Author: ELLSWORTH, ROBERT HATFIELD
Title: Chinese Furniture: Hardwood Examples of the Ming and Early Ch'Ing Dynasties
Description: Rando House, New York. 1970, 1st Edition. Hardcover. Book, English text.; Hardcover (cloth without slipcase. Pictorial boards on the slipcase.).; 27.5 x 36 cm.; ; 304 pages with black and white and a few colour illustrations.; Used with signs of wear on the slipcase, that has a stain on the top and tears on the bottom. The hardcover cloth show signs of wear on the interior, namely some signs of a few pages have been bent in the past. Good condition overall. "At long last the West is looking with interest and appreciation at Chinese furniture. In the past this furniture was sought out by a few pioneer collectors who lived in China during the first part of the 20th century. Fortunately many curators of the Oriental arts of American museums were well aware of the great beauty of this furniture. With knowledge and foresight they presented representative collections to the public. As a result many fine examples exist in the Nelson Gallery in Kansas City, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Honolulu Academy of Arts and the Cleveland Museum. The time is now ripe for more than a visual presentation of this important field of the Chinese decorative arts. It must be treated in the same fashion that specialists in European decorative arts have approached its Western counterparts. For this reason I have given detailed descriptions of intricate forms of joinery - so radically different from the European forms. It is the most minute of these details that places Chinese furniture in distinct and proper periods. Many conclusions are based on the change of seat styles during the Ming period. Naturally all extant examples dating from the Ming and Ch'ing periods were not produced on one locale. Therefore it will hereafter be as imporant to establish the are from which a piece came as to establish its date. Obtaining knowledge of the subtly different forms of joinery and seat construction was possible only with pieces completely under my control. Much of the pertinent information could be obtained only though the complete dismantling of many of the pieces illustrated. In many instances samples had to be taken of wood and other materials on order to arrive at the conclusions presented here. This will explain why so many pieces that I discuss are my property. It is to be hoped that in the future research and scientific excavations will further expand our knowledge of the history of Chinese furniture." introduction by Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, New Fairfield, January 1970. Good/No Jacket.

Keywords: china,chinese furniture,ming Chinese Art


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