In the first half of the 20th Century, Western Scholars and collector began to show interest in the cultural and artistic values of traditional Chinese furniture. By the 21st Century, they have become one of the most favoured categories among collectors of Chinese Antiques. One of the many aspects that attracted connoisseur’s attentions was the material, which often featured beautiful grain and rich colour. Though made from a variety of wood, fine quality pieces of Chinese classical furniture much sought after by modern antique collectors were crafted with rare hardwoods. Zitan, an extremely dense, blackish-purple wood, is considered as the most precious of all wood and is said in ancient texts to have sourced from various places from Indochina to Chinese provinces, like Yunnan, Guangxi and Guangdong. Huanghuali, mostly harvested in Guangdong province and Hainan Island and known for its exquisite range of colour from light yellow to purplish red and excellent grain, was used to make most of the best furniture during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty. Lastly, Hongmu is the most common hardwood in Chinese Classical Furniture, but it was not until the second half of the Qing Dynasty when it was used extensively.

From small stools and chairs, to large cabinets and bookcases, Chinese Classical Furniture appeared in many forms with different functions. The characteristics and styles of the furniture rooted in the common traditions of the Chinese people. The late Ming of the 16th and 17th centuries was a period when the society was dominated by influential scholarly class. To suit the needs of these individuals, who were actively in pursuit of quiet and plain lifestyles, a succinct style of furniture featuring minimal decoration was produced. Though simple in design, craftsmen paid extra attention in its practical function, as they carefully built in the lines and proportion in order to provide the highest level of comfort to its owner. By the Qing Dynasty, the minimalist style from previous time also persisted. However, a new style, influenced by the aesthetic taste of the Manchu court for opulence and flamboyance, was particularly in fashion. Chinese furniture in this style was much heavier and elaborate, often enhanced with intricate carvings and even inlaid decorations.

中國古代家具，從廣義來説是指各式樣的明清家具，在古時是各堦層人士家裏的必需品。早在20世紀初，西方的學者與收藏家已經開始對中國家具所蘊涵的民族文化傳統產生了興趣。而到了21世紀， 它們更是成爲了在中國古董收藏界裏面最受歡迎的其中一個種類。然而其用料是其中一個讓中國家具得到衆多收藏家喜愛的原因。雖然家具的原料有許多种，但最爲精美的中國家具均是用珍貴的硬木製造而成的。其中紫檀是在中國等級名份比較高的珍貴木材。 生於亞熱代地方，如中國雲南，海南以及南洋國家，紫檀木材堅硬緻密，色澤大多為深紫紅色，紋理極爲細密，在明清時代大多數只供給宮廷使用。黃花梨是另外一種在古代被奉為最珍罕的木材。出產于中國海南島和兩廣，黃花梨的木紋十分美觀，肌理細膩，顔色種類多，從淺黃到紫赤。明代及清代早期製作的高檔家具大多是用這種木材所制。其他比較普遍使用的硬木材統稱為紅木，簡單來説就是指帶紅色木紋的硬木，在紫檀和黃花梨短缺的晚清時期特別受到重用。

明清時期是中國古典家具的黃金時期。在這個時期製造的家具品種繁多，如桌椅，櫃，凳及其他家居擺設。跟其他中國藝術品一樣，人們的品味和社會的風向對家具的風格產生了直接的影響。在晚明時期，中國文人的清高品格得到了升華以及廣大社會的重視，而他們所追求的樸素生活方式也充分反應在當時的家具風格。雖然構造普遍簡單，大多式樣質朴，但工匠們並無掉以輕心，而更花心思來提高家具的舒适性。可到了清代，因宮廷審美情趣及思想觀念的變化，家具的風格也漸漸的失去明代簡約流暢的風格。到了乾隆後期，造型更是變化無窮，作工特別細緻，注重裝飾。往往採取一木連作，因此清代家具造型上和明代對比渾厚，莊重。

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The colour of the grain resembles that of ivory, and it gets darker with time. Boxwood carvings are produced primarily in the areas of Zhejiang, Fujian, Shanghai Jiangsu etc., among which Yueqing in the city of Wenzhou is the main source of manufacture; its carving, along with the wood carving of the city of Dongyang as well as the stone carving of Qingtian County, are together known as the ‘Three Carvings of Zhejiang’. The origin of Boxwood carving remains unclear; the earliest material proof currently in existence is the carving of Iron Crutch Li made during the second year of the Zhizheng Era (1342 CE) of the Yuan dynasty, stored in the Palace Museum, Beijing. Boxwood carving began to become prominent during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and gradually developed into individual free-standing artworks.Their main subjects range from characters in folktales to those in classical Buddhist scriptures, including the Eight Immortals, the Old Man of the South Pole, Guan Yu, Maitreya and Avalokittesvara etc.

Boxwood carvings from the late period began to be made in combination or group forms. Their appearances are influenced stylistically by literati paintings, exhibiting fine carved lines and consummate blade crafting. The famous folk carving master, Zhu Zichang (1876 – 1934 CE) inherited and refined the boxwood carving technology; his works such as ‘Hide-and-Seek’, ‘Ji Gong’ had won awards in various national and international contests. The Boxwood Carving embodies the essence of traditional Chinese handicraft. In recent years, wood source for the Yueqing Boxwood carving has been decreasing, and meanwhile we also witness a steady drop in the specialized craftsmanship. The heritage and propagation of this technique is therefore barred to a great extent, and as a result remaining intact boxwood carvings also become more precious.

黃楊木雕是來自于中國浙江地區的民間雕刻藝術。黄杨木生长缓慢，四五十年樹齡的黃楊直徑僅達15釐米左右，故古语有云：“千年难长黄杨木”；据《本草纲目》记载：“黄杨性难长，岁仅长一寸，遇闰则反退”。然其光潔緊實的木質，細膩的紋理及莊重的色澤，使得黃楊木成爲傳統木雕不可多得的材料之一。
黃楊木色黃如象牙，年代愈久色澤愈深。黃楊木雕产于浙江、福建、上海、江苏等地，其中温州市乐清市是黄杨木雕的主要產地，乐清黄杨木雕和东阳木雕、青田石雕，并称为”浙江三雕”。其起源眾傢紛說，而現存最早的實物證明為元代至正二年（1342年）的“李鉄拐像”，現存北京故宮博物院。黃楊木雕于明、清時期開始流行，逐漸發展為單獨的圓雕工藝品。其内容題材主要包括民間故事傳説與佛教經典中的人物神佛， 如八仙、壽星、關公、彌勒、觀音等。晚期的黃楊木雕由單體雕發展為拼雕、群雕等，其外觀逐漸受到文人劃風格的影響，綫條細密流暢，刀法圓潤。民間著名的黃楊木雕刻大師朱子常（1876-1934）傳承並改進了黃楊木雕技巧，他的作品“捉迷藏”，“濟公”等曾在各種國内外賽會獲獎，為黃楊木雕的傳播做出極大的貢獻。
黃楊木雕充分体現了中國傳統手工藝的智慧。近幾年乐清黄杨木雕的材料来源出现危机，同时专业人员流失严重。這使得黃楊木雕的雕刻技藝發展與傳播受到限制。這也使得現存完好無損的黃楊木雕更爲彌足珍貴。

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Jades are generally differentiated into nephrite and jadeite by their characteristic appearance and hardness, despite the Chinese commonly used the word yu to describe both minerals. Nephrite, ranges from creamy white through green, yellow, brown, even to black, was the most used mineral in Chinese jade objects until the era of the Qing Dynasty. The supply of nephrite increased drastically under the ruling of the Manchurians of the Qing Dynasty after the Qianlong Emperor (1736 – 1795) conquered of Xinjiang, where Hotan, a major county with rich nephrite deposits was located. Jadeite, a harder mineral known as feicui with vivid green colour, quickly received attention from the Manchu court when Merchants began importing them from Burma around 1800. Wealthy Merchants and local artists had gradually chosen animals and human figurines as the main subject matters to respond to the growing market for decorative styles. With steady inflow of raw materials, imperial patronage, combined with the deeply rooted auspicious symbols in ancient Chinese iconography, the jade industry enjoyed unprecedented growth.

Today, both nephrite and jadeite remain a major category among collectors of Chinese Works of Arts. Jade artisans utilised the precious stone as a painting surface and incorporated superb hand-carving techniques to create highly appreciated works of art. Connoisseurs not only admired the sharp smooth edges, carving, rich colours and transparency of jades, but also the moral beauty, meaning and virtues famously commented by the great Confucius.

Jade Monkey Group, Qing Dynasty, Courtesy of the V&A Museum

玉石是與中國藝術文化密不可分的材料，長期以來吸引著中國藝術家和鑑賞家。自新石器時代以來，玉石不僅是高雅品性的象徵，而且還是吉祥平安的護身符，甚至是永生不老的通靈寶物。玉雕工匠以其精湛的工藝在色彩豐富的玉石上進一步增強了石頭的美感。因爲玲瓏剔透的玉石稀少罕見又不易取得，在古時候玉石僅限于貴族使用。

儘管中國常用玉一字，其實它只是一類礦石的泛稱，通常以其特有的特質而分為軟玉和硬玉。軟玉是中國傳統的玉料，按顔色黃玉，青玉，碧玉與白玉等。自乾隆皇帝（1736 – 1795年）征服新疆後，在清代滿洲人的統治下，軟玉的供應急劇增加，正是因爲在那裡有一個具有豐富軟玉礦床的主要縣 – 和田。然而硬玉在中國廣泛稱爲翡翠。其特點為翠綠色豐富，光澤強與折射率高。當商人大約從1800年開始從緬甸進口此玉料時，翡翠迅速受到清官庭的注意。另外，由於高品質的翡翠僅產於緬甸特定的礦脈，產地的惟一性也增加了它的高貴品質。隨著各種原材料的穩步流入，富有的商人和地方藝術家也逐漸地選擇動物和人的雕像作為主題來響應裝飾風格與市場需求。加上帝國的庇護以及中國古代圖像中根深蒂固的吉祥符號，玉石工業在18世紀的清朝享有前所未有的增長。

自古有云，玉乃石之美者，有五德，潤澤以溫，仁之方也。今天，玉仍然受到收藏家的喜愛。玉工匠利用寶石作為繪畫表面，並結合精湛的手工雕刻技術，創造高度讚賞的藝術作品。繁簡的雕刻，豐富的色彩和翡翠的透明度，以及孔子對玉石的高尚評價使玉持續受到各國鋻賞家喜愛。

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In his ‘Vessels for the Studio’ Tu Long (1542-1605) listed as much as 45 different scholars’ objects, amongst which brush pots, seals, water droppers, wrist rests, scroll holders, paper weights and the less expected meditation lamps, evil-warding mirrors, rocks and swords. The objects were used for study, contemplation and stimulated social discourse.

Brush pots made of valuable materials and with elegant embellishments were held in great reverence. Together with wrist rests they were often made of bamboo, making use of a natural curvature, but also of wood, porcelain, lacquer and jade. Natural materials and themes were most appreciated by scholars. Brush pots were decorated with scenes of literati subject matters, inscribed with poetry and marked with the seals of their makers, not unlike paintings. They were sometimes kept bare so as to emphasise their natural and sometimes unusual forms.

Precious hardwoods such as huang huali or zitan were admired for their exquisite grain but were sometimes carved to imitate humbler materials such as bamboo or gnarled root, because scholars were not meant to be interested in monetary value; on the contrary they aspired to escape mundane concerns.

中国笔筒
中国古代文人书写绘画所用的笔墨纸砚被称为文房四宝。许多在书桌上可以看到的文具器物也可以用于饮茶等其他活动。除此以外，文人们也常常收集细致精巧的摆件来装饰自己的书桌。明代屠隆在他的《考槃余事》中记载了具有代表性的四十五种文房器玩， 其中有笔筒，印章，水注，臂搁，画筒，镇纸，以及不常见的禅灯，辟邪镜，赏石，与裁刀。这些文具既可用于读书写字，也可用作思考或文人交际时的器物。

文人崇尚材料珍贵雕琢优美的笔筒。用自然弯曲的竹，红木，瓷器，漆器与玉所做的臂搁也收到青睐。文具的自然材质与母题是文人墨客们最欣赏的。文人场景主题常常用装饰笔筒，并与书画一样附上诗文与作者的印章，但也有时候被刻意不加修饰，以凸显它们的自然或特殊的形态。珍贵的木质，例如黄花梨与紫檀因为它们的美丽的纹路而具有极高的吸引力，有时候它们却会被雕刻成普通的物品例如竹子与粗糙的树根，因为文人并不在意它们的价值，相反他们更渴望摆脱世俗的心态。

Rosalie Fabre

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The Scholar’s Studio

This November, during Asian Art in London, our exhibition “The Scholar’s studio” showed a great interest amongst collectors. Very interesting Scholar items manufactured by excellent craftsmen in different material, such as Wood, Jade, Bronze, Porcelain, were in demand at that time, and many of them were included in our exhibition.

For thousands of years Chinese scholars, greatly esteemed by their society, who were also collectors of high quality, highly sophisticated art objects—some functional, some inspirational, small enough to decorate a scholar’s desk or complement his study.

Our exhibition “The Scholar’s Studio” aimed to represent Literati’s daily life in Ming and Qing dynasty. In the studio the Scholar isolated himself from others, finding the calm necessary for study and contemplation. It was in the studio that he studied Confucian classics, wrote poetry, played music, practiced calligraphy, and perhaps painted.

The objects in “The Scholar’s Studio” were created for Scholars, which they surrounded themselves, such as brushes, brush pot, brush rest, water droppers, toggles, figurines, and paperweight—representing the pinnacle of an Art form that was refined over thousands of years by Chinese artisans. These objects embody the highest degree of technical precision and a finely honed aesthetic sensibility. As such, they are still popular nowadays and are favored by more and more collectors.

Such like this set of items, a lovely bronze paper weight, an unusual shaped bamboo brush pot, a delicate brush rest with nice brush and a marvelous Qing-style elegant stand are included. You could experience by holding one of our brush pots, and imagine an Eighteenth Century Literati rapidly taking out a brush from it and writing down a famous poem. Scholar’s items are not only decoration of your study but also are functional, and very much in demand nowadays.

文人墨室

在今年十一月，伦敦亚洲艺术周期间，佛得利思古玩以“文人墨室”为主题在肯辛顿教堂街举办展览，由古代能工巧匠制作而成不同材质的文房用品，木雕，玉器，铜器，瓷器，这些受到当时文人欢迎的物件，都能在本次展览中寻到踪迹。

千年以来，为社会大众所尊敬的中国文人有许多同样也是大收藏家，收藏高质量的，完成度高的艺术作品，他们使用这些具有功能性、启示性，虽然很小却足够点缀文人桌面的物件来陪伴他们读书学习的旅程。

我们的展览“文人墨室”旨在展示明清文人在书房中的日常生活，在书房中文人通常与世隔绝，独处一室进行课业的学习，是在这文人墨室中他们学习儒家经典，研习诗词歌赋，琴棋书画。

而在“文人墨室”中，这些小巧的物件都符合文人的需求制作而成，并放置在文人周围，类似毛笔，笔筒，笔格，臂搁，水注，纸镇等，这些物件都代表了当时最尖端的艺术形式，反应了当时文人追求的文雅以及体现这种雅致所需要的传承千年工匠的制作技术，这些艺术品符合当时最高超的工艺并且契合当时的文人审美. 因此，时隔几百年，它们仍然受到喜爱，并受到越来越多收藏家的追捧。

千年以来，为社会大众所尊敬的中国文人有许多同样也是大收藏家，收藏高质量的，完成度高的艺术作品，他们使用这些具有功能性、启示性，虽然很小却足够点缀文人桌面的物件来陪伴他们读书学习的旅程。

我们的展览“文人墨室”旨在展示明清文人在书房中的日常生活，在书房中文人通常与世隔绝，独处一室进行课业的学习，是在这文人墨室中他们学习儒家经典，研习诗词歌赋，琴棋书画。

而在“文人墨室”中，这些小巧的物件都符合文人的需求制作而成，并放置在文人周围，类似毛笔，笔筒，笔格，臂搁，水注，纸镇等，这些物件都代表了当时最尖端的艺术形式，反应了当时文人追求的文雅以及体现这种雅致所需要的传承千年工匠的制作技术，这些艺术品符合当时最高超的工艺并且契合当时的文人审美. 因此，时隔几百年，它们仍然受到喜爱，并受到越来越多收藏家的追捧。

例如在此组文房用具中（见上文），小巧可爱的人物铜镇，不规则形制的竹制笔筒，一件精雕典雅的黄杨笔格以及清中期的正方几座，它们都代表着文人的生活，你可以通过它们感受到文人雅士生活的情境，可以想象当十八世纪的大文豪文思泉涌时飞速从其中一个笔筒中抽笔疾书，完成伟大诗篇时的画面。这些文房用具不仅能成为书房的装饰品，他们仍可使用，依然是如今收藏的潮流。

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