REIGN OF S.M. EMPEROR GIA LONG (1802-1820). Imperial console in red and gold lacquered wood. The entablature richly carved and openworked with bats and Greek friezes, the corners flanked by stylized dragon heads in profile. Vietnam, Hué imperial palace workshops, early 19th century. Height: 84 cm. Length: 154 cm. Depth: 58 cm. (Damage, missing parts and restorations, the top is attached). Provenance: Old collector's label from the late 19th century stating "early 19th century table in gilded lacquered wood belonging to His Majesty the Emperor of Annam from the Imperial Palace of Hué". This type of imperial console table is extremely rare on the market. No known comparison has ever been offered for public sale. Its extremely fine decoration is typical of the products produced for the Imperial Palace of Hué, notably for imperial mausoleums and ancestral temples. For a similar piece, see the collection at Tu Duc's mausoleum, known as "Lang Tu Duc" in Hué. See also Bulletin des Amis du Vieux Hué n°1, January-March 1919, with a reproduction of a comparable table produced at the same time.