AN INSCRIBED BAMBOO WRISTREST QING DYNASTY

the convex surface carved in relief as two bamboo stems positioned side by side, a small spray of bamboo leaves growing from one, inscribed below with a couplet in xingshu by Weng Sen, followed by an indistinct signature and a carved seal mark guxin ('ancient heart'), probably the sobriquet of Wu Shixian, Meiji inscribed Japanese fitted box

A Japanese collection.
Michael Hughes, March 2012.

The wristrest is in overall good condition with just typical minor surface wear and tiny flakes to the edges.
"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."

Weng Sen, active at the end of the Southern Song and into the Yuan, was a scholar of the Confucian classics and founded the Anzhou Academy in Xianju, Zhejiang. The couplet is from his poem 'Spring’, the first in a set of four quatrains entitled Sishi dushu le (‘Joys of study during the four seasons’), can be translated as:

Lovely birds on branch tips
are also friends
And blossoms falling on water
all form writings of their own.

The seal after an undeciphered signature appears to be guxin, the sobriquet of Wu Shixian, personal name Zhangping, who attained the degree of jinshi in 1748, and was renowned as a poet, calligrapher and painter.