λ A CHINESE HUANGHUALI SEDAN CHAIR, JIANYU

λ A CHINESE HUANGHUALI SEDAN CHAIR, JIANYU
17TH CENTURY

The sweeping crest rail terminating in outswept hooks above horseshoe-shaped arms, forming an elegant curve above the splat, extensively carved in high relief with mountainous landscapes, the reverse of the splat inscribed with a poem by Zhang Dai (1597-1624), with one artist's seal. Above the seat framework are four panels, tuosai, with plum blossom and bamboo motifs, the rectangular rattan seat above four carved legs with makara feet raised on an open framed footrest. The seat is surrounded by four carved panels decorated with the Three Friends of Winter, and the front panel depicting Zhang Dai living in seclusion with his two attendants, each corner of the panel with metal loop mounts for carriage bars, 97cm x 66cm x 48cm.

Provenance: from the collection of Mrs Mevrouw M Sergant, bought from Hamadi Oriental Art, The Netherlands. Previously in the collection of Mr Arie Mullieu, Amsterdam. A copy of the invoice is available.

A jianyu (sedan chair) was commonly used by the emperors, princes and nobles as transport for short journeys between buildings in the great palaces. According to the Mirror of Craftsmanship and Guidelines by Lu Ban, Chinese sedan chairs come in different types, this particular one is called a Yajiao shi.

Zhang Dai (1597-1624) was a famous late Ming dynasty historian and writer, he was born to a noble family and well educated with poetic aesthetic tastes, however he never passed the Imperial examinations to serve the Ming court, his hometown was destroyed with the fall of the Ming dynasty. Reluctant to serve the invader, he decided to live in seclusion with his two attendants, one depicting holding a qin, and the other an ewer, which is explained in the poem.

Cf. The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (I), Hong Kong, p.36, no.22 for a closely related sedan chair.

十七世紀 黃花梨牙轎式肩輿
銘文：天明晨寒偕二童子隨行，其一抱琴，其一執壺至江邊。山水青綠江風景盛，舟少人稀飲氣之清畫江之謐，似與天地合而為一，此自達之意深為吾想。張岱。
來源：M Sergant女士收藏, 購於Hamadi Oriental Art (附發票複印件)。阿姆斯特丹Arie Mullieu先生舊藏。

肩輿，為古時一種作為行山的交通工具，後來發展成皇帝或達官貴人在皇宮內行走的方式。肩輿不設帷幔，冬季蓋紫貂於坐上，夏季則用緞墊。據《魯班經家鏡》中描繪：“牙轎式：宦家明轎椅（圖源於《魯班經家境》p.162）”。王世襄先生在《明式家具研究》中也同樣有提到明代牙轎式的解析， 其上部於圈椅相同，有靠背及扶手，但坐面之上有高束腰及托腮，另有四個環用以嵌抬桿。由於肩與為出行時乘坐用具，所以存世不多。故宮博物院藏一件於此拍品極其相似的皇家黃花梨肩輿（《故宮文物院藏文物珍品全集：明清家具（上）》，p.34），以供參考。

此次上拍的肩與靠背板後，刻有明末清初時期史學家及文學家張岱（1597-1624）的詩文極爲難得。張岱爲浙江山陰人，出身顯貴仕宦書香門第，自小聰穎善詩，但屢次參加鄉試不第而棄仕。清兵入侵，明王朝隕落。爲避戰亂，張岱隱居山中，並潛心著書，其著作有《陶庵夢憶》、《石匱書》、《自爲墓誌銘》等。正如張岱生平經歷，肩與靠背板背面的行書詩文便是其生平寫照，前句曰：“天明晨寒偕二童子隨行，其一抱琴，其一執壺至江邊。”與藤心座面高束腰上刻畫的故事相吻合。又曰：“山水青綠，江風景盛，舟少人稀，飲氣之清，畫江之謐，似與天地合而為一，此自達之意深爲吾想。”則描繪了靠背板上的浮雕風景及由景而發的感慨。除此之外，座面上鑲透雕翠竹及臘梅紋飾，座面下高束腰刻歲寒三友紋飾，可謂前呼後應，相得益彰，人文高士之氣盡顯。而此肩與作爲代步工具經歷數百年的風霜雨淋還能保存完整，實是一件不可多得的佳器。