A pair of 'huanghuali' compound cabinets (Sijiangui), Qing dynasty, 18th century | 清十八世紀 黃花梨四件櫃一對

Jacques Barrère S.A., Paris, 1990.

Jacques Barrère S.A.，巴黎，1990年

Known as sijiangui (four-part wardrobes), these massive two-part cabinets were generally made and displayed in pairs. Robes and large items would have been stored in the spacious lower cabinets, with smaller items reserved for the top, which being so high up often necessitated the use of a ladder. The two sections also allowed for a dual usage, the top piece to be placed on floor level when required. This would explain why there are so few surviving examples as separate placements meant they were easily dislocated.

A pair of similar size from the Frederic Mueller collects ion is illustrated in Robert H. Ellsworth, Chinese Furniture, New York, 1970, pl. 130. Another pair of this form is illustrated in Robert H. Ellsworth, Nicholas Grindley and Anita Christy, Chinese Furniture, One Hundred Examples from the Raymond and Mimi Hung collects ion, New York, 1996, cat. no. 73. A third pair from the Dr. S.Y. Yip collects ion is illustrated in Grace Wu Bruce, Dreams of Chu Tan Chamber and Romance with Huanghuali Wood: The Dr. S.Y. Yip collects ion of Classic Chinese Furniture, Hong Kong, 1991, cat. no. 46. Compare also a pair from the collects ion of Reverend Richard Fabian, sold in these rooms, 15th March 2016, lot 42.