IMPORTANT JAPANESE CEDAR CHEST WITH GOLD LACQUER DECORATION ON A BLACK BACKGROUND OF THE TALKING OF THE GENJI, THE EIGHT VIEWS OF OMI, AND THE TALKING OF THE SOGA BROTHERS.
Sold for € 7.311.000 at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam / Cheverny, June 9, 2013, by Maître Philippe and Aymeric Rouillac
Japan, beginning of the Edo era, circa 1640. / Top. 63,5 Long. 144,5 Deep, 73 cm.
In 1658 Cardinal Jules Mazarin, (1602-1661) who was crazy about works of art, bought a large chest at auction in Amsterdam. The lacquered furniture is so precious that the Cardinal dispatched a warship to bring it back to France.
When Mazarin died, his treasures were exhibited in the famous Mazarine gallery. Later, the king inherits it. It is his responsibility to share it with the family of the deceased. Hortense Mancini, one of the Cardinal's nieces, will receive the famous chest which will then pass into different hands and disappear from center stage.
Until the day when Maitres Rouillac, father and son, are called to estimate the contents of a house. It is then that these experts can only stop, in front of this “Mona Lisa of Asian furniture” who slept 40 minutes from Orléans. It is the "papa bar", however, explains one of the heirs. The father, a French engineer, had lived, in fact, in a furnished house in London where the safe had become his bar ...
Considered one of the most beautiful pieces of furniture in the world, this Japanese lacquered chest, the star of the auction at the Château de Cheverny, was sold in May 2013 for 7,311 million euros.
It was the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, which had just undergone a facelift, which acquired this treasure from the Edo era. The purchase was made possible thanks to the appeal to the greatest patrons of the Netherlands.
Surprise discovery of a heritage treasure, fabulous auctions, light on precious Japanese lacquers: these are the themes of the conference that Maître Philippe Rouillac will give at the invitation of the Friends of the museums of Orleans.
The lacquer decor, over nearly 9 m², demonstrates the perfection of the main combined techniques of maki-e (lacquer art), in particular: roiro-urushi (black lacquer background), fun dame (gold background), hiramaki-e (gold dust design), takamaki-e (relief design sprinkled with gold), harigari and tsukegaki (lines of gold designs in hollow or relief), kanagai (gold leaf in high relief), kirikane (square of gold leaf mosaic), hanagai (mother-of-pearl inlays), ginbyo (silver studs), cascading silver inlays, nashiji (pear base, known as aventurine). Each outer panel of the chest is surrounded by a geometric frieze with three stripes in the center of which are repeated three mon (Japanese heraldic symbols), alternating Magnolias flower, six-petal flower and Dharma wheel and eight-branched lotus flower, symbol of Buddhist doctrine. The edges of the lid and the bottom are decorated in imitation of wood.
- THE TALK OF GENJI. The front panel is adorned with 36 figures and many animals (ducks, chickens, dog) depicting a scene from chapter 28, known as Nowaki: The Tempest. After the storm, the women and young maids collect the cut flowers and insects which they collect in round boxes. Scenes of palaces and gardens alternate in a marvelous architecture angling around a pond, farmyard, kites, encounters… The first novel in world literature, in the 54th century, the Tale of Genji narrates in XNUMX books court life through the adventures and loves of Genji, an imperial prince of incredible beauty.
- THE EIGHT VIEWS OF OMI: Ishiyama Temple. The top of the lid is decorated with 21 figures and farmyard animals living in the mountainous temple of Ishiyama Dera. This temple is where the poetess Murasaki Shikibu, in the 14th century, began writing the Tale of Genji. A spectacular waterfall, with metal inlays over XNUMX cm, flows on the shores of Lake Biwa. Two boats, under a bridge at the foot of a pagoda, move in the middle of the waves. The scene takes place in a cartouche formed by four pairs of phoenixes on a black background.
- THE TALK OF THE SOGA BROTHERS. The inside of the cover is decorated with 29 figures illustrating the hunting scene from the Tale of the Soga Brothers. It is during this hunt that the Soga Brothers kill their father's murderer, attracting the admiration of the Emperor but the wrath of justice. This scene captures many instant moments of a hunt, with a sense of the majestic and the anecdotal. The Emperor on horseback, under a canopy, is surrounded by eight soldiers. Eight horsemen hunt wild pigs and deer with a stake or bow. They are helped by a dozen foot hunters, one of whom straddles a wild pig. A multitude of wild animals - deer and hinds, wild boars, rabbits, weasels and even a domesticated monkey, evolve in a landscape dominated by Mount Fuji. The scene takes place in a cartouche formed by four pairs of dragons on a background of aventurine lacquer.
- BIRDS AND MAGNOLIAS. The back panel illustrates the Japanese style of Kano, or Sanraku. The frieze of môns is simplified. It leaves a large place at the bottom of black lacquer, in reserve. It features three birds fluttering near two branches of magnolias. This flower, which blooms in May and June in Japan, symbolizes the summer season to which refer the moments chosen to illustrate this chest.
- PALACE SCENE. The left side panel is decorated with two figures in a garden and palace scene overlooking the sea, a waterfall on the left.
- GARDEN SCENE. The right side panel is decorated with a landscape at the bridge on a hilly background.
- PEAR BASE. The bottom of the chest is covered with a splendid aventurine lacquer, called pear base.
LOCK in metal richly chiseled with magnolia flowers, guarded by two tigers and a golden dragon on a black background.
CORNERS, hinges and central part of the front frame in finely chiseled copper with magnolia flowers, formerly damascened. Handles in worked and gilded steel on each short side on two pieces of damascened copper.
Probably workshop of Kôami Nagashige (1599-1651), in Kyoto for lacquer.
Cover attributed to the lacquerer Goto Kenjo (1588-1663), for the metal inlays.
Japan, early Edo era, circa 1640.
High. 63,5 Long. 144,5 Deep, 73 cm.
Approximately 8,7 m² of lacquered decoration, including 4,87 m² of gold lacquer on a black background and about 3,82 m² of aventurine lacquer.
(Lid split, old restorations and repainted with gold, sunny lacquer and small gaps in places).
KEY in steel and bronze with foliage patterns. Long. 11,5 cm.
BASE in molded, stuccoed and gilded wood. Steel handle worked on each small side. Old traces of eight feet, replaced by four modern runners. Label of William Murray, sculptor, gilder and transporter of the Duke of Hamilton. High. 16, Long. 153, Prof. 82 cm. (Small accidents and losses).