Pair of 'zitan' wooden deer, Qing dynasty

A pair of 'zitan' wood vessels carved in the shape of a deer. The deer are facing each other, with their faces tilted to one side, and lying on their feet. Other carved decorative details on the body are symbols of spirals and circles. They are carved in great detail, and the openwork elements on the lid and the back in the form of branches stand out. The horns, the handles of the lid and the eyes are made of another assembled material, possibly stone.

They stand on a wooden base, made to size, with the characters '福祿雙全' (fú lù shuāng quán) engraved on the base. These mean "flourishing" and refer to abundance, related to the meaning of the deer.

Size: 10.50 x 7 x 16 cm; Pair weight: 568 g; Weight of base: 214 g.

Provenance: European private collection, France.