Chinese Lute-Form Bench, with Phoenix Motifs

A crested bird in flight, carved in soft relief on pale ground.

This lute-form bench, with phoenix motifs is from China. It is carved marble. As original period furniture became harder to find, restoration artists began salvaging fragments from incomplete pieces to make complete ones, and eventually full reproductions began to surface. Tall rounded block in light putty color with a granular surface. Across the front a bird with fanned feathers curls through carved clouds, outlined with an incised border. The edges are softened and slightly worn at the corners. It is 16 inches long, 7.25 deep and 10 high.

Patient chisel work, and it shows in every curl.