Hundred Examples from the Mimi and Raymond Hung Collection, New York 1996, pp. 100-101, no. 30.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art. New York. 14 september 2011 www.sothebys.com