Antique lacquered elm wood buffet – China, circa 1900

This antique low buffet, lacquered in elm wood, is a Chinese piece of furniture with two doors, three drawers, and painted panels depicting bogu scenes. It originates from northern China, from the Qing dynasty, where the elm was covered in orange lacquer to receive the painting. The bogu scenes (博古, "the antique contemplated with erudition") represent collectible objects — bronzes, porcelain, potted plants — arranged on pedestals. This was the repertoire that a wealthy household would choose to declare itself cultured: it tells no story, it displays a taste. The case is made of solid elm, assembled with mortise and tenon joints. Two side doors frame a central body with three drawers. The handles are iron rings on rosettes, with brass corner brackets at the angles of the doors, and the piece rests on bracket feet. Each door leaf features a painted panel framed by a red moulding with cut corners: a porcelain vase with peonies on a pierced pedestal, a pot of orchids, and a bowl of flowering plum branches. The drawers bear garlands of peonies (mudan 牡丹), the queen flower, emblematic of wealth and honour; the plinth continues the floral motif in a continuous band. The background is a warm vermilion orange. The orange lacquer has unevenly lost some of its intensity, revealing the elm underneath at the edges. The painted panels retain their design well, with the green and pink remaining legible. The contrast between the worn background and the intact panels constitutes the main reading. Details. Dimensions: Length 186 cm – Depth 45 cm – Height 70 cm. Style: Painted Chinese. Materials and techniques: Elm wood; wrought iron fittings and brass corner brackets; mortise and tenon assembly; orange lacquer and hand-painted decoration. Place of origin: China. Period: Qing dynasty. Date of manufacture: Circa 1900. Condition / Observations: Good. Original orange lacquer unevenly worn; painted panels well preserved. Wear consistent with age and use.