[Erotica] Peep-show box Lovemaking couple

Handcol. papier mâché. China, 19th cent. Inside a box constructed as a four-volume book and intended to be viewed behind glass, a couple is depicted in the act of lovemaking, the half-naked woman seated on the thigh of a man with his trousers down to his knees.The figures are finely modelled and painted in vibrant colours, though slightly less striking than certain other parts. On the lid a title slip with four characters in seal script. We cautiously identify these characters as referring to the Yiing (Book of Changes), one of China's oldest classical texts. 11 x 8.6 x 6.1 cm.

As illustrated in: Bertholet, F.M., Concubines and Courtesans: Women in Chinese Erotic Art. Munich 2011, p. 155, plate 147.