A PALU WOOD PAINTING TABLE 17TH CENTURY

the long rectangular top of standard mitre, mortise and tenon construction, above a simple apron with ruyi-shaped spandrels, all raised on four square-sectioned legs joined by horizontal stretchers, the wood of a subdued matt-brown tone

Please note that this is Palu wood and not huanghuali as stated in the catalogue. There is some shrinkage to the centre plank to the top and an area of splitting and loss to the back left side of the top. There is slight damage to the right side of the left spandrel and a 47cm crack to the back right leg.
"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."

Tables of this elegant form with finely moulded recessed legs and cloud-shaped spandrels were designed as surfaces on which to paint, with their height and depth appropriately proportioned for an artist to stand and freely use the brush. These tables are often stained with ink and burn marks, as seen on the present piece, both indicative of their prolonged use. According to the Wanli edition of the Lu Ban jing (Classics of Lu Ban), named after the mythical patron of the carpenter’s craft and containing information on the making of furniture, tables of this type were referred to as ‘character one table type’ (yi zi zhou shi), as the Chinese word for ‘one’ is written as a single horizontal stroke giving a graphic image of its linear design.

While painting tables with side stretchers are numerous, those with a further horizontal stretcher at the front are more commonly known on tables of smaller size and without the vertical strut, such as one excavated from the tomb of Zhu Tan (1370-1389), illustrated in Wang Shixiang, Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture, Hong Kong, 1990, vol. 2, pl. B38; and an elmwood example with carved apron, in the Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, illustrated in Nancy Berliner, ‘When Vernacular Meets Fine: Thoughts on Chinese Furniture Studies’, Chinese Furniture. Selected Articles from Orientations 1984-1999, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 216, pl. 12.

Compare also a similar huanghuali painting table with side stretchers, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (I), Hong Kong, 2002, pl. 109, together with a sandalwood example, pl. 112; a slightly smaller table in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, published in Craig Clunas, Chinese Furniture, London, 1988, pl. 30; and another illustrated in Wang Shixiang, op. cit., pl. 114.