Minneapolis Institute of Art

Towel Rack

China

Date

early 18th century

Medium

Huanghuali hardwood

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Sets of bedroom furniture, including towel racks, wash basin stands, storage trunks, dressing tables, mirror stands, and canopy beds were standard items in an aristocratic woman’s dowry (gifts a bride’s family contributed to her marriage). This freestanding hardwood towel rack, which exhibits exceptionally refined work, is the only example of this type known to exist. The top rail is decorated at each end with lingzhi motifs, the fungus of immortality. Both sides of the central panel feature exquisitely carved scenes of mandarin ducks in lotus ponds. The presence of these ducks, which mate for life, suggests a wish for a long, happy marital union. China, Asia

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