TIXI LACQUER DISH
MING DYNASTY, 14TH-15TH CENTURY
14.1 cm diameter, 2 cm high
The circular dish is of shallow form with gently rounded sides. The interior is carved with a stylised ruyi motif. The decoration is executed in tixi technique, carved through layers of brownish-black lacquer interrupted by two layers of red lacquer. The exterior is carved with scrolling design, the recessed base lacquered black. The entire surface is polished to a high gloss.
Tixi is the term used for the technique of applying multiple layers of different colours of lacquer, usually black and red, which are revealed when a design is carved at an angle. The technique was employed during the Song, Yuan and Ming dynasties.
A similar circular tixi dish with a slightly different carving, from the Muwentang Collection, is published in Simon Kwan, Chinese Lacquer, The Muwen Tang Collection Series 20, 2010, plate 50, p. 184.
Provenance:
Formerly in a Japanese private collection
Ben Janssens Oriental Art, London