Lot 20. A blue and white ‘sanduo’ garlic-mouth bottle vase, Daoguang seal mark and period (1821-1850). 28 cm, 11 in. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's.

the pear-shaped body supported on a spreading foot, tapering to a tall slender neck with a garlic-head mouth and straight mouth rim, the body finely detailed with branches of sanduo (The Three Abundances), fruiting and blossoming sprigs of peach, pomegranate and citron, all above a band of waves and upright lappets at the foot, and below a border of suspending ruyi heads and key-fret bands at the shoulder, the lower waisted neck decorated with a border of double trefoil motifs encircled by pendent lappets, the mouth detailed with a composite floral scroll beneath a key-fret border at the rim, the base with a seal mark in underglaze blue.

Note: This elegant design is inspired by a Yongle period (1403-24) motif depicting branches of flowers and fruit, which has been cleverly adapted to suit the Qing dynasty shape, particularly evident in the floral sprays decorating the cover of the Yongle original to adorn the bulbous head of the Qing version. A closely related vase is published in Illustrated Catalogue of Tokyo National Museum. Chinese Ceramics II, Tokyo, 1980, pl. 568; one, from the collection of Simon Kwan, was included in the exhibition Imperial Porcelain of Late Qing, Art Gallery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1983, cat. no. 1; and another, from the Edward T. Chow and Yangzhitang collections, was sold in these rooms, 19th May 1981, lot 459, and again at Christie’s Singapore, 30th March 1997, lot 201.

NEW YORK, NY.- This year marks the 400th anniversary of the birth of one of the most celebrated painters of the Spanish Golden Age, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682). A number of international exhibitions are planned to pay tribute to the artist’s achievements, the first of which is being presented this fall and winter at The Frick Collection. Murillo: The Self-Portraits is also the only such commemoration occurring in the United States. 

The exhibition opened in New York on November 1, 2017, and continues through February 4, 2018, after which it moves to London’s National Gallery from February 28 through May 21, 2018. 

Murillo’s career was a successful one, and he painted canvases for the most important patrons and churches in Seville. While the majority of his artistic production was for religious institutions, he also created allegorical and genre scenes. Murillo’s paintings of urchins in the streets of Seville are particularly well known and, together with his Immaculates and other religious images, they remain the artist’s signature works. Less familiar are a number of portraits, both full- and half-length, that Murillo painted of his patrons and friends. Biographers and scholars have paid little attention to this aspect of the artist’s career, and this is the first exhibition dedicated exclusively to the subject. Murillo’s first biographer, Antonio Palomino, described the artist in 1724 as “an eminent portrait painter,” although only about fifteen portraits by or attributed to him (including the two self-portraits) have survived. Five of these are included in the exhibition. 

Significantly, the painter’s only known self-portraits are being shown together for the first time since they were documented in the 1709 inventory of his son Gaspar’s art collection. These two self-portraits—one recently given to The Frick Collection and the other from the National Gallery in London—are being shown with a group of other works by Murillo that provide a larger context for these rare canvases. At the Frick, seventeen works, paintings as well as works on paper, are being presented in the intimate lower-level galleries. 

Murillo: The Self-Portraits is jointly organized by Xavier F. Salomon, Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator, The Frick Collection, and Letizia Treves, Curator of Later Italian, Spanish, and French 17th-Century Paintings, National Gallery, London. The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue and a range of public programs. 

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Self-Portrait, ca. 1650−55. Oil on canvas, 42 1/8 x 30 1/2 inches. Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Henry Clay Frick II, 2014 © The Frick Collection.

The earlier of the two self-portraits featured in the exhibition was acquired in 1904 by Henry Clay Frick and remained in the Frick family until 2014, when Trustee Mrs. Henry Clay Frick II generously gave it to the museum. (The self-portrait was the first Spanish painting acquired by Mr. Frick, who subsequently purchased several well-known masterpieces by El Greco, Velázquez and Goya.) The portrait was sensitively restored by Dorothy Mahon at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and a seventeenth-century Spanish frame was provided by Colnaghi. The painting is among Murillo’s earliest known works and dates from the first half of the 1650s, when the artist was in his mid-thirties. It was probably intended for his own collection, as is suggested by its later documentation in his son’s collection. 

Murillo presents himself in a black jacket typical of the Spanish upper class. His sleeves are slashed and reveal his white shirt underneath, and he wears a rigid white collar, known in Spanish as a golilla. The painter’s hair is long, over his shoulders, and he sports a fashionable moustache and slender goatee. No attributes or objects identify him as an artist; however, a long inscription in red letters declares him a famous painter. Because the inscription incorrectly gives his birth date as 1618 (instead of 1617) and states his death date, we know that it was added posthumously. Murillo’s face is surrounded by a trompe l’oeil stone frame, a hollowed-out block, chipped and eroded by time. The block, in turn, is propped on top of a stone ledge. This fictive frame is unique in concept and is not found in any other work by the painter or by his followers. 

Within a few years of his wife’s death, in 1663, Murillo executed a second selfportrait, which he dedicated to his four teenage children. The elegantly rendered Latin inscription below the portrait translates “Bartolomé Murillo painted himself to fulfill the wishes and prayers of his children.” In format, this self-portrait is similar to the earlier one. Murillo appears again in three-quarters pose, gazing out toward the viewer. He looks older, his expression forlorn and weary. By this date, Murillo was in his fifties and had lost not only his wife, but also five of his nine children. The outfit he wears is similar to the one in the Frick self-portrait: a black jacket over a white shirt. The golilla, however, has been updated with a more fashionable style: a wider, unstarched collar decorated with lace, known in Spain as a valona (Walloon collar). The trompe l’oeil stone frame around Murillo’s image is more elaborate than the one in the earlier self-portrait. Decorated with scrolls and idealized foliage, it is resting on a stone ledge, set into the niche of a wall. Flanking the frame are the signature attributes of an artist: to the left, a wooden ruler, a sheet of paper with a red-chalk drawing of human legs, a compass, and a chalk holder; to the right are the painter’s brushes and palette. While the sitter in the earlier self-portrait could be mistaken for a nobleman (were it not for the posthumous inscription), the later self-portrait clearly depicts an artist, who names himself in the inscription carved into a cartouche below the frame. 

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Self-Portrait, ca. 1670. Oil on canvas, 48 1/16 × 42 1/8 inches. The National Gallery, London; Bought, 1953© The National Gallery, London.

Soon after Murillo’s death, in 1682, his second self-portrait was engraved in Flanders, probably to commemorate his life and career. This was the first of many portraits of Murillo to be produced in print form, and it disseminated the painter’s image across Europe. The engraving is signed by its author, Richard Collin, who had worked in Rome and Antwerp before moving to Brussels, in 1678, to work as a royal engraver for Charles II of Spain, who then ruled Flanders. Below the portrait, a plaque is inscribed identifying Murillo and replicating the dedication to his children found on the original canvas. The inscription further explains that the engraving was commissioned by Nicolás Omazur, an Antwerp merchant based in Seville, who had been a patron of Murillo’s. As is typical of engravings after an original, the print reproduces the self-portrait in reverse. Collin did not copy the painting exactly, however. Most conspicuous is the fact that, in the engraving, Murillo’s hand no longer grasps the frame. In addition, the oval frame in the engraving is narrower and higher than the one in the painting, the painter’s attributes have been omitted from the ledge, and the inscription is now presented on a tablet rather than a cartouche. With these modifications, the print evokes the tombs and monuments found in European churches, in which carved busts were placed in niches over inscriptions commemorating the life of the deceased. 

The composition of many of Murillo’s portraits were related to print culture in Spain and responds to the format used in that art form. His earliest known portrait, dated 1650, now in the collection of the Duchess of Cardona, was restored for the exhibition and is on view to the public for the first time. It represents Juan Arias de Saavedra, a Sevillian aristocrat, and was painted when the sitter was twenty-nine years old (only four years younger than Murillo). The portrait’s inscription provides most of the information we have about Saavedra and his friendship with Murillo. The sitter is shown half-length and in three quarters, again within an oval trompe l’oeil stone frame. He is somberly dressed in black, with a white goililla. The red cross embroidered on Saavedra’s proper left shoulder and the scallop shell on his chest identify him as a Knight of the Order of Santiago. The frame is surrounded by an elaborate cartouche and two palm branches; two putti at the top hold the Saavedra family’s coat of arms with two tablets, inscribed in Latin with the age of the sitter and the year the portrait was painted. An inscription provides detailed biographical information: Saavedra was a senior minister of the Holy Inquisition in Seville and was commended for his skills in punishing heretics. Additionally, he is celebrated for being a “profound connoisseur of the liberal arts, and of painting in particular.” 

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Juan Arias de Saavedra, 1650. Oil on canvas, 53 1/8 × 38 9/16 inches, Collection Duchess of Cardona.

Murillo’s two self-portraits and many of his portraits present the sitters as if “set in stone.” The stone block of the Frick self-portrait, chipped and scarred by time, and the frames of the London self-portrait and of Saavedra’s portrait are striking elements in these compositions. Stones and ruins occupy the background of many of the artist’s works. Murillo’s interest in remnants of antiquity is not surprising. Seville was known in the seventeenth century as the “New Rome.” Built on the ruins of the Roman city of Hispalis, it was the only major center in Spain to boast ancient foundations. A few miles northwest of Seville are the ruins of Italica, one of the largest and most important cities of the Roman empire and the birthplace of the emperors Trajan and Hadrian. Throughout Seville, relics of its ancient past would have been visible and known to Murillo. Many aristocrats in Seville collected antiquities and ancient coins (including Murillo), and these also may have inspired him. One of the extraordinary features of the London self-portrait is the painter’s right hand protruding out of the frame, into the viewers’ space, clutching the frame itself. The origin of this trompe l’oeil effect is probably derived from contemporary Northern prints, which were readily available in Spain during Murillo’s time. The protruding hand dissolves the boundaries between art and reality, bringing the sitter closer to the viewer. It is as if Murillo tries to break down notions of time and space, making his presence felt beyond his death. 

Perhaps the most beautiful of Murillo’s paintings to use trompe l’oeil to explore the relationship of art and reality is Two Women at a Window. Painted in the late 1650s, it remains one of the best known and most mysterious of Murillo’s works. Although technically a genre scene rather than a portrait, the painting shares common features with the other works in the exhibition. The composition is devised within the space of a window—a dark void framed on three sides by a shutter, a ledge, and a window jamb. From behind the shutter emerges an attractive young woman, who peers out into the space beyond, partially shielding her face with a veil. A second young woman casually leans against the window sill, resting her hand on her chin as she watches the scene below. The effect of these two figures emerging from the window is exceptionally realistic. The women have been identified alternately as servants or prostitutes. A Spanish proverb from the period warns that “a woman at the window, a grape of the street.” The nature of the painting’s commission and its message remains unknown, but the canvas is designed, like Murillo’s London self-portrait, to confound the viewer with an illusion of reality beyond the painted space. 

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Two Women at a Window, ca. 1655–60. Oil on canvas, 49 1/4 × 41 1/8 inches, National Gallery of Art, Washington; Widener Collection (1942.9.46). Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Both of Murillo’s self-portraits are potent statements about his art, fitting tributes with which to commemorate his life and work on the four hundredth anniversary of his birth.

November 1, 2017 to February 4, 2018

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, A Peasant Boy Leaning on a Sill, ca. 1675. Oil on canvas, 20 1/2 × 15 3/16 inches, The National Gallery, London; Presented by M.M. Zachary, 1826© The National Gallery, London.

BEIJING - The reigns of the Hongzhi Emperor (r. 1488-1505) and the Zhengde Emperor (1506-1521) are the watershed of the Ming-dynasty's social and cultural changes at the turn of the sixteenth century. The stifling conservativeness gave way to dynamic innovation. A penchant for wealth replaced previous admiration for unsophisticated simplicity. Imperial porcelains from the two reigns share some commonalities including the shrinking scale of production, plummeting variety, and the relative austerity in terms of decoration. For this reason, ceramic objects of the two dynasties are displayed together in this exhibition in five parts:

I. Freshness & Elegance: Blue-and-White Porcelain and Underglaze Red Porcelain;

II. Lightness & Beauty: Polychrome Porcelain and Doucai Porcelain;

III. Colorful Porcelain: Multi-Colored Glaze Porcelain and Plain Tricolor Porcelain;

IV. Uniformity & Pureness: Single Colored Glaze Porcelain;

V. Profundity of Influence: Chenghua Imperial Porcelain Imitated by Later Ages. 

Products of the two reigns might not be able to match those dated to the Yongle (1403-1424), Xuande (1426-1435), and Chenghua (1465-1487) reigns. Yet, their quality is still fine, masterpieces abundant, some types highly distinctive in terms of style. 

 A yellow-glazed Zun in the period of Emperor Hongzhi. Photo Palace Museum.

Stylistically, imperially-commissioned porcelain pieces of the Hongzhi reign carry on the legacies of the Chenghua reign, celebrated for its handsome form, refined body, smooth and subtle glaze, and sophisticated decoration. According to current figures, the imperial kiln in the Hongzhi reign produces approximately sixteen types of ceramic objects, only slightly over half of that of the Chenghua reign. Blue and white porcelain, objects with green glaze on white ground, and objects with bright yellow glaze win the highest acclaim. Especially the bright yellow glaze vessels, the fine and gentle smoothness reminds one of chicken fat, together with the delicate color and luster, winning such glaze the reputation as "delicate yellow". 

A white-and-green colored plate in the period of Emperor Zhengde. Photo Palace Museum 

The Zhengde reign witnessed the turning point in the development of the Ming-dynasty imperial kiln at Jingdezhen, in that porcelain pieces of this period break away from the features such as light and thin body, limited shape, and sparse decoration. Porcelains of this period are marked by heavy and thick body, increasing variety of shapes, and the turn towards elaborate decorations. Over twenty types of objects were fired, less than those of the Chenghua period, but more than those of the Hongzhi reign. Objects with peacock green glaze from this period are the most accomplished, draw much attention, and can be regarded as masterpieces from the Ming imperial kiln. Large amount of Arabic and Persian texts are used as decoration, while, interestingly, reign mark written with the Phags-pa script is unique in the Ming-dynasty history of imperial porcelain products. This unique cultural symbolism seen on imperial porcelains of the Zhengde reign is heatedly debated by many scholars. 

As time goes by, porcelains of the Hongzhi and Zhengde reigns have witnessed nearly five centuries of ups and downs. Still, this elegantly shaped masterpieces with fine and smooth body and sophisticated decoration still have the enchanting air that appeals to the viewer's senses. 

Hall for Abstinence (Zhai gong). 2017-09-29 through 2018-02-28 

A chicken cup in the period of Emperor Chenghua. Photo Palace Museum.

Exhibition views. Photo Palace Museum.

Lot 71. An Art Nouveau opal, enamel and pearl pendent necklace, by Georges Fouquet. Estimate CHF 120,000 - CHF 180,000 (USD 120,369 - USD 180,554). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Modelled as a rural landscape, the enamel river and trees underneath an opal sky, to the enamel foliate surround with seed pearl accents, suspending a baroque pearl, circa 1900, pendant 8.5 cm, chain 66.0 cm, with French assay marks for gold. Signed G. Fouquet, no. 10399

Please note that the pearl have not been tested for natural origin.

Maison Fouquet, Study for a pendant, Paris, Les Arts Décoratifs, Bibliothèque des Arts Décoratifs © Paris, Les Arts Décoratifs.

Christie's. Beyond Boundaries: Magnificent Jewels from a European Collection, 13 November 2017, Geneva 

Lot 72. An Art Nouveau opal, diamond and enamel 'Cedars' pendent necklace, by Georges Fouquet. Estimate CHF 120,000 - CHF 180,000 (USD 120,369 - USD 180,554). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Modelled as an openwork diamond-set cascade between opal panels, to the textured gold cedar surmount, suspending a baroque pearl, with cable-link chain, 1901, pendant 11.5 cm, chain 52.0 cm, mounted in gold, in Georges Fouquet fitted case. Signed G. Fouquet.

Please note that the pearl have not been tested for natural origin.

 Georges Fouquet, Study for the ‘Waterfall’ pendant, Paris, Les Arts Décoratifs, Bibliothèque des Arts Décoratifs © Paris, Les Arts Décoratifs.

 Les Modes, 1902 © Bibliothèque Nationale de France

Christie's. Beyond Boundaries: Magnificent Jewels from a European Collection, 13 November 2017, Geneva 

Lot 5. A pair of ruby-ground famille-rose medallion bowls, Daoguang seal marks and period (1821-1850). 15 cm, 5 15/16  in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's.

each with rounded sides rising from a short straight foot to a slightly everted rim, the exterior with four circular medallions of alternating panels delicately painted with mountainous landscapes and figures showing the four seasons, separated by meandering lotus scrolls against a ruby sgraffiato ground, the interior detailed with blue floral sprays and gilded ruyi shaped lappets encircling a central medallion, the base with a seal mark in underglaze blue. Quantity: 2.

Provenance: A private American collection formed between the 1940s and late 1960s.

Literature: Michael C. Hughes, LLC., Chinese Jades and Works of Art, New York, 2003, pl. 21.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, London, 08 Nov 2017, 11:00 AM

Lot 216. A turquoise-ground 'Dayazhai' bowl, Qing dynasty, Guangxu period (1875-1908). 16.8 cm, 6 5/8  in. Estimate 3,000 — 4,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's.

covered overall in a turquoise ground, the exterior with a bird perched amongst branches of wisteria and pink roses below the iron-red Dayazhai (Studio of Great Elegance) mark and oval seal mark bearing tiandi yijia chun (heaven and earth enjoying spring as one), the base with a four-character mark yongqing changchun (eternal joy and everlasting spring).

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, London, 08 Nov 2017, 11:00 AM

Lot 150. An extremely rare and important pair of Huanghuali horseshoe-back armchairs, Quanyi, Ming dynasty, 17th century. Estimate GBP 800,000 - GBP 1,200,000 (USD 1,043,200 - USD 1,564,800). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

On each chair the sweeping crest rail terminates in outswept hooks above shaped spandrels, and forms an elegant curve above the back splat decorated with an openwork four-lobed cartouche. The rear posts continue to form the back legs below the rectangular seat frame which has plain shaped aprons. The legs are joined by stretchers and a foot rest above a plain apron. Each 26 ¾ in. (68 cm.) wide, 21 in. (53.3 cm.) deep, 36 in. (91.5 cm.) high

Provenance: With Grace Wu Bruce.
Property from a Distinguished Private Collection.

Uniquely Styled and Elegantly Crafted: A Pair of Huanghuali Round-Back Chairs

The round-back chair emerged simultaneously with other high-back chairs during the late Tang and Song dynasties. The form may well have been developed through a fusion of two more ancient forms—the platform dais and the curved armrest (pinji) with three short legs, the latter which was also placed upon platforms as an accessory backrest (cf. fig. 1). Early evidence from Song period paintings reveals large ponderous chairs with a comb-like arrangement of vertical posts supporting a curved armrest with scrolling ends; such form appears in a detail from Breaking the Balustrade(fig. 2) where upon a Han emperor is seated. Others also depict more ethereal forms with slender cabriole legs and delicately balanced armrests; such is the drawing of an abbots chair as well as the elegant seat depicted in the portrait of the Zen master Dao Yuan (figs. 3-4). By the late Ming and Qing dynasties, streamlined hardwood versions had developed into one of the most graceful forms of traditional Chinese furniture. Notwithstanding, stylistic innovations continued to be experimented with, and archaistic expressions drawn from early forms were also revisited. Such are the uniquely styled and exquisitely crafted pair of round-back armchairs offered in this sale. 

Fig. 1 Detail from Shi Xianzu, anonymous, album leaf painting, attributed Song dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei.

Fig. 2 Detail from Breaking the Balustrade, anonymous, hanging scroll, Song dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei.

Fig. 3 Abbots chair, wood cut from Wushan shicha tu, Song dynasty.

Fig. 4 Portrait of Daoyuan, anonymous, hanging scroll, Song dynasty, Japanese collection.

Decorative art with archaistic characteristics was often favored by the literati class. Wen Zhenheng, a late Ming arbiter of taste, repeatedly cites a preference for furniture styled according to the old patterns from the Song and Yuan dynasties. Several archaistic features may be seen in the chairs offered by Christies. Firstly, the armrests terminate with large scroll-shaped handgrips, a characteristic that is even more pronounced in early illustrations. Secondly is the wide back splat (fig. 5), which is constructed as a tri-sectional panel as illustrated in the Song drawing above. Finally, the acute angle of the “goose-neck” front armrest posts, which is fitted with bracket-like spandrels above and below (fig. 6), recalls those ethereal forms depicted in Song and Yuan paintings. 

Fig. 5 Detail of lot 150, huanghuali round-back armchair, armrest and backrest.

Fig. 6 Detail of lot 150, huanghuali round-back armchair, gooseneck support.

Elegant design aside, the exquisite craftsmanship typical of the Jiangnan region is also apparent in the details of these chairs. The armrest is shaped with three pieces joined with half-lap joints utilizing blind tenons; the use of unique pressure pegs, which are intelligently set at an angle to impart compression, fixes the joint tightly together (fig. 7); this technique, which has been noted on several other chairs from the region, may also indicate the signature of a common workshop. Delicate beading, which is traced around the back-splat medallion, aprons and spandrels, also reflects the refinement typical to the southern furniture-making tradition.  

Fig. 7 Detail of lot 150, huanghuali round-back armchair, gooseneck support.

A unique feature of these chairs is the removable seat panel. Soft seats of woven cane required periodic replacement; presumably, independent seat panels would have facilitated such necessity. It is more common that beds were made with removable frames; even today it is still possible to happen upon an itinerant craftsman reweaving such a bed frame along the street side in some parts of China. A notable group of early-style huanghualisouthern officials chairs with thick headrest reinforced with spandrels, high armrests, and straight side posts also share the feature of removable seat panels (cf. fig. 8); these chairs, which are also typically found throughout the Jiangnan and Weiyang regions, may bear some relationship to the round-back chairs. Nevertheless, chair construction with removable seat panels was not a widely adopted practice.  

Fig. 8 Huanghuali southern official’s chair with removable seat panel, after Weiyang Mingshi jiaju, private collection, Hong Kong. 

The present chairs were originally likely part of larger set of eight or more identical chairs that became separated over time. Four from the Robert Hatfield Ellsworth collection were published in 1970, and in 2015, were sold by Christies for a record-breaking price (fig. 9); another pair was published by Giuseppe Eskenazi in the late 90’s; the pair in this sale bring the group to eight. Known sets of hardwood chairs rarely exceed four; those of eight are very rare. Notwithstanding, inscriptions discovered by this author on several lacquered chairs indicates that sets of twelve, twenty to thirty were not uncommon; thus, opportunities to reunite such chair sets still exist.  

Fig. 9 Set of huanghuali four round-back armchairs, former Robert Hatfield Ellsworth collection.

Finally, the round back chair with cubic base is also a three-dimensional representation of the cosmological concept ‘round heaven and square earth’ (tianyuan difang). An ancient Chinese proverb also advises “external roundness and inner squareness” (waiyuan neifang)—square inside indicating guidance through noble principles; and round outside referring to the ability to exercise relative adaptability. These seats, which rest upon a solidly grounded base, and above, exhibit a welcoming supple openness, certainly reflect such divine balance.  

Curtis Evarts
Independent Academic Consultant 
Former Curator of the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture, California.

Blue Oaks Farm, California 
Fall, 2017.

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, 7 November 2017, London

Lot 146. A rare pair of Huanghuali horseshoe-back armchairs, Quanyi, 17th-18th century. Estimate GBP 200,000 - GBP 400,000 (USD 260,800 - USD 521,600). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

On each chair the sweeping crest rail terminates in outswept hooks above shaped spandrels, and forms an elegant curve above the S-shaped splat carved with a ruyi-head roundel enclosing confronted chilong dragons and flanked by shaped spandrels. The rear posts continue to form the back legs below the rectangular frame above shaped, beaded aprons and spandrels carved in the front with a stylised scroll. The legs are joined by stepped stretchers and a foot rest above a shaped apron. Each 26 ½ in. (67.3 cm.) wide, 19 ¼ in. (49 cm.) deep, 38 ¾ in. (98.5 cm.) high

Provenance: Property from a Distinguished Private Collection.

Note: For a discussion of this chair shape, see R.H. Ellsworth, Chinese Furniture: Hardwood Examples of the Ming and Early Ch'ing Dynasty, New York, 1971, pp. 86-87, and Wang Shixiang, Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture: Ming and Early Qing Dynasties, Hong Kong, 1990, pp. 43-45. 

© Christie's Images Ltd 2017

THE ALBUM
The ‘Late Shah Jahan Album’ was so called because it was compiled during the last decade of Shah Jahan’s reign, between 1650 and 1658. The paintings in the album date from about 1620 to 1657, with an emphasis on single standing portraits of Mughal dignitaries. The associated calligraphic folios are by the well-known 16th century Iranian calligrapher Mir ‘Ali, most of them signed by him. The unsigned ones are also thought to be the work of Mir ‘Ali, with the exception of a single folio which is signed by Sultan ‘Ali Mashhadi. The album is assumed to have been part of the loot taken by Nadir Shah from Delhi in 1739. In the late 19th century it was taken to Russia by a brother of Nasir al-Din Shah, the Qajar ruler of Iran, and sold to an Armenian dealer who subsequently brought it to Paris in 1909 and sold it to the French dealer, Georges Demotte. It was dispersed in Paris after Demotte split many of the folios separating the paintings from their associated calligraphic sides. For a detailed discussion of the album, see Wright (ed.), 2008, pp.106-139. For a list of known folios from the Late Shah Jahan Album, see Wright (ed.), 2008, App.3, pp.462-466.

THE CALLIGRAPHY
The calligraphy on both our Late Shah Jahan Album folios is signed al-muthnib ‘Ali , probably referring to Mir ‘Ali al-Katib (1465-1544 AD). Mir ‘Ali is often mentioned by Safavid sources as amongst the most important nasta’liq calligraphers of all time. Various authorities attribute the codifying of the aesthetic rules of nasta’liq script to him. Born in Herat circa 1476, he was later taken to Bukhara by the Shaybanid ruler ‘Ubaydullah Khan after his capture of Herat in AH 935/1528-29 AD (Bayani, 1346 sh., p.494). His recorded works are dated between AH 914/1508-09 AD and AH 951/1544-45 AD. The works of leading Persian calligraphers were particularly prized at the Mughal court and Mir ‘Ali was amongst those particularly admired by Jahangir. A large number of qit’as signed by him found their way into important Mughal albums, and he is the calligrapher responsible for most of the specimens in the Late Shah Jahan Album. It is possible that they were bought to the Mughal court by way of his son Muhammad Baqir who emigrated to India and was mentioned by Abu’l Fazl’s in his Ain-i Akbari (Islamic Calligraphy, 1998, pp.170-171, no.54,). A comparable folio from a royal album made for Shah Jahan, probably the Late Shah Jahan Album, with foral margins surrounding a calligraphic panel signed by Mir ‘Ali, sold in these Rooms, 9 October 2014, lot 136.

THE BORDERS
The most distinctive feature of the Late Shah Jahan Album are the seated and standing fgures in the borders surrounding the central paintings. The usual format for the border fgures surrounding non-royal Mughal subjects, like our portraits, is three standing fgures in the long outer border and single or pairs of fgures seated in the upper and lower borders. If the subject of the central painting has a military association, the standing border fgures are often depicted carrying various types of arms. The seated fgures in the upper and lower borders are either conversing, reading, playing musical instruments, or examining collections of jewels and arms. The border fgures are attendants of the main subject and represent his wealth or military prestige. The inner narrow borders of the folios are usually peach in colour with gold scrolling foral motifs.

On the other side of the folios, the borders surrounding the panels of calligraphy comprise either arabesques or fowering plants as is the case with our folios in the two lots ofered here. Albums made for the Emperor Shah Jahan and his father Jahangir are celebrated for the
refned quality of the border decoration. The borders paid tribute to the royal patrons’ growing concern with the natural world - they actively encouraged artists of their ateliers to study and observe all aspects of it. The European herbaria of the early 17th century that were bought into the Mughal court by Jesuit missionaries provided ample inspiration. Under Jahangir (r.1604-28) artists such as Manohar and Mansur were encouraged to record animals, plants and birds with great attention to detail. It is claimed that in Jahangir’s Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, more than one hundred fower paintings were done by the artist Mansur in Kashmir alone (Beach, Fischer and Goswamy (eds.), 2011, p.257). Under Shah Jahan, this keen observation was applied to the borders of albums, where artists demonstrated the great precision and naturalism with which they had become practiced.

A number of albums with closely related foral borders were produced under the patronage of Shah Jahan. These include the Minto, Wantage and Kevorkian albums – all now identifed by the names of former Western owners. In the Late Shah Jahan Album, the calligraphic borders are usually foral, and certainly relate closely to the others mentioned above. In addition, particular foral species are repeated on a single border unlike the Minto, Wantage and Kevorkian albums, where each type of fower is used only once (Wright (ed.), 2008, pp.115-116).

Other folios with portraits from the album have sold more recently at auction. A Late Shah Jahan page, probably depicting Shah Shuja’, sold in these Rooms, 10 June 2015, lot 10. A portrait of Maharana Karan Singh of Mewar sold at Sothey’s Paris, 6 July 2017, lot 85.

Lot 180. Recto with a portrait of Jai Singh Kachhawa of Amber, Verso with a nasta'liq quatrain from the Bustan of Sa'di written by Mir 'ali. The painting attributed to Payag, Mughal India, circa 1640-45; the calligraphy signed by Mir 'ali, Herat, Afghanistan, Late 15th-early 16th century. Estimate GBP 100,000 - GBP 150,000. Price realised GBP 548,750. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, recto an extremely sensitively observed portrait on plain ground, the margins with mostly military figures surrounded by gold floral sprays, verso with four very strong diagonal lines of nasta'liq from the Bustan of Sa'di, on bold scrolling golden floral design, overpainted with fine floral illumination on gold ground, fully illuminated spandrels around the title upper right and the signature kataba al-'abd al-mudhib Mir 'Ali al-Katib, illuminated margins, on buff leaf with elegant floral sprays, glazed each side and framed. Painting 8 ½ x 4 7/8in. (21.6 x 12.4cm.); calligraphy 5 ¾ x 3 ¼in. (14.6 x 8.6cm.); folio 15 x 10 ½in. (38.1 x 26.7cm.)

The identification of the figure as Mirza Jai Singh of Amber is further strengthened by the article “A Mughal Icon Reconsidered”, Catherine Glynn and Ellen Smart, Artibus Asiae, Volume 15, No. 1/2, 1997, pp. 5-15.

Property from the Estate of William Kelly Simpson.

William Kelly Simpson was born in Manhattan in 1928. His father, William F. Simpson, was an influential civic leader who served as Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and Chairman of the New York County Republican Committee; and in 1940 was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Professor Simpson attended Manhattan’s Buckley School and the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. Presaging a decades-long association with Yale, the future Professor Simpson graduated from Yale College in 1947 with a degree in English, and obtained his masters degree in New Haven in 1948. That same year, he made his initial foray into Egyptology, when curators W.C. Hayes and Ambrose Lansing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art hired the graduate as a Curatorial Assistant in the Egyptian Department. Imbued with an insatiable curiosity and precocious mind, Professor Simpson penned his first Egyptological article—an exploration of a Fourth Dynasty portrait head—at just twenty-one years old. That piece, published in the Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, heralded a remarkable scholarly output, with more than 130 articles and twenty books written throughout his lifetime. 

Professor Simpson’s position within the Met’s Egyptian Department forever changed the trajectory of his life and, indeed, the wider field of Egyptology. It was during his time at the Met that Professor Simpson participated in his first archaeological expedition—an excavation in Iraq sponsored by the British School of Archaeology—and decided to pursue graduate work in Egyptology. In the early 1950s, the young scholar commuted between his work in New York and his studies at Yale, all while serving in the 101st Armed Calvary of the New York National Guard. In June 1953, Professor Simpson married Marilyn Milton, a Sarah Lawrence graduate and granddaughter of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. 

Professor Simpson studied for his doctorate under the noted Egyptologist Ludlow Bull, and wrote his dissertation on the excavation of the pyramid of Amenemhat I. It was not until obtaining his Ph.D. in 1954, however, that Professor Simpson made his first trek to Egypt, after being awarded a prestigious Fulbright research fellowship. For two years, Professor Simpson led excavation teams at the Bent Pyramid at Dahshur and at Mitrahineh. Upon returning to the United States, he was immediately offered a fellowship at Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and in 1958 was appointed Assistant Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Literature at Yale. 

During Professor Simpson’s forty-six years in academia, he rose to Associate Professor, Professor, and Chair of Yale’s Department of Near Eastern Languages and Literature; was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in the Humanities; and positioned Yale as one of the foremost centers for Egyptology. Among his many archaeological projects in Egypt were the famed Pennsylvania-Yale Expeditions recording New Kingdom tombs and Meroitic cemeteries, the 1960s UNESCO campaign to rescue Nubian monuments threatened by the construction of the Aswan Dam, and excavations at the Giza Pyramids and sites in Nubia. “[Professor Simpson] served the monuments of Egypt… with unstinting passion,” noted fellow scholar Hussein Bassir. “He served as a major channel between Egypt and the US,” Bassir added, “to the benefit of the two nations and the archaeological and cultural ties between the two countries.” 

Lot 181. Recto with a portrait of Safdar Khan, Verso with a nasta'liq quatrain. The painting attributed to Bichitr, Mughal India, circa 1635-40; the calligraphy signed by Mir 'ali, Herat, Afghanistan, dated AH 943/1536-37 AD. Estimate GBP 80,000 - GBP 120,000. Price realised GBP 392,750. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Opaque pigments heighted with gold on paper, recto a well observed portrait on dark green ground, the margins with figures of courtiers and a sage surrounded by gold floral sprays, blue paper verso with four very strong diagonal lines of nasta'liq from a ghazal of Hilali Jagata'i on bold scrolling golden floral design, overpainted with fine floral illumination on gold ground, the title upper right and between the couplets, dated lower left, the signature in a large panel below Mir 'Ali al-Sultani al-Katib, illuminated margins, on buff leaf with elegant floral sprays, glazed each side and framed. Painting 7 1/8 x 4 ¼in. (18 x 10.8cm.); calligraphy 5 7/8 x 2 7/8 in. (14.9 x 7.3cm.); folio 15 x 10 ¾in. (38.1 x 27cm.).

Note: This is a portrait of Sayyid Khwaja Qasim Safdar Khan (d.1645) painted late in his life. Safdar Khan was a long serving Mughal officer who held several official posts during the reign of the Emperor Shah Jahan (r.1628-58). In the first year of Shah Jahan’s reign, he received a dress of honour, a jewelled dagger, a horse with a silver saddle and an elephant amongst other gifts from the Emperor. Later that year he was given the title of Safdar Khan. He was part of various Mughal expeditions including visits to the Deccan. In Shah Jahan’s fifth regnal year, he was appointed to the prestigious post of Ambassador to Iran. He carried with him presents comprising rarities from India for Shah Safi, the ruler of Iran. After a successful six year diplomatic stint, Safdar Khan returned, bringing several presents back for the Emperor including five hundred Iranian horses. A couple of years after he returned to the Mughal court, he was sent to Qandahar as Governor. (The Ma’athir-ul-Umara: being biographies of the Muhamma¯dan and Hindu officers of the Timurid sovereigns of India from 1500 to about 1780 A.D., Asiatic Society, Calcutta, 1941, pp.665-667).

Our painting bears an identification inscription in a strong but loose black nasta‘liq which is likely to be in the hand of Shah Jahan. Not only is the strength that of Shah Jahan’s hand but the complete absence of any honorifics support the attribution. The inscription can be compared with those on two other portraits in the Late Shah Jahan Album, depicting Rustam Khan and Khan Dawran, which have also been attributed to Shah Jahan. (Elaine Wright (ed.), op. cit., cat.no. 62, 63, pp.386-389). The numeral 12 visible in the lower right is probably part of a system of foliation in the album. 

Our portrait has been attributed to the Mughal imperial artist Bichitr. An identical rendition of Safdar Khan’s face can be seen in an illustration from the Windsor Padshahnama (50b; M.C. Beach, E. Koch, King of the World, The Padshahnama, An Imperial Mughal Manuscript from the Royal Library, Windsor Castle, London, 1997, pl.10) which is signed by Bichitr and dated to circa 1630. There is a tiny identification inscription discernible on the collar of Safdar Khan’s jama. He appears in the lower right section just above the golden railing and wears a brown-and-white striped jama. The features – especially the eyes and lips – and close-cropped facial hair are executed in an exceedingly fine and lightly articulated manner for which Bichitr was renowned. See, for comparison, the ascribed Portrait of Asaf Khan, dated RY 3 (to the third regnal year of the emperor Shah Jahan), circa 1630, in the Victoria and Albert Museum (IM 26-1965; Susan Stronge, Painting for the Mughal Emperor: The Art of the Book 1560-1660, London, 2002, pl.118, p.156). Bichitr brings the same level of technical mastery to the translucent gauze upper garment worn by the noble, particularly in nuanced folds and highlights along the collar, on both shoulders, and at the armpit. Even the dense and convincing folds at the bottom of the striped paijama demonstrate his characteristic attention to detail. Likewise, he meticulously records such details as the interrupted scroll pattern on the golden patka, the jewel-encrusted hilt of the sword, and the long, weighted lead of the falcon. The artist used a plain dark green ground in his earlier portrait of Jahangir, circa 1614-18, in the Minto Album (Elaine Wright (ed.), op.cit., no.37a, p.294). He turned to a similar dark green ground in his portraits painted around 1630 of Shah Jahan (VAM IM 17-1925; S. Stronge, op. cit., pl.94, p.129) and Salim as a youth (VAM IM 28-1925; R. Skelton, The Indian Heritage: Court Life and arts under Mughal rule, London, 1982, no. 50, p.41), but in those works he relieves the background with overt or discreet flowers.  

The border figures are also noteworthy. The grinning bearded figure in the upper centre is a close adaptation of either the singer in a Minto Album painting by Govardhan (CBL 7A.11; Elaine Wright (ed.), op.cit., no.47a, p.334) or a similar figure in Bichitr’s own Singer and Musician, circa 1640(VAM IM 27-1965; S. Stronge, op. cit., pl.122, p.159). The style of these border figures strongly resembles that of another Late Shah Jahan Album painting of A Gathering of Sages attributed to Bichitr (San Diego Museum of Art 1990:353, published in B.N. Goswamy and Caron Smith, Domains of Wonder: Selected Masterworks of Indian Painting, San Diego, 2005, no. 58), which has one figure in holding a book and is attributed to Muhammad Daula. So close are they, in fact, that the border figures here can also be attributed to the same artist.

The calligraphy on the reverse comprises verses from a ghazal of Hilali Jagata’i, and is signed and dated by the Safavid master calligrapher Mir ‘Ali, mir ’ali al-sultani al-katib fi shuhur sanah 943 “Mir ’Ali al-Sultani al-Katib, in the months of year 943 (1536-7).” 

We would like to thank John Seyller for his assistance with cataloguing this lot.

Christie's. Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds Including Oriental Rugs and Carpets, 26 October 2017, London 

Lot 111. A rare cloisonné enamel model of a parrot and stand, 18th century. 9 ¼ in. (23.5 cm.) high overall. Estimate GBP 40,000 - GBP 60,000 (USD 52,160 - USD 78,240). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Lot 112. A rare cloisonné enamel model of a cockatoo and stand, 18th century. 10 in. (25.4 cm.) high overall. Estimate GBP 40,000 - GBP 60,000 (USD 52,160 - USD 78,240). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

TORONTO.- VIKINGS: The Exhibition opened at the Royal Ontario Museum on Saturday, November 4. 2017. Presented by investment dealer Raymond James Ltd., in partnership with the Swedish History Museum, the exhibition offers visitors a fresh perspective on an ancient culture that challenges some of the commonly held myths and perceptions about the lives of the Norse people and this period of European history. 

“The Vikings have had a profound impact on the modern imagination,” says Josh Basseches, Director & CEO of the ROM. “This exhibition presents a new and unexpected interpretation of the Vikings, as not only seafaring warriors, but a people who built a rich and varied culture. Our visitors will be surprised by what they see. The ROM showing is the first exhibition of Vikings we’ve ever staged, and we’re particularly delighted to include a Canadian perspective that contributes to our understanding of the Viking history in Canada.” 

Pendant, Thor’s hammer. Silver, filigree ornamentation. Unknown find spot, Scania, Sweden. SHM 9822:810. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

VIKINGS features interactive displays and nearly 500 original objects from the collections of the Swedish History Museum – many rarely seen outside of Scandinavia – that provide a window into the lives of these legendary explorers, artisans and craftspeople whose culture flourished between the 8th and the 11th centuries. 

“VIKINGS provides visitors with a holistic perspective on who the Norse were, how they changed through time and how they constantly pushed the boundaries of their world through innovation and exploration,” says Dr. Craig Cipolla, ROM Associate Curator of North American Archaeology. “The archaeological materials and interactive displays in the exhibition allow visitors to see and experience Viking culture and history in revealing and surprising ways.” 

Animal-head brooch. Bronze, silver and gold. The brooch has elaborate ornamentation and is proof of a high standard craftsmanship. Grave find, Hemse, Annexhemman, Gotland, Sweden. SHM 4645. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

The exhibition is presented in sections that work together to explore the rich and often misunderstood history of Viking life and culture. In this exhibition, visitors will learn: The central role women played in Viking society, how religion shaped their thinking, and how Viking art and culture shaped Europe and beyond. VIKINGS provides a richer perspective from which to view these epoch-making people. What emerges is a fuller understanding of Europe and the world that was influenced by and that influenced this complex and richly-layered society. 

Exclusive to the ROM, the exhibition includes a section on the Vikings in Canada that takes visitors back in time over1,000 years and explores the Vikings footprint in Canada. This section of the exhibition dives into the archaeology and history of the Norse on our East Coast, with objects from L’Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland; Baffin Island, Nunavut; as well as the ROM’s infamous Beardmore sword. 

The exhibition also features two reconstructed Viking boats, the 13 foot Arby (3.95 meters), and the 32 foot Eik Sande (9.75 meters). Both vessels have been faithfully re-created using Viking processes and materials, providing visitors with insights into Norse boat-building techniques, and the symbolism and mythology of their ships.

Axe. Iron. The shape of the axe head is made in a vegetative style. Rommunds, Gammelgarn, Gotland, Sweden. SHM 8010. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Figurine. Silver. The “horns” on the figurine actually form a hanging loop on the pendant. Ekhammar, Kungsängen, Uppland, Sweden. SHM 30245:F16. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Rune stone, copy. Plaster. The inscription reads: "Gine layed this stone together with Toke". The original is from Saint Paul's Cathedral, London, England. SHM 33322. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Sword. Iron and silver. The pommel is decorated with silver inlays. Grave find, Bengtsarvet and Häradsarvet, Sollerön, Dalarna, Sweden. SHM 22293:1. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Cross. Bronze and tin. The garment cross is of Irish origin and made from a bronze plate with engraved decor. Gravefind. Björkö, Adelsö, Uppland, Sweden. SHM 34000:Bj 511. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Brooch. Bronze, gilded. The brooch may be interpreted as Freya’s magic brooch, “Brisingamen”. Othemars, Othem, Gotland, Sweden. SHM 4555. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Helmet. Iron. Reconstruction. The original is from Germundbu, Norway, and one of the very few known Viking-Age helmets. SHM 29750:571. Credit: Swedish History Museum.

Jacques de Gheyn II, A Roma Woman with a Child, c. 1604. Brown ink and black chalk. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Promised Gift, 25.1998.10. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

 CAMBRIDGE, MASS.- The Harvard Art Museums announce the extraordinary gift of 330 16th- to 18th-century Dutch, Flemish, and Netherlandish drawings from the esteemed collection of Maida and George S. Abrams (Harvard A.B. ’54, LL.B. ’57), considered the best collection of such material in private hands. The gift further establishes the museums as the major site for the appreciation, research, and study of works on paper from the Dutch Golden Age in North America. This newest promised gift from the Abrams family brings tremendous depth and breadth to the museums’ holdings; the works represent over 125 artists and include extremely fine examples by major masters such as Rembrandt, Jacques de Gheyn II, Hendrick Goltzius, and Adriaen van Ostade, as well as a remarkable range of drawings by lesser-known masters who worked in a wide range of subjects and media. Impressive drawings by artists Nicolaes Berchem, Jacob Marrel, and Cornelis Visscher will help fill gaps in the museums’ collections. Taken as a whole, the Abrams Collection at the Harvard Art Museums reveals the critical role of drawing in the art world of the Dutch Golden Age. 

Cornelis Cornelisz. van Haarlem, Two Female Nudes, c. 1608. Oil on paper, varnished, mounted on panel. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College 

“George has generously supported the Harvard Art Museums over many decades and in countless ways; we are incredibly thankful for the role that he and Maida have played in galvanizing the study of drawings at Harvard and particularly for their commitment to telling the rich story of draftsmanship from the Low Countries,” said Martha Tedeschi, the Elizabeth and John Moors Cabot Director of the Harvard Art Museums. “The latest gift from the Abrams family is truly transformative for our museums—indeed, for the entire Boston area, especially as the city strives to become a major destination for the study and presentation of Dutch, Flemish, and Netherlandish art. Together with the newly founded Center for Netherlandish Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, we now can pursue institutional collaborations that will serve visitors and scholars from around the world.” 

Roelant Savery, Six Peasants Merrymaking, c. 1608. Black and red chalk on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Mr. Abrams and his late wife Maida made earlier gifts that brought more than 140 drawings to the Harvard Art Museums over the course of several decades. With their collective gifts, the museums now have the most comprehensive holding of 17th-century Dutch drawings outside Europe. 

“When the collection grows in quality and quantity in such a major way, suddenly there are stories you can tell with greater force and depth, with fewer gaps in the narrative,” said Edouard Kopp, the Maida and George Abrams Curator of Drawings at the Harvard Art Museums. “Since its creation, the Fogg Museum has been a key U.S. institution for the study and appreciation of drawings, and this gift will enable us to be an even more vibrant center, particularly for Dutch drawings.” 

Abraham Bloemaert, Adoration of the Shepherds, c. 1595-1598. Brown ink, brown wash, white opaque watercolor, over black chalk, vertical center line in graphite or black chalk, incised, on cream antique laid paper, mounted down entirely. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

News of the promised gift was shared on November 3, just a day before the museums hosted the symposium Dutch Drawings on the Horizon: A Day of Talks in Honor of George S. Abrams. The event brought together international experts on 17th-century Dutch drawings to discuss the exceptional draftsmanship of the Dutch Golden Age, from Goltzius to Rembrandt. Speakers and chairs at the event included George Abrams’s longtime friends and associates Arthur Wheelock, Peter Schatborn, Peter C. Sutton, Jane Turner, and William W. Robinson. 

Hendrick Goltzius, Seated Female Nude, c. 1594-1600. Black chalk on cream antique laid paper; later borderline in brown ink. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

In 1999, the Abrams gave an initial landmark gift of 110 drawings to the Harvard Art Museums. Many of those works had been included in the 1991–92 exhibition Seventeenth-Century Dutch Drawings: A Selection from the Maida and George Abrams Collection, which was on view at the Rijksprentenkabinet in Amsterdam, the Graphische Sammlung Albertina in Vienna, the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York, and the Fogg Museum. William W. Robinson, former Maida and George Abrams Curator of Drawings at the Harvard Art Museums, wrote the accompanying catalogue. The 2002–03 traveling exhibition and accompanying catalogue for Bruegel to Rembrandt: Dutch and Flemish Drawings from the Maida and George Abrams Collection, also written by Robinson, complemented (and supplemented) the previous catalogue by presenting the most significant acquisitions of the Abrams Collection since the 1991–92 show. Bruegel to Rembrandt was shown at the British Museum in London, the Institut Néerlandais in Paris, and the Fogg Museum. The 1999 gift led the museums to publish Drawings from the Age of Bruegel, Rubens, and Rembrandt (William W. Robinson, with Susan Anderson; 2016), a catalogue of 100 of the museums’ best drawings from this period; almost half of the drawings chosen were part of the Abrams gift. An exhibition of the same title was on display at the Harvard Art Museums from May 21 through August 14, 2016. 

 Hendrick Goudt, Standing Female Nude, c. 1600. Brown ink over black chalk on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

“The Harvard Art Museums’ support of original scholarship and their dedication to training tomorrow’s leaders in the field have long been important to me and my late wife Maida,” said George Abrams. “As a result, I am delighted that our collection will now be housed at the museums and available to a range of audiences. With leadership from director Martha Tedeschi, who deeply understands the importance of works on paper, the museums now stand to have the leading Dutch drawings collection in the United States, with more excellent examples by Rembrandt and wonderful drawings by top draftsmen Hendrick Goltzius and Jacques de Gheyn II.” 

Jacques de Gheyn II, Three Studies of a Dragonfly, c. 1600. Brown ink over black chalk on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

 The Abrams Collection at the Harvard Art Museums has particular depth and strength in the following areas: 

• High and low genre subjects, especially sheets by Adriaen van Ostade, Isaack van Ostade, and Cornelis Dusart 

• Natural history watercolors (birds, plants, flowers, insects, etc.) by artists such as Jacob Marrel, Maria Sibylla Merian, Johannes Bronkhorst, Pieter Holsteyn II, Gerardus and Rochus van Veen, Margareta de Heer, and Pieter Withoos 

• Rembrandt and his school, with a particularly impressive range of artists represented who studied directly under Rembrandt or contemporaries who came under the spell of his influential style 

Esaias van de Velde, Village in Winter, 1628. Black chalk, stumped in places, and gray wash on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

"George’s generosity to the Harvard Art Museums never ceases to amaze me. He has supported us for decades: through gifts of art, steadfast advocacy, and advice,” said William W. Robinson, the former Maida and George Abrams Curator of Drawings at the Harvard Art Museums. “Now, with the commitment of his collection, the museums are able to carry on Harvard’s great tradition of drawings scholarship, taking it to an even higher level.” 

At a dinner held in his honor on November 3, Abrams was appointed Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The royal decoration was given by Dutch Consul General Dolph Hogewoning for Abrams’s significant contribution to the study and international promotion of Dutch art. The order bears the hyphenated name used by the royal family of the Netherlands since the 16th century and is a chivalric order open for those who have earned special merits for society: people who deserve appreciation and recognition from society for the special way in which they have carried out their activities. 

 Jacques de Gheyn III, Six Studies of an Old Woman's Head, c. 1625-30. Brown ink and white opaque watercolor over traces of black chalk on light tan antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Mr. Abrams has served for years as head of the Drawings Committee at the Harvard Art Museums and was instrumental in securing funds for the Drawings Department at the museums from the Stanley H. Durwood Foundation. These funds support a wide range of events, including the November 4 symposium Dutch Drawings on the Horizon: A Day of Talks in Honor of George S. Abrams. The Durwood Foundation also endowed a fellowship in Dutch art, currently held by Austėja Mackelaitė, who curated an exhibition of drawings from the Abrams Collection now on view, The Art of Drawing in the Early Dutch Golden Age, 1590–1630: Selected Works from the Abrams Collection. 

Said Edouard Kopp: “Without George’s help, we wouldn’t be able to engage Harvard students with our drawings collection nearly as much as we do.” For example, Kopp brings museum curatorial fellows and Harvard students to Paris each year for the Salon du Dessin, a major event in the field, for a practicum in acquisitions. 

 Dirck de Vries, Head of a Young Woman in Profile, c. 1590-1600.  Brown ink over graphite on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

The Art of Drawing in the Early Dutch Golden Age, 1590–1630: Selected Works from the Abrams Collection is currently on view through January 14, 2018; it is installed on Level 2, in the museums’ galleries dedicated to 17th-century Dutch and Flemish art. The installation of 31 drawings explores the extraordinary developments in Dutch art in the period between 1590 and 1630. The works on view present some of the major themes in Dutch art, including the development of high and low genres, the study of landscape, and the interest in the nude; many of these subjects initially emerged in the medium of drawing. The works on display celebrate the role of drawing as a catalyst of creativity during the early Golden Age.

 Hendrick Goltzius, Seated Woman,  1596. Brown and black ink, white opaque watercolor on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Jan Philipsz. van Bouckhorst, The Three Ages of Man, 1629. Brown ink, brown wash, and white opaque watercolor on off-white antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Joachim Wtewael, The Truce, 1612. Black ink, gray wash and white opaque watercolor, framing line in gray ink, on off-white antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Adriaen van de Venne, Spring, 1622. Brown ink, gray wash and white opaque watercolor, incised, on off-white antique laid paper, framing line in black ink. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Hendrick Barentsz. Avercamp, Landscape (near Ouderkerk?) with a Fisherman, 17th century. Brown ink and watercolor over graphite on beige antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Cornelis Claesz. van Wieringen, Coastal View with Ships, Crag with Castle, and Bridge, 17th century. Brown ink on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Jacques de Gheyn II, Soldier Charging His Caliver, c.1596-1598. Black and brown ink, black chalk, and watercolor; contours incised; silhouetted, on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

David Bailly, Portrait of Jan Pynas, 1621. Brown ink and brown wash on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Cornelis Vroom, River Landscape, c. 1622-1623. Brown ink on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Jacob Matham, Portrait of a Man, 1603. Brown ink over black chalk on light tan antique laid paper, mounted on antique laid paper; verso: traces of black chalk. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College 

Willem Pietersz. Buytewech, © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Paul Bril, Wooded Landscape with Travelers, 1600. Brown ink and brown and gray wash over black chalk. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

David Vinckboons, The Hurdy-Gurdy Player, c. 1607. Brown and black ink, gray and brown wash, on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Jan van Goyen, Bird Trappers, 1625. Black ink and gray wash, over traces of black chalk on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Claes Jansz. Visscher, View of Houtewael; verso: Trunk of an Alder Tree and a Grassy Bank by a Pool, c. 1607-1608. Brown ink over black chalk, on cream antique laid paper. The Maida and George Abrams Collection, Boston, Massachusetts. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Lot 100. An Art Deco Sapphire and Diamond Brooch from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 35000 - 55000. Courtesy Boningtons

EPPING.- In the world of fine jewels, provenance is second only to inherent quality. If a jewel has previously been owned by a celebrity – Elizabeth Taylor, for example – that connection becomes a permanent part of its history and allure. But an even greater level of cachet is added when jewelry has been part of a royal collection. That is the case with a boutique selection in Boningtons’ November 15 auction that features exquisite jewelry and objets d’art formerly in the Collection of Her Royal Highness The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. 

The daughter of H.M. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and the only sibling of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret was renowned for her beauty and fashion sense, as well as an artsy entourage that included society, show business celebrities and bohemians. In 2006, four years after Margaret’s passing, Christie’s auctioned a portion of her salubrious estate holdings that included an exquisite Faberge clock (world record US$1.64 million) and the Poltimore tiara ($1.23 million), which the princess wore in her 1960 wedding to Antony Armstrong-Jones, Lord Snowdon. 

Now, 11 years after that headlining-making auction, there will be a second opportunity to bid on jewelry of the highest quality from Princess Margaret’s collection. Each of the 13 royal lots was purchased at the 2006 Christie’s auction and conveys with a leather-cased, wax-sealed Certificate of Provenance from Kensington Palace, signed by Princess Margaret’s son, Viscount Linley, and Christie’s International’s then-CEO, Edward Dolman. 

Among the auction highlights is Princess Margaret’s magnificent circa-1925 sapphire and diamond brooch. It is designed in Art Deco style as an openwork geometric plaque with three rectangular sapphires set to the single and old-cut diamond border. Presented in a blue leather case from Collingwood (Jewellers) Ltd, 46 Conduit Street, the brooch comes with unique provenance, having been a family gift to Margaret on her confirmation day. It comes with a note in the hand of her grandmother, H.M. Queen Mary, that says, “For darling Margaret on her confirmation day from her loving Grannie Mary R God bless you. April 15th 1946.” It is expected to make $46,400-$72,900. 

Lot 100. An Art Deco Sapphire and Diamond Brooch from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 35000 - 55000. Courtesy Boningtons

The openwork geometric plaque set with three rectangular sapphires to the single and old-cut diamond border, millegrain setting, circa 1925, 4.5 cm. wide, in fitted blue leather Collingwood (Jewellers) Ltd., 46 Conduit St., case, accompanied by a note in the hand of H.M. Queen Mary, 'For darling Margaret on her confirmation day from her loving Grannie Mary R God bless you. April 15th 1946.'

Note: H.R.H. The Princess Margaret was confirmed on 15th April 1946 in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, assisted by the Dean of Windsor, Sir Eric Knightley Chetwode Hamilton, and Canon Stafford Crawley of St. George's Chapel Windsor. It seems highly likely that this confirmation gift from her grandmother was a jewel previously in H.M. Queen Mary's private collection and passed on to her granddaughter on this special occasion.

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 137, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

A suite consisting of an emerald and diamond ring with matching earclips is also one of the premier jewelry lots in Boningtons’ sale. The ring is set with a rectangular-cut emerald between tapered baguette diamond corners to the bombe, pave-set diamond mount and shoulders. The pre-sale estimate is $10,600-$15,900. 

Lot 96. An Emerald and Diamond Ring and Pair Of Earclips from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 8000 - 12000. Courtesy Boningtons

The ring set with a rectangular-cut emerald between tapered baguette diamond corners to the bombé pavé-set diamond mount and shoulders, earrings en suite (3).

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 150. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

A superb antique diamond and enamel bracelet features old and rose-cut diamond floral clusters on blue enamel, with rose-cut diamond expandable links. A stunning and most original design, it bears the Victorian registration mark for November 1, 1842. The bracelet is presented in a later, fitted green leather box from Garrard & Co., London. The auction estimate is $26,500-$39,700. 

Lot 96. An Antique Diamond and Enamel Bracelet from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 20000 - 30000. Courtesy Boningtons

Composed of old and rose-cut floral clusters to the blue enamel and rose-cut diamond expandable rectangular links, 5.2 cm. diameter, with Victorian registration mark for 1st November 1842, in later fitted green leather Garrard & Co. Ltd., Regent Street, case.

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 179, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Wonderfully designed with an oval cabochon turquoise serving as the central point in a diamond-studded bow, an antique silver and gold brooch dates to around 1860. The central cluster is detachable, as is the brooch fitting, making the piece as versatile as it is beautiful. Estimate: $15,900-$23,800.

Lot 106. An Antique Turquoise and Diamond Bow Brooch from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 12000 - 18000. Courtesy Boningtons

The old-cut diamond ribbons to the central oval cabochon turquoise and diamond cluster, with pendant loop, mounted in silver and gold, circa 1860, 5.8 cm. wide, central cluster detachable and brooch fitting detachable.

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 105, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

A circa-1840 gold demi-parure consists of a matching bracelet, brooch and pair of earrings (later adapted), each component piece designed as a hollow-gold engraved knot with suspended twin tassels. The suite comes in its original fitted maroon leather case and is estimated at $10,600-$15,900. 

Lot 99. An Antique Gold Demi-Parure from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 8000 - 12000. Courtesy Boningtons

Consisting of a bracelet, brooch and pair of earrings, each designed as a hollow gold engraved knot suspending twin tassels, circa 1840, earrings later adapted, bracelet 6.5 cm. wide, in original fitted maroon leather case, some tassels deficient (4).

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 86, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

An exceptionally fine Russian Faberge cut-glass box with vari-colored, gold-mounted lapis lazuli bears the workmaster’s mark of Henrik Wigstrom, St. Petersburg, 1896-1908; and the scratched inventory number “11595.” The cover is engraved around the edges with floral garlands as well as within the gold laurel-leaf border. Measuring 6.6cm long, the box carries the highest estimate in the sale: $79,500-$106,000.

Lot 98. A Russian Vari-Coloured Gold-Mounted Lapis Lazuli and Cut Glass Box by Fabergé with the workmaster's mark of Henrik Wigström, St. Petersburg, 1896-1908, from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 60000 - 80000. Courtesy Boningtons

with scratched inventory number 11595. Rectangular, the body of polished lapis within red gold dot and dash mounts, the cut glass cover engraved around the edges with floral garlands and within green gold laurel leaf border, marked on mount, 6.6 cm. long. 

Provenance: Jewellery and Faberge, from the Collection of H.R.H The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 13th June 2006, Lot 126, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Highly decorative, a Continental gold-mounted gray agate snuffbox dates to the first half of the 20th century and is embellished with diamond mounted gold and silver drapery swags around its sides. The hinged cover features and egg-and-dart border with an applied twisted drapery motif and a diamond border surrounding a central paste stone. Possibly of German manufacture but with French import marks, it comes to auction with a $13,250-$19,900 estimate. 

Lot 105. A Continental Gold-Mounted Grey Agate Snuff-Box bearing spurious marks for Fabergé, possibly German, first Half 20th Century, from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 10000 - 15000. Courtesy Boningtons

oblong with canted corners, the sides applied with diamond mounted gold and silver drapery swags, the base applied with an openwork mount, the hinged cover with an egg-and-dart border and with an applied twisted drapery motif and a central foiled cut paste within a diamond border, marked on rim and with French import marks, contained in a fitted purple velvet case, 3 3/8 in. (85 mm.) wide. 

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 460, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Other items from the royal collection include a circa-1950 Cartier gem-set gold cigarette case, an 1834 William IV gold snuffbox, a diamond and silver-set lapis lazuli desk seal in case, a circa-1905 gem-set platinum and chalcedony card case, and antique decorative art. 

Lot 103. A French Gem-Set Gold Cigarette-Case, Mark of Cartier, Paris, Circa 1950, from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 4000 - 6000. Courtesy Boningtons

Oblong with reeded sides, base and hinged cover, the ends set with three rows of 18 square-cut rubies, with a ruby-set thumbpiece, the inside engraved with an initial 'M' below a Royal Princess' coronet, marked inside and on cover, the rim engraved 'Cartier Paris' and numbered 'OC107', 3 1/8 in. (80 mm.) wide, gross weight 4 oz. (120 gr.). 

Note: The initial is that of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon. 

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 341, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Lot 104. A William IV Gold Snuff-Box, London, 1834, Maker's Mark TE, from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 2000 - 3000. Courtesy Boningtons

18ct, oblong and with engine turned sides and base, the hinged cover later engraved with a coat-of-arms, marked inside and on cover, 3 1/8 in. (7.8 cm.) long, 3.5 oz. (105 gr.).

Note: The arms are those of Lamb, presumably for William, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, (1779-1848). It is possible that the box was commissioned and engraved to commemorate the appointment of Lord Melbourne as Prime Minister on 18 July 1834, an office he was to hold until 1841, apart from the brief interlude from 26 December 1934 to 18 April 1835 when the office was held by Sir Robert Peel.

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 399, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Lot 95. A Diamond and Silver-Set Lapis-Lazuli Desk-Seal retailed by Heming & Co., Early 20th,from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 2000 - 3000. Courtesy Boningtons

 the tapering lapis-lazuli handle with a pearl finial within rose diamond set silver arches, the plain matrix set within a similar rose diamond set silver cagework, contained in a fitted red leather case, labelled 'By Appointment Heming & Co. 28 Conduit Street London, W.' - 1 7/8 in. (49 mm.) high. 

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 457, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Lot 102. A Gem-Set Platinum and Chalcedony Card-Case from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Attributed to Cartier, Paris, Circa 1905. Estimate : £ 6000 - 8000. Courtesy Boningtons

Oblong, the clasp and two hinges each set with rose-cut diamonds, emeralds and sapphires, contained in a fitted red leather case with the traces of a Cartier label, 3 5/8 in. (92 mm.) high. 

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 340, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Lot 101. A Pair of 18th century Dresden Carved Ivory Figures Representing Spring and Autumn from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, The Earl and Countess of Rosebery's Wedding Present. Estimate : £ 6000 - 8000. Courtesy Boningtons

each on integrally carved rectangular plinth and a contemporary square-based amber veneered moulded pedestal; a repair to Spring's left hand and minor loss to Autumn's left hand; each figure embellished with later multi-coloured glass pastes, some of which are now lacking; minor losses to the bases; general minor repairs. 4 in. (10.2 cm.) high; 6¾ in. (17.1 cm.) high, overall (2). 

Note: The two ivory figures were recorded in the Amber Room at Mentmore, Buckinghamshire in 1934 and listed in Mentmore, Volume II, page 84, number 30 and 32, attributed to Dinglinger. Number 31 was sold at Mentmore, Sotheby's house sale, 18th - 23rd May 1977, lot 1892. The statuettes of flower-wreathed Flora and a vine-wreathed bacchante personifying the Seasons of Spring and Autumn, which are richly jewelled in Eastern fashion, formed part of the famed objets d'art collection displayed in the 'Amber' room created by Baron Mayer Amschel de Rothschild (d.1870) at Mentmore, Buckinghamshire. Together with the companion Summer figure of Ceres, they were prized as the work of Augustus the Strong's Dresden-based goldsmith Johann Melchior Dinglinger (d.1731) (Mentmore Catalogue, 1934, Vol. II, p.84, nos. 30-32). Related Seasons by the Dieppe sculptor Jean-Antoine Belleteste (d.1811) are illustrated F. St. Aubyn (ed), vory, London, 1987 (p.117). 

Provenance: Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 820, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Lot 107. A Fan, Circa 1900, from The Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret. Estimate : £ 7000 - 10000. Courtesy Boningtons

The leaf of fine Honiton lace worked with palmettes reminiscent of Prince of Wales feathers, the guard sticks piqué with classical devices including cupid's arrow, the sticks 10 in. (26 cm.); sold together with a letter in Queen Mary's hand inscribed 'Honiton lace fan made to order of Victoria Mary, Princess of Wales, for the St. Louis Exhibition, U.S.A. in 1904, given to Princess Margaret by her grandmother Queen Mary in 1939', the box inscribed 'Princess Margaret'. 

Note: In 1904, St. Louis hosted 'The Greatest of Expositions' for seven months. By far the largest of the several Victorian-era world's fairs, it occupied over 1,200 acres at the Western edge of St. Louis. Also known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, the Fair commemorated the 1803 purchase of territory that more than doubled the size of the United States. Though originally planned to take place in 1903, the Fair was delayed to 1904 in order to complete the construction of state and foreign buildings, and to permit the gathering of the thousands of exhibits. From April 30 to December 1, 1904, the Fair displayed the art, science, and cultures of the entire world. Over twelve million visitors paid 50 cents admission to enter the Fair. About sixty countries, forty-three of the then forty-five U.S. states and several U.S. territories, and hundreds of manufacturers and companies gathered together to put on an unsurpassed display of civilization, history, and culture. On display were the latest manufacturing products and processes, scientific inventions and innovations, agricultural advances, and famous paintings, sculptures, and art treasures. Queen Mary requested the fan to be made for display at the St. Louis Exhibition in 1904 and later gave the fan to H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon in 1939. 

Provenance: H.M. Queen Mary (1867-1953); Silver, Furniture and Works of Art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Christie's, London, 14th June 2006, Lot 326, where acquired by the present vendor. Lot includes original leather cased Kensington Palace Certificate of Provenance bearing wax seal.

Boningtons’ Nov. 15, 2017 Fine Art & Antiques Auction featuring important jewelry and objets d’art from the Collection of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret will begin at 11 a.m. UK time (6 a.m. US Eastern Time). The gallery is located in Epping, Essex, in Greater London.

Lot 43. A rare sancai-glazed pottery amphora, Tang Dynasty (618-907). 38.6cm (15 1/4in) high. Estimate £8,000 - 12,000 (€9,100 - 14,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The elegantly-tapering ovoid body raised on a flat base, the rounded shoulders, reel-shaped neck and confronted dragon-headed handles that grasp the cup-shaped mouth splash-glazed in amber, green and cream, stopping in an irregular line above the buff unglazed lower body.

Provenance: an English private collection

Note: Compare with a similar sancai-glazed amphora, Tang dynasty, similarly applied with a pair of dragon-head handles, illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Tokyo, 1987, pl.330. 

A similar sancai-glazed pottery amphora, Tang dynasty, was sold at Christie's New York, 21-22 March 2013, lot 1165.

A sancai-glazed pottery amphora, Tang Dynasty (618-907). 13¾ in. (35 cm.) high. Sold for 17,500 USD at Christie's New York, 21-22 March 2013, lot 1165. © Christie's Images Ltd 2013

 Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 9 Nov 2017, 10:30 GMT, LONDON, NEW BOND STREET 

Lot 41. A rare large painted pottery model of an ox, Tang Dynasty (618-907). 43.8cm (17 1/4in) long. Estimate £3,000 - 5,000 (€3,400 - 5,700). Photo: Bonhams.

The powerful animal naturalistically modelled standing four-square with its head held confidently high, with flaring nostrils and bulging eyes beneath a pair of U-shaped horns, retaining some original red pigment. 

Provenance: a distinguished European private collection. The Property of a Nobleman.

The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no.C102a21 dated 17 January 2002, is consistent with the dating of this lot.

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 9 Nov 2017, 10:30 GMT, LONDON, NEW BOND STREET 

Lot 42. A painted pottery model of a caparisoned horse, Eastern Wei Dynasty (534-550). 45cm (17 6/8in) high. Estimate £5,000 - 8,000 (€5,700 - 9,100). Photo: Bonhams.

Naturalistically modelled standing foursquare on a rectangular base with a long arched neck and elongated head, lavishly caparisoned with a horned and tassel-hung bridle, tasselled and medallion-applied crupper, a long knotted cloth draped over the saddle, with traces of white, red, and gold pigments. 

Provenance: a distinguished European private collection. The Property of a Nobleman.

The result of a thermoluminescence test, Oxford Authentication Ltd., No.C198t55 dated 28 July 1998, is consistent with the dating of this lot.

Note: Carefully fashioned with close attention to detail such as detailed harnesses embellished with conch shells and bells, and floating blankets that resembled flowing wings, the horse is a fine example of the limited sculptural production of the Wei dynasty that has survived to this date. It is possible that the horse may have been imported from the Central Asian region of Ferghana, whose horses were highly favoured by the Chinese Imperial Court and upper classes for their spirit and vitality. 

Compare a similar horse, Wei dynasty, illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art: Chinese Ceramics, Neolithic to Liao, vol.1, Hong Kong, 1993, no.71; and another, which was sold at Christie's New York, 22 March 1999, lot 221.

A painted buff pottery figure of a caparisoned horse, Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534). 14in. (37.5cm.) high . Sold for 20,700 USD at Christie's New York, 22 March 1999, lot 221. © Christie's Images Ltd 1999.

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 9 Nov 2017, 10:30 GMT, LONDON, NEW BOND STREET 

Lot 134. A famille rose'scholar and fisherman' semi-eggshell dish, Yongzheng period (1723-1735). 16cm (6 1/4in) diam. (3). Estimate GBP  1,500 - 2,000. Sold for £93,750 (€106,064). Photo: Bonhams.

The dish finely enamelled with a scene of a Confucian scholar visiting a fisherman on a riverbank; another semi-eggshell bowl with a scholar visiting an archer shooting at the sun; together with a Mandarin pattern dish.

The Property of a Gentleman.

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 6 Nov 2017, 10:30 GMT, LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

Lot 133. A pair of famille rose 'boneless' saucer dishes, Yongzheng six-character marks and of the period (1723-1735). Each: 15cm (5 7/8in) diam (2). Estimate  GBP  4,000 - 6,000. Sold for £11,875 (€13,434). Photo: Bonhams.

Each dish intricately enamelled with a floral spray with a single butterfly in flight above the arrangement, raised on a high foot rim, the base with a six-character underglaze-blue reign mark.

The Property of a Gentleman.

Note: For a comparable pair of 'boneless' dishes, see Christie's, New York, 18-19 September 2014, Lot 961.

A pair of famille rose'boneless' saucer dishes, Yongzheng six-character marks in underglazze blue within double circiles and of the period (1723-1735). 6 in. (15.4 cm.) diam. Sold for 50,000 USD at Christie's, New York, 18-19 September 2014, Lot 961. © Christie's Images Ltd 2014. 

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 6 Nov 2017, 10:30 GMT, LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE