19TH CENTURY

Richly carved with dynamic dragons against a dense landscape of swirling clouds, the present stepped cabinet showcases the incredible skills of the Qing imperial carvers. Such cabinets were probably intended for the private apartments of the imperial family. Compare a similar zitan cabinet elaborately carved with dragons and clouds and raised on a tapered base, sold at Christie's Paris, 10 December 2014, lot 190. A related pair of hongmu cabinets, without the canted bases, and formerly in The K'ung Hsiang-Hsi (Kong Xiangxi, 1881-1967) Collection, was sold at Christie's New York, 17 September 2015, lot 2026. A pair of related stepped zitan ‘dragon’ cabinets was sold at Christie’s Paris, 6 July 2022, lot 152.