22. RARE TABLE TRIPODE EN BOIS HUANGYANG, PINGJI XVIIe/XVIIIe siècle A RARE THREE-LEGGED HUANGYANGMU TABLE, PINGJI 17th/18th century Of irregular, curved form, supported by three cabriole legs issuing from animal head masks, set on one side with a small concealed sliding drawer, the gnarled wood carved using the natural shape of the wood, the flat base finely painted in gold with a landscape depicting pavilions amidst verdant trees, the smooth wood with a warm honey-brown patina. 30 x 83 x 25 cm (11 3/4 x 32 5/8 x 9 7/8 in) (3). PROPERTY OF A PARISIAN COLLECTOR 巴黎藏家珍藏 十七/十八世紀 黃楊木三足憑几 Pingji, low arc-shaped stools or tables on three legs, were among the earliest pieces of furniture documented in tombs of the late Eastern Han and Six Dynasties period. They were used as supports when people knelt or sat cross-legged on low platforms known as ta or chuang. As high furniture gained in popularity, the use of these three-legged tables shifted and they were perceived as a scholarly object. Rounded furniture forms were especially popular in the Ming dynasty as roundness and wholeness (yuanhun) allude to organic unity, a fact that is underlined here by the material used for this table. Made in sturdy huangyangmu or boxwood, the gnarled wood is beautifully abstract, the shape and construction following the natural form of the wood. Root wood or natural wood furniture was highly prized by literati and beloved by the emperors in the late Ming and Qing dynasty. Objects or furniture made of root wood embodied the essence of forests and springs, with an aesthetic emphasis placed on the appreciation of natural forms. The beautifully rendered landscape decoration on the underside of the table further underlines that this piece was made to be appreciated by a true connoisseur.