This antique Korean mirror vanity box is a gyeongdae with a folding mirror in zelkova wood, with brass fittings and a double-door cabinet beneath the lid. It originates from Korea, from the Korean Empire period, around 1900, where zelkova was worked with traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery.
The gyeongdae was a piece of the lady’s dressing set and part of the Korean bridal trousseau: the bride brought it to the marital home to keep combs, cosmetics and small jewellery. A mirror rose from beneath the lid for grooming, while the lower body held storage in a closed compartment.
The body is zelkova with a strongly radiating grain, built with mortise-and-tenon joinery on an openwork base. The top lifts and the mirror, on a hinged support, stands upright. The doors and edges are dressed with pierced brass fittings — butterfly hinges, a lock plate and corner caps — engraved with fish and foliate motifs; in Korean symbolism the fish evokes abundance and fertility, fitting for a trousseau piece.
The zelkova has taken a warm, deep patina that brings out the fan-shaped figure of the grain, and the brass shows the aged tone of use. The interior keeps its red felt lining and, inside the doors, a reused Korean printed paper in mixed hanja-and-hangul script, with the old orthography of early twentieth-century printing. The mirror keeps its original silvering, with the wear consistent with age.
As a dressing piece or a display object, it works on a chest of drawers, a desk or a console, where it brings an Asian historical note. It fits wabi-sabi, japandi, eclectic and Korean-inspired interiors, and can be used daily as a jewellery box with a mirror.
Details
- Dimensions: Length 24 cm – Width 34 cm – Height 26 cm
- Style: Late Joseon / Korean Empire
- Materials and techniques: Zelkova wood; brass hardware; glass mirror; printed-paper interior lining; traditional Korean mortise-and-tenon joinery.
- Place of origin: Korea
- Period: Korean Empire (late Joseon)
- Date of manufacture: Circa 1900
- Condition: Good. Warm-patinated zelkova; original brass fittings and silvered mirror; printed-paper and red-felt linings preserved. Wear consistent with age and use.
This piece is part of the curated collection of Amaru Antiques, Barcelona.
ONE OF A KIND PIECE
