An exceptional Chinese cinnabar lacquer 'Wang Xizhi and Geese' brush pot, bitong, Qianlong/Jiaqing, of cylindrical form and finely carved with a continuous scene of Wang Xizhi contemplating geese in a pond from his veranda beside a village in a rocky landscape with figures crossing a bridge, the inside and base painted dark brown, 12.4cm high. Footnote: Wang Xizhi (AD303-361) was considered one of China's greatest calligraphers, later admired by the emperor Qianlong, and took much inspiration from nature in his work, particularly the graceful curves in the necks of geese. The same subject as the present lot has been repeated in other brush pots and works of art including Jade examples and an identical lacquer bitong which can be found in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Huixia Chen 'Carving the Subtle Radiance of Colors', 2008, p.144, fig.149.and another in the Palace Museum, Beijing illustrated in Derek Clifford 'Chinese Carved Lacquer', 1992, p.137, fig.112. For further comparison see Sotheby's Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Hong Kong, 8 April 2014, lot 3122 IMPORTANT BIDDER NOTICE: This lot is not available for live online bidding. Please contact the department to arrange commission or telephone bidding.