ten-panel Coromandel screen

ten-panel Coromandel screen , 1800s, Qing dynasty, 1644–1911

Where object was made: China

Material/technique: lacquer; wood

Dimensions:
Object Height/Width (Height x Width): each panel 284.5 x 48.3 cm
Object Height/Width (Height x Width): 112 x 19 in

Credit line: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles (Buddy) Rogers

Accession number: 1977.0097

Not on display

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Label texts

Exhibition Label:
Asian Gallery, Summer 2003, Youmi Efurd
Coromandel screens are made of wooden panels covered with carved Chinese lacquer. The lacquer surface is carved away, exposing a substratum of white gesso, which is painted to make a design. The name ‘Coromandel’ derives from the trade route along the south Indian coast, from where similar screens were shipped to Europe in the seventeenth century.

The screen on left depicts a scene of daily life in the yamen or city hall of a district magistrate. In the center, the magistrate is seated on a high chair flanked by two servants holding fans. Garden rocks and other buildings surround the main hall. Ceremonial vessels and mythical animals frame the top and bottom of the screen.

The screen on the right shows an inner court or ladies’ court. The figures are engaged in various activities in gardens and small pavilions. Flowers and figures frame the top and bottom of the screen.