A SOAPSTONE-INLAID ‘ROMANCE OF THE WESTERN CHAMBER’ SILK PANEL, QIANLONG PERIOD China, 1736-1795. The panel worked in variously colored or painted soapstones applied to a painted silk background to depict a man climbing over the roof of a small house, holding on to a willow branch, as a beauty looks and points up toward him, a high table with scholar’s objects behind her.

Provenance: UK trade.
Condition: The silk with minor wear, some discoloration and soiling, and few small wormholes. The soapstone segments with natural fissures, some of which have developed into small hairline cracks over time, minor losses, and possibly very few replacements.

Dimensions: Image size 23 x 16.5 cm, Size incl. frame 28 x 21.2 cm

The antique Western frame with original ‘aesthetic paper’ backing, behind glass, dating to the earlier 20th century.

The soapstone is embellished with gilding and polychrome pigments. The garments and architectural structures with fine incisions, which can only be enjoyed to full extent under a magnifying glass.

The Romance of the Western Chamber, written by Wang Shifu (1250-1300) was immensely popular among all levels of society. Woodblock illustrations in the many editions helped conventionalize images that were instantly recognizable to the general public, thus creating a corpus of motifs that was widely used by painters, silk embroiderers, lacquer workers and other craftsmen.

Professor Herbert Giles, whose History of Chinese Literature was published in 1924, refers to The Xixiang Ji as the play “which will best repay reading”. It is the typical story where a handsome student and beautiful girl attempt to cross the social divide, aided and incited by the girl's maid. The dialogue is punctuated with images of wind, snow, moonlight, and flowers, emphasizing both the passion and the romance felt by the struggling couple.

Auction result comparison: Compare a set of four closely related soapstone-inlaid silk panels, also dated to the Qianlong period and depicting scenes from the Romance of the Western Chamber, at Christie’s London in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 14 May 2019, lot 146, sold for GBP 20,000. Compare a set of four closely related soapstone-inlaid silk panels, also depicting scenes from the Romance of the Western Chamber, dated late Qing to Republic, at Bonhams San Francisco in Fine Asian Works of Art on 13 December 2010, lot 5121, sold for USD 48,800.

乾隆時期嵌石《西廂記》場景鏡心
中國，1736-1795年。絹本設色，鑲嵌上色皂石，描繪了《西廂記》中月下相會場景。張生趴在墻上，崔鶯鶯立於院中。背景設色，人物、院牆以及身旁高几等，利用皂石，使畫面更加立體。製作十分精美。

來源: 英國古玩市場。
品相: 絲綢有輕微磨損，有一些變色和污漬，輕微小蟲洞。具有天然裂縫的皂石鑲嵌，隨著時間的推移，其中一些已經發展成細小的裂縫，小缺損，並且可能很過更換。

尺寸: 畫面23 x 16.5 厘米, 28 x 21.2 厘米

西式裝框與原始的裝裱紙，裝裱於玻璃後，應爲二十世紀初。

拍賣結果比較: 比較一套四幅嵌皂石《西廂記》掛幅，乾隆時期，見倫敦佳士得Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2019年5月14日 lot 146, 售價GBP 20,000；比較另一套清末民初四幅嵌皂石《西廂記》掛幅，見舊金山邦翰思Fine Asian Works of Art 2010年12月13日lot 5121, 售價USD 48,800。