Ivory table-screen in the form of a wrist rest with a scene of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, by Huang Zhenxiao, 1739 C.E.

Ivory table-screen in the form of a wrist rest with a scene of the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, by Huang Zhenxiao, 1739 C.E.

• Image Number: K1G000156N000000000PAB
• Dynasty: Qing dynasty
• Category: Carvings
• Function: Furnishings, stationery, stationery
• Material: Animal/Tooth/Ivory
• Description:
  The whole vessel is carved into a section of bamboo, and the decorative patterns are exquisite. The front is embossed with a picture of wild geese. Among the scattered reeds, six wild geese fly, swim, look for food, or hold their heads high. There are dozens of figures standing, sitting, lying, scrolling, writing, or drinking in the winding water among the bamboo and stone pavilions on the mountains and rivers in the concave high relief Orchid Pavilion. The bamboo flesh on the lower left side of the concave is inscribed in black letters along a straight line: “In the late winter of the reign of Emperor Qianlong, my minister, Huang Zhenxiao, made it respectfully.” It was the fourth year of Qianlong’s reign (1739). Concave ornamentation depicts that Wang Xizhi (303-379), Xie An (320-385), Sun Chuo (320-377. This gathering of literati is famous for the spread of “Preface to Orchid Pavilion”. Huang Zhenxiao, a dentist from Guangdong, served in the Office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs during the reign of Emperor Qianlong, and worked hard to integrate Suzhou’s artistic style into the tooth carving craft in Guangdong.