The European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF)
12th–21st March 2010
16. A Set Of Four Mother-Of-Pearl Inlaid Panels
Signed Jiang Qianli, Late Ming/Early Qing Period, 17th Century
The panels are of rectangular shape, each finely inlaid in mother-of-pearl and gold. Each are decorated variously with panels containing butterflies, birds, deer or poetic inscriptions.
Each 80 cm. high x 47 cm. wide
It is recorded in Jiaqingchongxiuyangzhoufuzhi (Gazetteer of Yangzhou Prefecture Revised in the Jiaqing Reign) that:
In the Kangxi period, there was a scholar in Weiyang named ZhaErzhan (Shibiao), who excelled in painting level-field landscapes and Mi-Family style paintings. If one could obtain even a small piece of his work, it was considered a treasure. There was also Jiang Qiushui (Qianli), whose mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer wares were most refined and delicate, and no one’s table is without them. There was a saying: Cups and dishes everywhere are by Jiang Qiushui; Scrolls and hangings in all households from ZhaErzhan.
Jiang Qianli’s popularity was such that a proliferation of pieces that bears his mark were made, even well into the 19th century, however, few of these are by him. A ewer in the former Chinese History Museum and a set of five panels in the Hebei Provincial Cultural Bureau are generally considered his work. The use of gold and silver inlays alongside mother-of-pearl on the Hebei panels is reminiscent of those on the current panels, as well as the style of inlay work. Furthermore, one of the current panels bears the name of Duo Lun (year unknown), an official of the Kangxi reign. His daughter married one of Kangxi’s grandsons, Prince Yong Xiang, and he went on to become the Right Vice Minister of The Board of Rites in 1756.
