A painting of a tiger

Description:

China, Qing Dynasty
88 x 40 cm (115,5 x 63,5 cm R.)
Ink and color on paper. Depiction of a tiger with watchful eyes and raised tail. Inscription, sign. San Feng Ji, sealed: Lü Ji zhi yin (Lü Ji's seal). Six collector's seals, including Qianlong.
From an old German private collection, collected since the 1950s - Lü Ji (1439-ca.1505) was a Chinese painter who mainly painted flower pictures during the Ming dynasty
Tiger motifs can already be found on early artworks from the Chinese cultural area. The so-called "Tiger and Magpie" pictures were popular in the early Ming dynasty and a popular New Year subject on Korean paintings of the 18th and 19th centuries. However, the pose, the large saucer eyes and the depiction of the fur with parallel stripes characterise this tiger depiction possibly as Korean painting - Partially wear, minor signs of age, minor rest., framed under glass