EXCEPTIONNELLE TABLE IMPÉRIALE À GUQIN EN BOIS LAQUÉ POLYCHROME AUX "TRENTE-DEUX DRAGONS"Fin de la dynastie Ming (Première moitié du XVIIe siècle) AN IMPORTANT AND EXCEPTIONALLY RARE IMPERIAL POLYCHROME LACQUER 'THIRTY-TWO-DRAGONS' GUQIN TABLE Late Ming Dynasty (first half 17th century) The top inset in the centre with a highly polished grey pottery rectangular brick moulded with a pair of five-clawed dragons pursuing the flaming pearl of wisdom amidst cloud scrolls and above crashing waves centred around a mountain framed by a continuous lotus scroll, all framed by the black-ground lacquered top decorated on each side with a panel of mirror-image five-clawed dragon pursuing the flaming pearl reserved on a diaper ground, all framed by a border enclosing on each long side with a cartouche a full-faced five-clawed dragon around the pearl, flanked by a pair of striding five-clawed dragons pursuing pearls, the shorter sides similarly decorated with full-faced dragons, all alternating with the Eight Precious Objects, the top with slanted corners raised above the beaded waist decorated with foliate floral and cloud scrolls, the shaped apron with a central foliate terminal, each side with openwork sections carved and gilt-lacquered with the Auspicious Objects flanked on the long sides by five-clawed dragons pursuing flaming pearls above waves and amidst clouds and the short sides with cloud scrolls and waves, the shaped legs similarly decorated on each external side with two five-clawed dragons. 101.2cm (39 7/8in) wide x 73.5cm (28 15/16in) high x 34.3cm (13 1/2in) deep; the inset brick, 64cm wide x 20.3cm deep x 6.2cm high (2). Provenance: Adolphe (1843-1915) and Edgar Worch (1880-1972) Galeries Georges Petit, Paris, 'Sequestre Worch' 29 March 1922, lot 344 Robert Rousset, Paris (1901-1981) Jean-Pierre Rousset, Paris (1936-2021) Edgar Worch (1880-1972) was born in Kassel, Germany. In the early 20th century he worked for his uncle Adolphe Worch (1843-1915) who was an established dealer in Chinese art in Paris since 1888. Edgar Worch frequently travelled to China to buy works of art. His wife Hedwig's parents, Georg and Gertrude Trubner, had also spent many years in China. During the First World War, the business in Paris was confiscated by the French government, and Edgar Worch returned to Germany. After the War, Worch started his own business in Berlin, dealing in Chinese ceramics. In 1932 Edgar and his wife went to Geneva and in 1938 to New York. Cornette de Saint Cyr are grateful to Mr Laurent Colson for generously providing the Worch provenance information. The Rousset guqin table is extremely rare and only one other example is known - almost certainly part of the same set or pair as the present lot - in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington D.C (acc.no.F1909.360). The Freer Gallery guqin table appears to be near identical to the Rousset table in all aspects except for being red-ground lacquered whe