CHINA - Qianlong Period (1736–1795) - Lot 290

CHINA - Qianlong Period (1736–1795) Octagonal, four-legged ink warmer (nuanyan) in gilded bronze, consisting of four parts: a lid with a deeply engraved design of six dragons in the clouds, sides finely engraved with lotus motifs on a guilloché background, a central ring openworked with a frieze of lotus flowers in foliage, and a lower section featuring four lion’s paws and chiseled on the sides with Greek friezes. The interior reveals a four-legged basket with two handles. On the reverse of the lid, the Qianlong mark in zhuanshu script. H. 11 cm (Inner lid missing) Reference: Three similar objects in the collection of the Palace Museum, Gugong, in Beijing, nos. 00134460, 00134459, and 00134457; another rectangular one, no. 00134444; a lid with the same mark, no. 00134458. Expert: Cabinet Portier Provenance: Collection from Bordeaux These ink warmers were used during the winter months, when temperatures could drop low enough to cause the ink to freeze. To keep the ink liquid, the small inner basket was filled with charcoal, whose heat warmed the ink contained in the cavity of the upper module. Estimate: 6,000–8,000 Euros