|
Subject:Re: meditation stools more pictures
Posted By: vivien Sun, Jun 12, 2016
Hello, Thanks for your response. I agree with Kirk that this pair is older than the 1970's, more like late Qing or Republic period. I have seen many George Zee pieces in person, and this pair is of much higher quality, and was not made with any modern machinery. I have studied the joinery closely and there are no rotary tool marks, it is all straight sawn or chiseled, I have not seen evidence of circular blade cuts, or round tool routing/shaping. Also, a reproduction of what? If you check out the dimensions (width and height), and look for source examples that this might be be a copy of; there are none. Mostly the repros are just regular stool sizes, and if it was a repro we should be able to find more examples matching this pair out there, but there aren't any.
I think the gap in the floating panel top
throws people. But, if you consider an entire city, Tsing Tao, was built in China in the 19th and early 20th century, by Chinese craftsman, who exactly re-created European architecture standards ,with European style woodwork and cabinetry; wood panel doors, and various paneled millwork, I think the Chinese would have been exposed to the European conventions and allowances for expansion/shrinkage, and would be sensitive to Western concerns about expansion/shrinkage of a large panel on export pieces, or the furniture that was commissioned by Westerners who were living in China, but intended to bring the furniture they ordered back home with them eventually.
So, yes there are newer George Zee type pieces with this type of reveal on the floating panel, but these very large meditation bench size stools are of a much higher quality and construction, than the Zee pieces, and are too uncommon of a size to have been a repro (where is the source piece example it was a copy of?). It is certainly possible, and maybe likely, that the pair was refinished in the 80's, but I think Kirk is right that their original construction would pre-date PRC.
Also, I think Kirk is right that it was always a hard seat.
So, from all of my research, it looks like these are simply Ming style large meditation bench size stools of high quality, probably Qing, or Republic period, probably originally for export, or commissioned by a westerner who lived in China , or reworked/refinished in the 1980's from older pre-revolution furniture.
I do appreciate everyone taking the time to chime in on this pair! Thanks.
Also here is a pic that show the darker wood center and probably somewhat bleached/aged near surfaces
|