Carved Lacquer Scroll Box (1736–95): Art, History and Details

Carved Lacquer Scroll Box (1736–95) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The elaborate design, superior craftsmanship, and inscription carved into the red cinnabar lacquer proclaim the imperial pedigree of this scroll box. On either end is a five-clawed dragon, a design reserved only for an emperor. More dragons twist and wind through swirling clouds and waves along the length of the box’s sides and top. The carving is intricate and vigorous, while the design is controlled and regular. This box housed the private portraits of the Qianlong Emperor, his empress, and 11 other favorites among his presumed 40 or more wives during his 60-year reign. It was commissioned to be made in Suzhou when no more portraits were added to the scroll. An entry in the imperial workshop records relates to the Cleveland box. It states that in 1787, a box design with a dragon pattern, including the inscription, In his heart is envisioned a peaceful reign, was sent to a Suzhou workshop. Imperial portraits were collected in the Chonghua Palace in the Forbidden City, and the emperor’s portrait was kept in this red lacquer box from Suzhou.

Object facts

• Title: Carved Lacquer Scroll Box
• Date: 1736–95
• Culture: China, Qing dynasty (1644–1911), Qianlong reign (1736–95)
• Type: Lacquer
• Technique: Red carved lacquer on wood
• Dimensions: Overall: 14 x 14.7 x 59 cm (5 1/2 x 5 13/16 x 23 1/4 in.)
• Collection: China - Qing Dynasty
• Department: Chinese Art
• Accession number: 1969.32

A detail from the museum

This is the original box for the handscroll Portraits of the Qianlong Emperor and His Twelve Consorts, CMA 1969.31.

Collection credit

John L. Severance Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• I° Collection de M. J. Poberejsky (Première Vente), Importante Suite de Pierres Dures de La Chine ..., II° Appartenant À Divers Amateurs, Céramique de La Chine, Laques de Pékin, Sculptures Cambodgiennes et Siamoises, Importants Brule-Parfums et Paravent En Émaux Cloisonnés ..., Belle Suite de Peintures Provenant Du Palais Impérial (XVIIIe Siècle) ... 17 and 18 December 1928 sale. Hôtel Drouot, Paris, France.
• Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1969.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 57, no. 1, 1970, pp. 2–50.
• “Art of Asia Recently Acquired by American Museums, 1969.” Archives of Asian Art, vol. 24, 1970, pp. 86–117.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.