Lot 3615. Property from the Zhuyuetang Collection. A rare and massive faux-bois basin, Seal mark and period of Yongzheng (1723-1735); 42.3 cm, Japanese wood box. Lot Sold 3,429,000 HKD (Estimate 3,500,000 - 5,000,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Provenance: Collection of the Mary C. Belin (1912-96) Trust.
Christie's New York, 19th September 1996, lot 302.
Christie's Hong Kong, 2nd November 1999, lot 546.

Note:Porcelain copying wood, bronze or lacquer was a new technique developed during Yongzheng's reign. The convincing imitation of wood on this basin is evidence of the high level of craftsmanship already achieved by Yongzheng period potters at Jingdezhen in this new technique of ceramic simulations.    

Compare a related faux-bois flowerpot in the Beijing Palace Museum, illustrated in Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong. Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, pl. 146; and another in the Taipei Palace Museum, published in the Illustrated Catalogue of Ch’ing Dynasty Porcelain in the Palace Museum, Republic of China: K’ang-hsi Ware and Yung-cheng Ware, Tokyo, 1980, pl. 97.

This basin, with its sewn lining, is one of the most realistically rendered faux-bois items recorded. The vessel is shaped and painted like a wide wooden tub formed of vertical planks, tied with plaited bands of rope, and lined with yellow oilcloth sewn together from rectangular patches.. 

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, Hong Kong, 9 October 2023