A LARGE CINNABAR LACQUER 'CHUN' BOX AND COVER QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD

the peach-shaped cover deeply carved through four layers of colour, the main panel with carved with a large chun ('spring') character rising above a bowl overflowing with auspicious emblems, reserved against red, green and yellow radiating waves, the character centered around a small circular medallion enclosing Shoulao seated beneath a pine tree with his deer,  all flanked by a pair of sinuous dragons on a swirling cloud ground, and reserved against a wan diaper ground, enclosed on the rounded sides with ripe peach branches, dense leaves blossoms and bats, the box of conforming shape similarly carved, the interior and base lacquered in black

There are small expected losses to the carving and age cracks, but otherwise the overall condition is very good. The rims have been retouched and repainted to consolidate age cracks and small chips. The interiors and base have been relacquered.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The peach is among the most important auspicious symbols in Chinese culture and wares made in the form of a peach, clearly recognizable for its asymmetrical heart-shape, were much favoured by the emperors as well as commoners. Peach blossoms are mentioned in the Shijing (Book of Poetry), attributed to Confucius (551-479 B.C.), where they are used as a symbol for the arrival of Spring. The poet Tao Qian (365-427) in his work titled Taohua yuan (Record of the Peach Blossom Spring) describes a fisherman entering a paradisiacal world through a peach orchard. Peaches later became associated with Daoism and with the main concern of searching for immortality, hence given the name 'Peaches of Immortality'. The Daoist deity, Shou Lao, also known as the God of Longevity, is usually depicted holding a peach, while peaches grow in the garden of Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West, the main Daoist female deity.

Peaches during the Qing dynasty, especially under the reigns of the Yongle and Qianlong emperors, became linked with the five blessings of longevity, tranquillity, virtue, wealth and natural death. It became one of the most favoured decorative motifs in art, and boxes, such as the present piece, popularly called the 'Precious Spring Longevity Box (Chunshou baohe), were made as birthday gifts or food containers used during Chinese New Year or Spring Festival celebrations. The character chun (Spring) features boldly in the design together with the Basket of Treasures also known as the Treasure Bowl (Jubaopan). The basket is the Chinese equivalent of the 'Horn of Plenty' and is filled with coins, ingots, corals, pearls and other precious materials. Therese Tse Bartholomew in Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, San Francisco, 2006, p. 224, notes that the Qianlong emperor commissioned lacquer boxes with this design to also convey the sentiment of longevity. Therefore, the design and the shape of this box makes it doubly auspicious compared to the more traditional circular form boxes with the same motif.

Although peach-form lacquer boxes of the Qianlong period are rare, a similar example was sold at Christie's London, 14/17th June 1985, lot 417; and another was sold at Christie's New York, 23/24th February 1982, lot 509. See also a lacquer box in the shape of a peach carved with the figure of Shoulao, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Carved Lacquer Ware in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1971, pl. 45; and another box of this form but decorated with the carving of the Immortal Zhang Guolao crossing the sea, published in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Lacquer Wares of the Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong, 2006, pl. 67, attributed to the middle Qing period.

A Qianlong peach-shaped lacquer box and cover carved with the shou (long-life) character among dragons and clouds, dated to 1790 and commissioned by court officials for the Qianlong emperor's eightieth birthday, from the Palace Museum, Beijing, was included in the exhibition China. The Three Emperors, the Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2006, cat.no. 294. Another Qianlong peach-form lacquer box and cover was exhibited ibid., cat.no. 296, decorated with peaches in relief and painted with fruiting and flowering peach branches, bamboo, fungus and five bats. This box is designed to contain nine cups in the form of peaches and one shaped like a peach blossom. Another carved red lacquer box containing eight small peach-form covered lacquer boxes, in the Shanghai Museum, is included in Zhongguo qiqi quanji, vol. 6, Fuzhou, 1993, pl. 219. 
 
Circular form 'Precious Spring Longevity' boxes of the Qianlong period can be found in many important museums and private collections; for example see one from the Qing Court Collection and still in Beijing, included ibid., pl. 213, together with a slightly later version pl. 218. Qianlong boxes of this type closely follow the Jiajing prototypes of the Ming dynasty. A Jiajing box was included in the Oriental Ceramic Society of Hong Kong exhibition 2000 Years of Chinese Lacquer, Art Gallery, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1993, cat.no. 61, together with a Qianlong mark and period example, cat.no. 76.