A rare pair of ‘huanghuali’ square-corner cabinets (Fangjiaogui), 17th century

European Private Collection.

Christie's New York, 21st March 2000, lot 21.

Of imposing size and with restrained decoration, this pair of large huanghuali square-corner cabinets perfectly encapsulates the literati aesthetic of the late Ming dynasty. The fronts of the cabinets are for the most part completely undecorated, save for the aprons at the bottom of the frames, which display confronted chilong in a classically Ming archaistic scroll design; instead, the luminous grain of the wide planks of huanghuali, replete with swirling ‘ghost face’ whorls, provides the eye with pleasure aplenty. On the sides, there is a subtle yet elegant molding to the interior edges of the frames and simple shaped aprons at the bottom.

This pair of cabinets is distinguished from other more typical square-corner cabinets by the unusual construction and arrangement of the drawers and panels. Below the doors, there is a tall undecorated two-plank panel that corresponds to a hidden storage space on the interior, suitable for storing blankets or robes, and at the bottom is an arrangement of three drawers, convenient for accessing objects without having to open the doors above. Square-corner cabinets with three drawers on the front are exceedingly rare; Wang Shixiang illustrates in Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture, Hong Kong, 1990, vol. II, p. 158, fig. D38 a highly ornate lacquered square-corner apothecary cabinet with three drawers at the base of the frame. Examples of round-corner cabinets (yuanjiaogui) with drawers, either at the base of the frame or on separate stands, are more common; indeed, a pair of huanghuali round-corner cabinets from an important private collection, with three drawers at the bottom of the frame, are to be offered in these rooms, 25th March 2026, lot 4.