Lot 241. A pair of tianqi and qiangjin lacquer cabinets, First half 18th century; 84cm (33in) high x 51.5cm (20 1/4in) wide x 25.5cm (10in) deep. (2). Estimate 2 000 € - 4 000 €. Photo Fabrice Gousset.

Each cabinet lacquered in red-brown tones with two doors decorated with two pairs of swallows in flight and perched on branches or flowers, one amidst leafy tree peony, prunus, lotus and camelia blossoms amidst rockwork, and the other amidst peach and pomegranate fruit and flowers amidst rockwork, the sides variously decorated with sprays of pomegranates and persimmon with butterflies and insects, all above the apron decorated with blossoms above the hoof-shaped feet, each cabinet opening to reveal two lower drawers decorated with butterflies and scattered bamboo and blossoms below the middle section with a one open compartment and another with two doors with a pair of chi dragons and lingzhi, all below the top open compartment, the reverse undecorated.

Provenance: Robert Rousset, Paris (1901-1981)
Jean-Pierre Rousset, Paris (1936-2021)

Note: Similar decoration is found on a tianqi and qiangjin lacquer table, early Qing dynasty, in the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in Imperial Furniture of Ming and Qing Dynasties: Classics of the Forbidden City, Beijing, 2008, no.237.

Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris. The Robert and Jean-Pierre Rousset Collection of Asian Art: A Century of Collecting - Part 2. Paris, 26 october 2022