Lot 1561. A rare pair of fahua weiqi boxes and covers, Ming dynasty, 16th century, 5 ¾ in. (14.6 cm.) wide. Estimate USD 5,000 - USD 7,000. Price realised USD 9,375 © Christie's Images Ltd 2016

Each bulbous jar is molded on the exterior as six petals covered in a purplish-blue glaze and applied with turquoise-glazed beaded garlands suspended from monster masks on the shoulder below a lobed collar with inner bead border encircling the mouth. The similarly glazed cover is surmounted by a seated figure of Buddha. 

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art part I, 17 - 18 March 2016, New York

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Going to the Ball (San Martino), exhibited 1846. © Tate.

WINCHESTER .- In the weeks prior to his death, J.M.W. Turner is said to have declared (to John Ruskin) ‘The Sun is God’ – what he meant by this, no-one really knows, but what is not in any doubt is the central role that the sun played in Turner’s lifelong obsession with light and how to paint it. 

An exhibition curated by Hampshire Cultural Trust is the first ever to be devoted solely to the artist’s lifelong obsession with the sun. Whether it is the soft light of dawn, the uncompromising brilliance of midday or the technicolour vibrancy of sunset, his light-drenched landscapes bear testimony to the central role that the sun assumed in Turner’s art. 

Through twelve generous loans from Tate Britain – the majority of which are rarely on public display – this focused exhibition Turner and the Sun considers how the artist repeatedly explored the transformative effects of sunlight and sought to capture its vivid hues in paint. 

The sun appears in many different guises in Turner’s work. Sometimes it is something very natural and elemental, at others it is more mysterious and mystical. Turner was working in an era when the sun - what it was, what it was made of and the source of its power - was still a source of mystery and wonder. The Royal Society was housed in the same building as the Royal Academy, and it is known Turner attended lectures and was acquainted with scientists such as Faraday and Somerville. It is therefore possible that he was influenced by the new scientific theories about the sun when he tried to depict it. Certainly, Turner’s own Eclipse Sketchbook of 1804 – which is being featured in the exhibition - shows him recording visual data of an atmospheric effect on the spot. 

Turner also mined ancient mythology for inspiration. The tale of Regulus, the Roman general punished by having his eyelids cut off and thus made to stare at the sun, is echoed by the artist replicating the effect of solar glare in paint, while the stories of Apollo and the Python and Chryses both feature the Greek sun god, Apollo. 

Given his place in the vanguard of Romanticism, Turner was also interested in poetry and wrote his own pastoral verse. He would often acclaim the life-giving energy of the sun and bemoan its absence during Winter: ‘The long-lost Sun below the horizon drawn, ‘Tis twilight dim no crimson blush of morn’ and ‘as wild Thyme sweet on sunny bank, that morn’s first ray delighted drank.’ 

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Sun Setting over a Lake, c.1840. © Tate.

Highlights of Turner and the Sun include Sun Setting over a Lake (c 1840, Tate) an unfinished but highly vivid depiction of a sunset. At first, the viewer tries to discern behind what is, possibly, Lake Lucerne in Switzerland, but what soon becomes evident, is that the principal subject of the painting is the light and the way it is reflected in the water and gilds the sky and clouds above. 

A charming example of Turner painting rays of sunlight emanating from the centre of the composition can be seen in The Lake, Petworth, Sunset; Sample Study (c.1827-8, Tate), which is one of a series of six sample studies made for the four finished canvases for Petworth House. 

Joseph Mallord William Turner, The Lake, Petworth, Sunset; Sample Study, c.1827–8. © Tate.

The popularity of the Grand Tour and the enduring appeal of Venice created a lucrative and artistically important opportunity for Turner in his late career. In Going to the Ball (San Martino) (exhibited 1846, Tate), we see boats taking Venetian revellers to a masque ball against the backdrop of a golden cityscape. This was Turner’s last painting of Venice and was in his studio at the time of his death in 1851. 

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Going to the Ball (San Martino), exhibited 1846. © Tate.

Some of Turner’s most acutely observed images of the sun are his informal, private exercises in watercolour and experiments with wash and colour. Swiftly executed, sometimes in batches, they capture transient effects where the sky is utterly dominated by the effects of the sun. A selection of these can be seen in the exhibition, and they are normally only viewed by appointment. 

Sunset: A Fish Market on the Beach (c 1835, Tate), was realised in an unusual, upright format for a watercolour and may well have been part of an illustration project. If Going to the Ball is notable for its predominance of chrome yellow, Sunset: A Fish Market is remarkable for the deft use of white. 

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Sunset: A Fish Market on the Beach, c.1835. © Tate.

Venice: The Giudecca Canal, Looking Towards Fusina at Sunset (1840, Tate), gives visitors to Turner and the Sun a very rare chance to see a work created using pencil, watercolour and crayon. 

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Venice: The Giudecca Canal, Looking Towards Fusina at Sunset, 1840. © Tate.

Exhibition curator Nicola Moorby said: “We all know that Turner is the great painter of the sun, but what is particularly interesting is trying to analyse why.” 

She continues: “One of the reasons he is such an exciting and inspirational painter is because he has a very experimental approach to technique. In order to try and replicate the effects of the sun in paint, he uses a whole range of visual tricks and devices. For example, we often see him juxtaposing the lightest area of a composition with something very dark to heighten the contrast. He uses arcs, orbs, radiating circles of colour, broken brushstrokes, textured oil paint, seamless watercolour wash – sometimes he depicts sunlight as something very solid and physical, at other times it is a dazzling glare that we can’t properly see. Turner doesn’t just try to paint the sun. He seems to want to actually try and replicate its energy and light so that it shines out of his pictures.” 

Janet Owen, Chief Executive of Hampshire Cultural Trust, says: “By combining naturalistic observation with imaginative flights of fancy, Turner’s light-drenched landscapes encapsulate the elemental force of his art and remain as dazzling today as they were for a contemporary audience. We are thrilled to be able to shine a spotlight on them here in Hampshire.” 

The exhibition is on view at The Gallery, Winchester Discovery Centre until 15 October.

Titian, Salomé with the head of the Baptist, circa 1515, Roma, Galleria Doria Pamphilj© 2017 Amministrazione Doria Pamphilj s.r.l.

MOSCOW.- The Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts is presenting a large-scale project of exceptional significance – “Renaissance Venice. Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese. From Italian and Russian collections”, exhibiting 25 outstanding works by three of the greatest painters. These works have been brought to Moscow for the first time, and some of them have never been displayed outside of Italy. 

During the Renaissance, Venice experienced the golden age of art and, first and foremost, painting. In the 16th century, a triad of great masters of the brush – Titian Vecellio (c. 1490–1576), Jacopo Tintoretto (1518–1594) and Paolo Veronese (1528–1588) – created their famous paintings in this city. These artists played a defining role in the formation of the European artistic culture and rendered an important influence on the development of art over the next centuries. 

Titian, Venus and Adonis, circa 1540, Moscow, the Charitable Foundation. 

This exhibition provides a unique opportunity to see works of these great contemporaries side by side, whose creations revolutionized the concepts of painting in many ways and laid the foundation for painting throughout Europe. Many great masters of the 17th century, including Velazquez, Rubens, Rembrandt and Poussin, learned from Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese. 

The relationship among the great Venetian Renaissance masters is one of the most important topics reflected in the concept of the exhibition. Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese were born in different towns, belonged to different generations, had different social statuses and received different educations. Each of them had his own inimitable artistic language and style. At the same time, they complemented one another to some extent. Their creative lives had much in common: all of them fulfilled orders for Venetian churches and surrounding areas and worked for major politicians and influential people. The three artists also headed popular studios, which, according to Venetian tradition, were family-owned. Their coexistence in the artistic space of Venice is often regarded as competition. The reality was much more complicated, however: every master had his own niche and worked for specific categories of customers and segments of society. They carefully observed each other’s works, studied them and eventually came to a mutual relationship without any open confrontation: while remaining loyal to their common cultural background, each one recognized the uniqueness of his own style. 

Jacopo Tintoretto, St. George, 1543-1544, Hermitage. 

The exhibition presents a unique opportunity to see priceless masterpieces of the three artists from collections of the most famous Italian and Russian museums. Portraits and religious works – from compositions for private customers to large altarpieces (a type of painting revolutionized by Venetian artists in the 16th century) – are being displayed in the same space. 

Curators also paid attention to the rendering of mythological scenes, where Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese discovered their own approaches to the topic of beauty filled with sensuality and thrill. Venetian painting of the 16th century, the golden age of Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese, gained fame for centuries thanks to the freedom and originality of interpretation of erotic scenes, common to mythological themes. 

It is not easy to highlight specific examples in the diverse panorama of the exhibition, but Titian’s “Salome” is deserving. It belongs to the collection of the Doria Pamphilj Gallery housed in Rome, and it is rarely seen outside Italy. Made by the young artist in the mid-1520s, when the Renaissance in Venice reached maturity, this painting attracts viewers with its poetry and brightness of color. Striving to achieve the expressiveness of the color scheme is a distinguishing feature of the Venetian painting style, but Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese made an especially outstanding contribution to this tradition. 

Jacopo Tintoretto, The Last Supper, 1547, Iglesia de San Marcuola, Venice. 

Jacopo Tintoretto was a dramatic artist who used color as a powerful expressive medium. This can be clearly seen in his altar paintings, such as “Last Supper” from the church of San Marcuola, “Baptism of Christ” from the San Silvestro church and “Pietà”, which is currently housed in the Gallerie dell’Accademia in Venice. The wealth of colors in the works by Paolo Veronese (who, according to his name, was born in Verona) expresses the uplifting nature of his art and his worship of the world’s beauty. This is obvious in his paintings depicting ancient myths. The exhibition includes his magnificent “Venus, Mars and Love with a Horse”, which is housed in the Sabauda Gallery in Turin. 

Most of the paintings have been brought from the most famous Italian collections of museums and churches. A few artworks presented belong to Russian collections. These include two paintings from the Hermitage (“St. George” by Jacopo Tintoretto and “Portrait of a Man” by his son and assistant Domenico Tintoretto), one painting from the collection of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts (“Resurrection of Christ” by Paolo Veronese, which is being exhibited for the first time after the restoration is completed by Nadezhda Koshkina, head of the Museum’s restoration workshop), and Titian’s “Venus and Adonis”, owned by the Classica charity fund and considered to be one of the sensations of the exhibition. The chief researcher of the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Victoria Markova, identified this work as one by the great master, and it has only recently entered art history, having never been displayed in Russia before

Paolo Veronese, The Descent from the Cross, circa 1547, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia.

Jacopo Tintoretto, Lamentation over the Dead Christ, 1560. Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice.

Jacopo Tintoretto, The Baptism of Christ, circa 1580, Gallerie dell’Accademia, Venice

 Paolo Veronese, The Resurrection of Christ, about 1580, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts 

Domenico Tintoretto, Portrait of a Man, between 1586 and 1589, Hermitage.

Lot 1572. A large blue and white fish bowl, Jiajing six-character mark in underglaze blue in a line within a rectangle and of the period (1522-1566), 19 in. (48.5 cm.) high, Estimate USD 20,000 - USD 30,000. Price realised USD 25,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2016

 The heavily-potted, deep drum-shaped body is decorated on the exterior with two five-clawed dragons striding around the sides in pursuit of flaming pearls between petal-lappet borders, all below a narrow band of foliate scroll at the rim. 

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art part II, 17 - 18 March 2016, New York 

Lot 1575. A rare blue and white box and cover, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue and of the period (1573-1619), 10 ¼ in. (26 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 40,000 - USD 60,000. Price realised USD 87,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2016

The domed cover is painted in brilliant shades of cobalt blue with a dignitary seated before a screen in a walled garden in discussion with two scholars and flanked by attendants, all within a raised medallion. The rounded sides are decorated with four shaped panels containing fruiting and flowering sprigs, birds and butterflies, beneath a triple-lozenge border on top and a key-fret border around the foot. Both the box and cover are bound with a metal rim, Japanese box. 

Provenance: Private collection, Japan.
Christie's Hong Kong, 1 November 2004, lot 1100.

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art part II, 17 - 18 March 2016, New York 

Lot 1580. A rare wucai reticulated incense burner, late Ming dynasty, 16th-17th century, 7 in. (17.8 cm.) high. Estimate USD 8,000 - USD 12,000. Price realised USD 10,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2016

The tall, high-shouldered, hollow body is fitted on the interior of the upper body with a rounded bowl, and the sides are molded with six lobes separated by alternating ascending and descending chilong. Each lobe is pierced with elaborate openings from which rise iron-redlingzhi sprigs, all on an iron-red diaper ground between a petal-lappet border below and leaf-tip border above. The neck is pierced with three quatrefoil openings separated by babao on a diaper ground below a narrow band of key fret on the mouth rim, Japanese wood box, Japanese silver cover. 

Achaemenid Bracelet, Iran, 5th century B.C., Gold with Turquoise and Carnelian, H: 6 cm, D: 7.5 cm© David Aaron

The Mesopotamian Achaemenid Empire was famed for its gold. Stretching from Turkey to Afghanistan and lasting from circa 550 to 330 B.C., this period saw the production of some of the finest jewellery pieces of the Ancient world. Grandiose and sophisticated, the jewellery of this era is generally associated with the opulent court culture of the Achaemenid kings. They and the members of their court cultivated an impressive aura of power, building monumental palaces, decorating walls with huge stone reliefs of lions and royal processions, and adorning themselves with gold jewellery.[1] Indeed one relief from the city of Susa depicts figures proffering bracelets as tribute, indicating their cultural significance.[2] It was amid this milieu that the present bracelet was designed and fashioned, and as an example of royal Achaemenid luxury, it is an excellent piece. 

The thick main band is made from highly-polished solid gold, with two complex sets of hinges decorated with globular bulbs of gold. Between each set is an oval bezel containing a polished garnet stone, framed in gold. The setting is embellished with small rectangles of carnelian and lapis lazuli inlay, each geometric shape has been carefully cut with one curved edge, accentuating the curve of the larger oval carnelian centrepiece. The edges of the bracelet are smooth, narrowing in the centre. The inlaid stones are larger on one side, likely the front of the piece.

Polychrome decoration of the kind found here is typical of Achaemenid jewellery.[3] Pieces from this period are often embellished with inlaid stone, glass, faience or enamel. The pieces were cut to size then fixed in to place in a gold setting using bitumen. A fine gold Achaemenid pair of earrings in the Louvre show comparable inlay technique.[4] They are inlaid with concentric rectangles of lapis lazuli and turquoise, illustrating both the mathematical and creative sophistication required to create such complex arrangements. A bracelet, also in the Louvre collection, shows not only characteristic inlaid terminals but also an innovative attitude to the shape of the solid gold band.[5] In the Louvre piece it is indented, in the present piece it undulates. Both pieces are testament to a confident and aesthetically fascinating culture.

Achaemenid Lion Bracelet, Achaemenid, 6th-4th century B.C.,Gold, lapis lazuli, carnelian, D: 9.3cm, H: 8cm© David Aaron

This spectacular bracelet dates from the Achaemenid Empire (c. 550-330). It was a vast empire, stretching from Turkey to Afghanistan. Mesopotamia and Persia lay at its heart, and the imagery and tastes favoured by the Achaemenid kings were to have a lasting influence on Persian culture for centuries to come. At the centre of Achaemenid culture was the royal court, and its imagery speaks still of power and grandeur. Of the various motifs found in Achaemenid jewellery, the lion is amongst the most popular. The lion is a symbol of strength just as gold implies wealth and status. This bracelet is a striking example of an archetypally Achaemenid design.  

This bracelet is composed mainly of gold, and has vigorously designed terminals in the shape of lion’s heads. They are large, stylised and feline, their eyes upturned and muzzles carved in careful detail. Their heavy brows lend them a certain solemnity. Their necks are ringed in a band of gold, in a plaited design. Behind this is an almost collar-like ring of inlaid carnelian and lapis lazuli. The geometric design comprises diamond and triangle tesserae, and the pale, pinkish carnelian contrasts attractively with the blue lapis lazuli. The band of the bracelet is deeply fluted on the outside and smooth on the inside. The inside also bears a short cuneiform inscription. 

A very similar piece in the Louvre also has lion-headed terminals and beautiful polychromatic inlay.[1] Inlay of this kind is typical of the Achaemenid period; carnelian, lapis lazuli and turquoise were often used.[2] The Louvre piece also has a distinctive indent at the centre of the band. A slightly earlier bronze bracelet, now in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, has unusually shaped of the lion-head terminals that resemble those here.[3] Roughly cast, it lacks the sophistication of the present piece, but hints interestingly at the zoomorphic tradition in Mesopotamian jewellery.[4] 

Bactrian Gold and Lapis Necklace, Western Asiatic, 3rd-2nd Millennium B.C., Gold tube and lapis bead, L: 48cm© David Aaron

The ancient kingdom of Bactria lay between the Amu Darya river in the West, and the mountain ranges of the Hindu Kush and Pamirs to the East, in what is modern-day Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. During the third and second millennia B.C., this expanse of plain grew wealthy as an oasis, flourishing on an intersection of the silk trade routes from India and China to the Mediterranean.[1] Little is known of this enigmatic kingdom, yet a rich material culture survives it, including ornaments and jewellery pieces of extraordinary beauty. 

his beautiful necklace is made up of long gold tube beads alternating with beads of lapis lazuli. The lapis beads are disc-like in shape, punctuating the slender string of gold beads between them. The gold tube beads are fluted, and ringed with incisions at either end. A large, particularly beautiful, cylindrical bead of lapis centres the piece – much brighter than the others in hue.  It is flanked by two biconical gold beads of beaten gold. The beads offer a sumptuously contrast between bright gold and intense blue - a combination often found in jewellery pieces from the Western Asiatic. The necklace is finished with a modern gold S-hook clasp.

The mountains of modern-day Afghanistan lay within the Bactrian kingdom, and in their remote valleys were rich mines of lapis lazuli.[2] The beautiful stone was coveted for its rarity, given the dangers and effort associated with mining it. The sophisticated design of this piece, as well as its use of lapis stones, would have been well-understood as an unequivocal statement of social position, taste and affluence. 

Many examples of worked lapis lazuli survive from the Sumerian tombs at Ur, which date similarly from the mid-second millennium B.C. The stone used for these pieces would almost certainly have been imported from mines in the mountains Afghanistan – from Ancient Bactria.[3] The taste for biconical beads and the combination of gold and lapis lazuli can be seen in a necklace in the University of Pennsylvania Archaeology Museum, found in Mesopotamia but bearing resemblance to contemporaneous Bactrian style.[4] Another in the Metropolitan Museum, New York, again from the same Bronze Age period, provides a further parallel, in stone and bead shape.[5] It is notable the burial sites at Ur are amongst the most remarkable sites from this period to survive. The graves provide a snapshot of the customs and dress of the mid-third millennium B.C. elite, and given that little survives from Afghanistan and the Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex, the Afghan lapis lazuli found there offers interesting context for this piece.[6] 

Gold and Carnelian Ring, Hellenistic, Greece, 3rd to 2nd Century B.C., Gold, carnelian© David Aaron

The intaglio ring is an archetype of Hellenistic jewellery. Engraved ringstones such as this were carved with an image in relief, so that when pressed into hot wax they functioned as a seal. The motif was therefore a very personal emblem of identity. One’s correspondence, business contracts and finger would each bear the wearer’s chosen insignia. The Hellenistic period was an aesthetically fertile one, characterised by the refinement of earlier jewellery designs and elegant employment of Classical Greek motifs, such as the female deity we find here.[1] 

This large ring has an ovoid bezel and oval gold hoop. Its shoulders broaden to a truncated bezel, rising in tiers to encase a flat carnelian intaglio. Engraved on the oval stone is a delicately carved female figure. Deft, elegant incisions delineate the folds of her drapery, her long neck, and her pointed chin. The figure holds two thin instruments in either hand – perhaps the bow and spear of the divine huntress Artemis (Diana, in the Roman world). Carnelian was a popular choice for intaglio rings, prized for its hardness, rarity and colour.[2] The particular stone used here possesses both rich pigment and light translucency, complementing the combination of strength and delicacy manifest in this piece.

Intaglio rings of this kind are amongst the most beautiful survivals of the Ancient world, and have been collected with fervour from the Renaissance onwards. Amongst such collectors was J. Paul Getty, and his collection contains two rings analogous to this piece in date, style and stone. One, engraved with an image of Fortuna, has a comparable tiered gold bezel. A second shows Artemis, similarly draped. Female figures of strength and beauty were popular choices for such stones, and both Artemis and Fortuna occur frequently. In a society that was as superstitious as it was religious, the image of a goddess was likely regarded as an auspicious motif. 

Gold and Carnelian Ring, Greece, Hellenistic, 3rd-2nd Century B.C., Gold, carnelian© David Aaron

The ring with engraved stone is an archetype of Hellenistic jewellery.[1] Engraved ringstones such as this were carved with an image in relief, so that when pressed into hot wax they functioned as a seal. The motif was therefore a very personal emblem of identity. One’s correspondence, business contracts and finger would each bear the wearer’s chosen insignia. The Hellenistic period was an aesthetically fertile one, characterised by the refinement of earlier jewellery designs and elegant employment of Classical Greek motifs, such as the female deity we find here.[2]

This large ring yet light gold ring has a hollow gold hoop, circular in shape and curved both on the inside and outside. The flank of the ring broadens to a flat oval bezel, set with a finely carved carnelian intaglio. Surrounded by a wide gold band, the stone is engraved with an image of the goddess Minerva (Athena, in the Greek world). Her hair is loosely bound and in her left hand she holds a spear, a symbol of her role as the goddess of war. Rendered skilfully with deft incisions, the drapery of her robe flutters in the wind.  

Intaglio rings of this kind are amongst the most beautiful survivals of the Classical period, and have been collected with fervour from the Renaissance onwards. Amongst such collectors was J. Paul Getty, and his collection contains two rings comparable to this one. Female figures of strength and beauty were popular choices for such stones, and both Minerva and Fortuna occur frequently. In a society that was as superstitious as it was religious, the image of a goddess was likely regarded as an auspicious motif. A ring in the Metropolitan Museum of New York has a similar setting, but the image is less gracefully rendered. 

Gold Bracelet, Islamic, possibly Fatimid Syria, 10th-13th Century A.D., Gold, D: 6.8cm, H: 6.8cm© David Aaron

This Islamic bracelet has an unusual, simple beauty. It exemplifies early Islamic taste for gold, and for the aniconic relationship between precious metal and geometric ornament.[1] It has a circular band in a torc design, open at the top. The two terminals are delicately shaped, widening from the slender stem of the band to two flat circular nodes. On the uppermost rim a pattern is carved, composed of diagonal lines and dots. The pattern is continued on the shoulders. On the circular face of both terminals are symmetrical motifs – an incised cross with a dot between each arm.

A comparable bracelet dating from the 12^th century can be found in the British Museum.[2] It is similarly torc-shaped, with little decoration but for a raised element at the apex. A bracelet from Fatimid Egypt, now in the collection of the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar also employs an open-ended torc shape, fashioned from gold.[3] The minimal, lightweight design of this piece lend it great versatility, it could easily grace a modern wrist.   

Hellenistic Ring, 2nd Century B.C. - 1st Century A.D., Gold, garnet© David Aaron

This beautiful ring is a fine example of the refinement and sophistication of gold jewellery dating from the Hellenistic period. Beginning with the death of Alexander the Great in 325 B.C., the era is renowned for its artistic efflorescence. Gold flooded into the Eastern Mediterranean after Alexander’s conquest of Persia, and with an abundance of material to work with, the skill of Hellenistic jewellers reached new heights of sophistication. Under Roman rule skilfully inlaid gems enjoyed great popularity, and towards the late Hellenistic period the ownership of gold finger rings became widespread.[1] This ring is particularly attractive on account of its delicate femininity and tasteful garnet setting.  

The ring is fashioned from banded gold with a teardrop pendant of garnet at its head. Its bands are carefully attached to one another, rather than cast as a whole. It has been observed that ‘much late Hellenistic gold-work is characteristically composed of numerous separate small elements,’ and this piece is no exception.[2] The head of the ring is inlaid with a small, bright garnet, in a setting decorated with gold granulation. 

A comparable ring in the Metropolitan Museum shows the taste for gold and garnet typical to late Hellenistic and Roman jewellery. A pair of Greek bracelets in the J. Paul Getty Museum show the lovely coiled gold technique echoed by this ring. Here, the opulence of Roman inlaid gems is combined seamlessly with the elegance of Greek design to create a piece that bears the hallmarks of Hellenistic jewellery, and yet in its subtlety belongs to any age.

Lot 1579. A large black and turquoise-enameled Persian and Arabic-inscribed dish, Late Ming dynasty, late 16th-early 17th century, 14 in. (35.6 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 10,000 - USD 15,000. Price realised USD 50,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2016 

The dish has rounded sides and is decorated on the interior with a central roundel enclosing a lengthy inscription consisting of Qur'anic verses in Arabic, four smaller roundels enclosing and encircled by further Qur'anic verses, and verses from the diwan of the 14th century poet Jalal al-din Azud Yazdi inscribed in Persian below an iron-red double line border at the rim, all written in black enamel highlighted by turquoise glaze. The exterior is plain, Japanese wood box.  

Note: A very similar dish, identified as 'Swatow' ware (35.5 cm. diam.), is illustrated by R. Krahl and J. Ayers in Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum, Istanbul, vol. II, London, 1986, p. 895, and col. pl. p. 480, no. 1939, where the inscriptions are identified as Arabic quoting the Koran, and the poem is also translated. See, also, a related dish of comparable size (36.5 cm. diam.) illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Japan, 1987, p. 881. 

Lot 119. A tall parcel-gilt silver ewer and cover, Ming dynasty, 16th-17th century, 31cm., 12 1/4in. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 GBP. Lot sold 31,700 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

inspired from a Persian metal form, worked from thin silver sheet with a flattened pear-shaped body tapering into a long neck surmounted by a stepped cover with bud finial, applied with a long tubular 'S'-shaped handle and an elegant dragon-headed 'S'-shaped spout, decorated on each side in repousse with a pear-shaped panel enclosing scholars and immortals in a garden setting, a pomegranate tied with ribbons engraved on each side of the neck, all supported on a high, slighlty splayed foot engraved with a beast and a sea-horse amidst waves. Quantity: 2, Weight 455g.

Exhibited: Chinese Gold and Silver in the Carl Kempe Collection, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 1954-55, cat. no. 151.

The Arts of the Ming Dynasty, Arts Council Gallery, London, 1958, cat. no. 282.

Asia House Gallery, New York, 1971, cat. no. 67

Literature: Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Gold and Silver in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1953, pl. 151.

Soame Jenyns & William Watson, Chinese Art, The Minor Arts, London, 1963, pl. 36.

Chinese Gold and Silver in the Carl Kempe Collection, The Museum of Art and Far Eastern Antiquities in Ulricehamn, Ulricehamn, 1999, cat. no. 152.

Note: The shape of this ewer relates very closely to porcelain vessels of the period, notably blue and white wares, and the rare ewers made in kinrande palette for the Japanese market. A very similar and fine gilt-copper ewer and cover attributed to the sixteenth century, was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 23rd October 2005, lot 404.

Lot 332. A moulded 'Longquan' celadon figure of Buddha, Ming dynasty, 15th century, 25.5cm., 10in. Estimate 2,000 — 3,000 GBP. Lot sold 11,875 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

moulded seated in dhyanasana on a lotus throne raised on a tiered pedestal base, wearing a loose robe open at the chest revealing a wan symbol and falling in folds down around his legs and over the base, the face with gentle smile and framed by curly hair, covered overall in a bluish-green glaze save for the face, chest and hands reserved in the biscuit and burnt to an orange tone in the firing.

Exhibited: Peter Boode Chinese Works of Art (paper label to the base)

Collection of Charles Russell.

Sotheby's London, 12th July 1960, lot 123.

Literature: Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1964, pl. 166.

The World's Great Collections. Oriental Ceramics, vol. 8, Tokyo, 1982, pl. 190.

Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, The Museum of Art and Far Eastern Antiquities in Ulricehamn, Ulricehamn, 2002, pl. 385.

Note: It is extremely rare to find a 'Longquan' celadon shrine of this impressive size, and the present piece is exceptional for its extensive delicately modelled details, which demonstrate the skill of the Longquan potters in the production of devotional figures for the home market. The goddess is shown as Guanyin of the South Sea, who, according to legend, was a virtuous young woman martyred and consequently transformed into a manifestation of Avalokitesvara for her piety. Flanked by her two acolytes, Longnu and Shancai, the waves represent her home in the South Sea, while the beggar's bowls symbolise her role as the Goddess of Mercy. In the tradition of celadon figures, the face and hands have been left unglazed to allow for the application of pigment or gilding.

Compare a slightly smaller two-tiered shrine illustrated in Julian Thompson, 'Chinese Celadons', Arts of Asia, November-December, 1993, front cover, and sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th November 1996, lot 615; and a similar example in the Charles Russell collection illustrated by R. L. Hobson et. al., Chinese Ceramics in Private Collections, London, 1931, p. 187. A larger shrine from the Edward T. Chow collection, engraved with a date equivalent to 1385, is illustrated in Sheila Riddell, Dated Chinese Antiquities, 600-1650, London, 1979, pl. 11, and was sold in these rooms, 16th December 1980, lot 324, and again, 16th June 1998, lot 232. 

'Longquan' celadon shrines of this type are generally much smaller, for example see one from the Evelyn Annenberg Hall collection sold at Christie's New York, 29th March 2006; another from the estate of Stanley Hertzman sold at Christie's New York, 20th September 2002, lot 308; and a third from the collection of J. C. Dragon II sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5thNovember 1996, lot 615.

Lot 333. A 'Longquan' celadon-glazed 'stamped' bowl, Ming dynasty, 15th century, 17.7cm., 7in. Estimate 400 — 600 GBP. Lot sold 875 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the robustly-potted deep rounded sides rising from a short straight foot, the interior with a broad stamped band of seated and standing historical figures accompanied by inscribed cartouches, the exterior with a key-fret band at the rim, covered overall with a dark olive-green glaze.

Exhibited: Kunst Industri Museet, Copenhagen, 1950, cat. no. 392.

Literature: Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1964, pl. 142.

Lot 334. A 'Longquan' celadon-glazed 'stamped' bowl, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th century, 17.5cm., 6 7/8 in. Estimate 500 — 700 GBP. Lot sold 1,063 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the robustly potted hemispherical body rising from a short straight foot, the interior with a broad stamped band of seated, standing and equestrian historical figures below a key-fret band, the exterior with a key-fret band at the rim and covered overall with a thick bluish-green glaze save for the base.

Sotheby's. Masterpieces of Chinese Precious Metalwork, Early Gold and Silver; Early Chinese White, Green and Black Wares London, 14 May 2008

Lot 335. A large and impressive 'Longquan' celadon Guanyin shrine, Ming dynasty, 15th century, 51cm., 20 1/8 in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 GBP. Lot sold 60,500 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the Goddess finely modelled seated in 'royal ease' within a rocky alcove on a tiered rockwork throne, wearing a flowing robe and elaborate beaded jewellery, her face with gentle smile beneath a high tiara, all framed within an arch applied with a freely modelled bird and the 'Vase of Immortality' perched on ledges amidst scrolling leafy vines and lotus, at the base stand two acolytes on rocky ledges above foaming waves, covered overall in a rich bluish-green glaze save for the faces, hands and some vessels which are reserved in the reddish-brown biscuit.

Provenance: Collection of Charles Russell.

Sotheby's London, 12th July 1960, lot 123.

Literature: Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1964, pl. 167.

Note: It is extremely rare to find a 'Longquan' celadon shrine of this impressive size, and the present piece is exceptional for its extensive delicately modelled details, which demonstrate the skill of the Longquan potters in the production of devotional figures for the home market. The goddess is shown as Guanyin of the South Sea, who, according to legend, was a virtuous young woman martyred and consequently transformed into a manifestation of Avalokitesvara for her piety. Flanked by her two acolytes, Longnu and Shancai, the waves represent her home in the South Sea, while the beggar's bowls symbolise her role as the Goddess of Mercy. In the tradition of celadon figures, the face and hands have been left unglazed to allow for the application of pigment or gilding.

Compare a slightly smaller two-tiered shrine illustrated in Julian Thompson, 'Chinese Celadons', Arts of Asia, November-December, 1993, front cover, and sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th November 1996, lot 615; and a similar example in the Charles Russell collection illustrated by R. L. Hobson et. al., Chinese Ceramics in Private Collections, London, 1931, p. 187. A larger shrine from the Edward T. Chow collection, engraved with a date equivalent to 1385, is illustrated in Sheila Riddell, Dated Chinese Antiquities, 600-1650, London, 1979, pl. 11, and was sold in these rooms, 16th December 1980, lot 324, and again, 16th June 1998, lot 232.

'Longquan' celadon shrines of this type are generally much smaller, for example see one from the Evelyn Annenberg Hall collection sold at Christie's New York, 29th March 2006; another from the estate of Stanley Hertzman sold at Christie's New York, 20th September 2002, lot 308; and a third from the collection of J. C. Dragon II sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5thNovember 1996, lot 615.

Sotheby's. Masterpieces of Chinese Precious Metalwork, Early Gold and Silver; Early Chinese White, Green and Black Wares London, 14 May 2008

Lot 336. A rare inscribed and dated 'Fujian' green-glazed stoneware funerary jar, dated Jiajing 44th year (AD 1565), 21cm., 8 1/4 in. Estimate 500— 700 GBP. Lot sold 1,250 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the ovoid body rising from a short spreading foot to a short broad straight neck, the exterior pierced with a rectangular window framed by swags and three birds in high relief, all within a broad incised band further enclosing applied rosettes, a lengthy incised ten-line calligraphic inscription and a pair of link handles, covered with an olive-green glaze that stops well above the foot.

Sotheby's. Masterpieces of Chinese Precious Metalwork, Early Gold and Silver; Early Chinese White, Green and Black Wares London, 14 May 2008