16th century The rectangular top exquisitely carved with a sage playing qin on his lap and surrounded by three sages, rocks and trees on a fenced viewing platform against a finely carved wan-character (卍)-diaper ground, the platform set in a mountainous landscape and on a geometric-diaper ground, and supported by a high waist carved with a qilin in a high-relief cartouche against a cloud-ground on each side, the spreading apron decorated two chi dragons with chasing a lingzhi fungus amidst clouds on a yellow ground, joined by four elegant cabriole legs carved with peonies rising from a waisted stand, the top of the stand carved with a bird flying towards to a branch of prunus blossom and camellia on a floral-diaper ground, all carved through thick cinnabar-red lacquer, the base and interior lacquered in black and inscribed with the character Huang each on the base and four joints between leg and waist, box. 54.3cm (21 3/8in) high (2).Footnotes十六世紀 剔紅高士聽琴圖香几 Provenance: The Ōtani Family of Nishi Honganji Temple, Kyoto, before 1913 An important Asian collection 來源: 日本西本願寺大谷家族舊藏，1913年之前 亞洲重要私人收藏 Published and illsutrated: Nishi Honganji Ōtanike mikuraki (Catalogue of the Collection of Ōtani Family of Nishi Honganji Temple), Kyoto, 1913, pl.226 出版及著錄： 《西本願寺大谷家御藏器》，京都，1913年，編號226 Gentlemen playing qin during gatherings has a long history in China. Seven sages of the bamboo grove, a group of Chinese scholars, writers, and musicians of the 3rd century, probably the most well-known scholar's group, often gathered to play qin and compose poems, which became a popular scene in various decorations during the time when they were still alive and long afterwards. See the ink rubbing off the bricks excavated in Nanjing, Eastern Jin Dynasty(（317-420), which is illustrated by P. Ebrey, A.Walthall and J.Palais in the East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History, Boston, 2006. The scene of 'scholars gathering' was a popular motif on lacquer particularly since the 14th century. Compare the scene and carvings with a cinnabar lacquer box in the Palace Museum, Beijing, Yongle period, which is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Lacquer Wares of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, Hong Kong, 2006, p.38, pl.24. Compare the flowers and bird with a cinnabar lacquer dish in the Palace Museum, Beijing, Mid Ming Dynasty in the Zhongguo qiqi quanji (Lacquer Treasures from China), Huzhou, 1995, vol.5, pl59, pl.58. This type of stand with curved legs at such height was specifically used as an incense table, to display incense vessels such as incense burners and vases. Compare with a related cinnabar lacquer incense stand in the Minneapolis Institute of Art, 15th century, which has similar height, legs and design of carving, acc. no.80.89. 几長方形面，髹朱漆，剔刻三層，表面雕高臺一座，環繞山石、樹木、遠山，臺上雕蕉石梧桐，其下有四位高士，一位撫琴，三人靜聽，左角有童子煮茶，高臺地面雕萬字紋錦地為第二層，第三層剔刻回紋錦地。高束腰，束腰四面起方柱，上刻回文，四面有海棠形突出開光，其內雕麒麟，四面皆以如意雲紋為地，束腰下牙板四角雕靈芝紋，四面各雕螭龍一對，螭龍尾部分叉成三葉。四彎腿，滿雕牡丹紋。底座須彌臺式，面雕茶花及梅花，一角雕飛燕一隻，以菱花紋錦地為底，底座牙板作壸門，四腳作如意頭。地面罩黑漆，四彎腿與牙板連接處有朱漆書「黃」字，底座地面黑漆亦有楷書「黃」字記。 剔紅高束腰彎腿帶須彌底座的香几可參考美國明尼阿波利斯美術館藏一件十五世紀剔紅香几，其形制與本件頗似，館藏編號80.89。此類高士聽琴的題材及畫面鋪排源自永宣時期漆器，可比較北京故宮藏一件明永樂剔紅撫琴圖八方盒，其人物、亭台、錦地，與本件香几几面剔刻屬於同路，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集：元明漆器》，香港，2006年，頁38，編號24。底座剔刻山茶飛鳥可參考北京故宮藏一件明中期剔紅花鳥小圓盤之圖樣，見《中國漆器全集》，福州，1995年，卷五，頁59，編號58。