PAIRE DE GRANDS SUPPORTS EN BOIS LAQUÉ D'ORXVIII/XIXe siècleA PAIR OF LARGE GILT-LACQUERED CARVED WOOD LOTUS ALTAR STANDS18th/19th centuryEach raised on a domed lotus-petaled base between lappet borders, with scrolled openwork standards rising to a large lotus pod enveloped by overlapping layers of petals.57.3cm (22 1/2in) high. (2).Provenance: 十八/十九世紀 木漆金蓮花臺一對Lacquered wood stands on which emblems would be placed, were scattered around halls and temples of the Imperial palaces. Made in different sizes, they frequently followed the same shape and design. See, for example, a set of eight altar emblem stands with their original emblems in front of an altar in the Xianruoguan, illustrated in theLife in the Forbidden City, Hong Kong, 1985, fig.467.