Lot 194. A rare shallow low rectangular black lacquer tray, Song to Ming dynasty; 13 3/4 x 4 1/2in (35 x 11.3cm). Estimate US$ 3,000 - US$ 5,000. Sold for US$ 1,912 (€ 1,632). © Bonhams 2001-2021

with shallow everted sides rising from a plain foot, the lacquer undecorated and lightly crackled all over, the tray of an extremely light weight.

Property from the Robert and Mee-Din Moore Collection.

Note: With so little in the way of decoration to enable a specific dating of this lovely delicate tray, a wide dating parameter seems appropriate here. Whilst the extremely light weight, plain surfaces and delicate construction suggest a possible Song or Yuan production date, the overall profile might also suggest a Ming date of manufacture.

For a square tray of smaller size (7 inches across) dated to the Song-Yuan dynasty, see Christie's, Hong Kong, 27 November 2013, lot 3554, where it is compared to another in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, included in the exhibition, China at the Inception of the Second Millennium: Art and Culture of the Sung Dynasty, 960-1279, Taipei, 2000, p. 165, no. III-19.

Bonhams. Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Paintings, New York, 20 Sep 2021