Lot 84. Plat en grès céladon Longquan, Dynastie Ming, XVE siècle; 39 cm, 15 3/8  in. Estimate 2,000 - 3,000 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

A large Longquan celadon dish, Ming dynasty, 15th century

de forme ronde, les côtés arrondis, incisé au centre d'une fleur de lotus épanouie, le marli incisé d'une frise végétale ondoyante, entièrement recouvert d'une belle et épaisse glaçure céladon uniforme.

Provenance: Formerly in the Collections of the Duke of Clermont-Tonnerre, Château d'Ancy-le-Franc, France.

Lot 55. Boîte couverte en laque tixi, Début de la dynastie Ming; 24,7 cm, 9 3/4  in. Estimate 15,000 — 25,000€. Photo: Sotheby's.

A tixi lacquer box and cover, Early Ming dynasty

de forme circulaire, le couvercle bombé sculptéà travers les couches successives de laque rouge et noire d'une fleurette centrale entourée de cinq registres de ruyi stylisés, la boîte aux côtés arrondis sculptée d'un décor similaire, l'intérieur et la base laqués noir, marque er inscrite en rouge à la base (2).

Lot 82. Vase en porcelaine peau de pêche, Marque et époque Kangxi (1662-1722); 16,6 cm, 6 1/2  in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

A peachbloom-glazed amphora vase, liuye zun, Kangxi mark and period

en forme d'amphore, l'épaulement arrondi d'oùémerge un col fin s'évasant en partie supérieure, le corps fuselé se prolongeant vers un pied sans glaçure, marque à six caractères en bleu sous couverte à la base.

Lot 77. Important plat en porcelaine de la Famille Verte, Dynastie Qing, époque Kangxi (1662-1722). Diam. 52 cm, 20 1/2  in. Estimate 30,000 — 50,000 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

An exceptional fine famille verte charger, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722)

finement peint d'une scène de palais figurant l'Empereur et l'Impératrice entourés de leur suite, assistant à un spectacle de danse et de musique dans un décor fastueux, le pourtour extérieur peint de quatre grues en vol au-dessus de vagues et rochers saillants, marque zhi en bleu sous couverte à la base.

Provenance: Acquired in France by the family of the present owner in the 19th century. 
In the family by descent.

Note: Several dishes of this exceptionally large size finely painted in Famille Verte colours with variations of banquet scenes are known. Compare two dishes of the same size and quality, sold at Sotheby's London, 19th June 2002, lots 127 and 128, the latter formerly in the Ionides Collection, London. Another dish belonging to this group was sold at Christie's London, 13th November 2001, lot 224.

Lot 78.  Plat en porcelaine de la Famille Rose, Dynastie Qing, époque Yongzheng (1723-1735); 32,6 cm, 12 7/8  in. Estimate 1,200 — 1,500 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

Lot 80. Paire de bougeoirs en porcelaine de la Famille Rose, Dynastie Qing, époque Qianlong (1736-1795); 29 cm, 11 3/8  in. Estimate 1,200 — 1,500 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

Lot 83. Vase aux 'Cent daims' en porcelaine de la Famille Rose, hu, Dynastie Qing, XIXe siècle; 44,3 cm, 17 3/8  in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 €. Photo: Sotheby's.

Lot 98. Rare et important vase 'Cent daims' en porcelaine de la famille rose, hu, Chine, dynastie Qing, marque à six caractères en cachet en bleu sous couverte et époque Qianlong (1736-1795); Hauteur: 45 cm. (17 ¾ in.). Estimate EUR 500,000 - EUR 700,000 (USD 591,954 - USD 828,736). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

A very rare and magnificent famille rose 'hundred deer' vase, hu, China, Qing dynasty, Qianlong six-character seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period (1736-1795)

De forme pansue, il est délicatement orné d'un décor continu représentant une horde de cerfs, biches et daims au pelage finement émaillé, gambadant, se reposant, jouant, dans un paysage rocailleux agrémenté de grands pins tortueux, branchages de lingzhi, de pêches, parcouru par une rivière, des montagnes se dessinant au fond. Les anses sont moulées en forme de chilong stylisés émaillées rouge de fer et or.

Provenance: French private collection, acquired in the 1900s and thence by descent through the family.

Note: Vases with this type of decoration are often known as 'hundred deer vases' - although in most cases the number ‘hundred’ is used loosely simply to mean 'many'. In Chinese a hundred deer is bai lu which suggests the wish shoutian bailu 'May you receive the hundred emoluments from heaven'. The number one hundred is implied using two other rebuses within these designs, one is by including white deer amongst the brown or red deer, since the word for white in Chinese is bai - a homophone for the word for a hundred. In addition, deer may represent Luxing, the God of Rank and Emolument. The Chinese word for deer, lu, sounds like lu, the word for emolument or an official salary, thus deer are symbolic of the rank and wealth that are associated with such a salary. The 'hundred deer' therefore represent the ultimate success, a career in government service in Imperial China. The deer is also associated with Daoism and the God of Longevity, Shoulao. Chinese herbalists traditionally grind up deer antlers and include the resulting powder in certain medicines, believing it to have health-giving effects. As such, the subject-matter on the present vase alludes to a multitude of auspicious connotations. 

The picturesque scenes of deers in rocky, tree-strewn landscape were probably intended to represent deers in the imperial gardens and hunting parks. The theme of 'hundred deer' was adopted on porcelains since the middle Ming period, and can be seen on a Wanli (1573-1620) wucai jar in the Musée Guimet, Paris (illustrated in The World's Great Collections - Oriental Ceramics Vol. 7 - Musée Guimet, Paris, Kodansha, Tokyo, 1981, no. 26) and on the pair of large blue and white Wanli jars given to Queen Christina of Sweden by the Portuguese Ambassador (see The World's Great Collections - Oriental Ceramics Vol. 8 - Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, Stockholm, Kodansha, Tokyo, 1982, fig. 247). The subject of deers was more popular than ever during emperor Qianlong’s reign, as exemplified by a hanging scroll by one of the most revered Jesuit who served the Qing imperial court, Giuseppe Castiglione (1688-1768); sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2005, lot 1207.

Jarre à décor dit "aux cent daims", règne de Wanli (1573-1620), décor cinq couleurs. Ancienne collection Ernest Grandidier, G4850. Photo ©  RMN-Grand Palais (musée Guimet, Paris) / Richard Lambert

Lang Shining (Giuseppe Castiglione, 1688-1768), Deer in an autumn forest (detail). Hanging scroll, ink and colour on silk, 121 x 64.7 cm (47 2/3 x 25 1/2 in.). Signed: chen, Lang Shining gonghua (respectfully painted by your servant). Two seals of the artst: Chen Shi Ning, Gong Hua. Nine colectors' seals, including: A full set of eight seals of Qianlong Emperor (r. 1736-1795); and One seal of the Jiaqing Emperor (r. 1796-1820). Sold for HKD 20,280,000 at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2005, lot 1207. © Christie's Images Ltd 2005

This present vase is particularly outstanding because of the exquisite quality of the painting. The brushwork and the colours applied to the rocks, trees and deers are all rendered with incredible realistic accuracy and artistic ingenuity. Examples of hu-shaped vases with this design are in various museum and private collections: one from the Beijing Palace Museum, is illustrated in Porcelains with Cloisonne Enamel Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1999, pp. 98-99, pl. 85; a pair is in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated in Selected Ceramics from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Hu, Shanghai, 1989, pl. 67; a single vase, also in the Shanghai Museum, is illustrated in Chugoku Toji Zenshu, vol. 21, Kyoto, 1981, pl. 103; and in the Hong Kong Museum of Art Collection, included in the exhibition, The Wonders of the Potter's Palette, Hong Kong, 1984, illustrated in the Catalogue, p. 119, no. 71. and another from the Grandidier Collection in the Musée Guimet, Paris, is illustrated in Oriental Ceramics, The World's Great Collections, Kodansha Series, Tokyo, 1981, vol. 7, pl. 190. 

Vase à décor dit "aux cent daims", Règne de Qianlong (1736-1795), porcelaine de la famille rose, fours de Jingdezhen. Collection Ernest Grandidier, Paris, musée Guimet - musée national des Arts asiatiques, G4225. Photo © RMN-Grand Palais (MNAAG, Paris) / Thierry Ollivier

Compare also with three other similar vases, the first from the British Rail Pension Fund was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 16 May 1989, lot 89; the second, from the collection of a medical doctor who worked in the German embassy in Beijing during the early 20th century, was sold at Christie's Paris, 14 December 2011, lot 170; and the last, from an American private collection, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3990. 

Rare et important vase 'Cent daims' en porcelaine de la famille rose, hu, Chine, dynastie Qing, marque à six caractères en cachet et époque Qianlong (1736-1795). Sold for €2,025,000 at Christie's Paris, 14 December 2011, lot 174. © Christie's Images Ltd 2011

Cf. my post: Rare et important vase 'Cent daims' en porcelaine de la famille rose, hu, Marque à six caractères en cachet et époque Qianlong

A Magnificent Famille Rose 'Hundred Deer' Vase, hu, Qianlong six-character seal mark and of the period (1736-1795); 17 1/2 in. (44.5 cm.) high. Sold for HKD 14,660,000 at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3990. © Christie's Image Ltd 2012

Christie's. Art d'Asie, 13 December 2017, Paris 

Jacopo Tintoretto, Self-Portrait, c. 1588, oil on canvas, overall: 63 x 52 cm (24 13/16 x 20 1/2 in.) framed: 93.5 x 84.5 cm (36 13/16 x 33 1/4 in.) , Musée du Louvre- Départment des Peintures. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

WASHINGTON, DC.- In celebration of the 500th anniversary of the birth of the Venetian Renaissance master Jacopo Tintoretto (1518/1519–1594), the National Gallery of Art, Washington, will present three exhibitions in 2019 that explore the artist's achievement as a painter and draftsman as well as the great printmakers in Venice of his day. Coorganized with the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia with the special cooperation of the Gallerie dell'Accademia, Tintoretto: The Artist of Venice at 500 will open at the Palazzo Ducale, Venice, beginning in September 2018, and then travel to the Gallery—its only other venue—in early 2019, showcasing some 70 paintings and drawings. Drawing in Tintoretto's Venice will present some 60 sheets to explore the drawing practice of Tintoretto as well as his place in the Venetian tradition and will premiere at The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, in October 2018 before coming to Washington. Venetian Prints in the Time of Tintoretto will showcase some 40 prints, from critical sources for Tintoretto's artistic formation to striking graphic responses to the expressiveness of Tintoretto's style. Drawn from the Gallery's permanent collection, this final exhibition can only be seen in Washington and includes works by Parmigianino and Giuseppe Scolari among others. All three Tintoretto exhibitions will open at the Gallery on March 3, 2019. 

"Five centuries after his birth, Tintoretto remains one of the titans of Italian painting. The Gallery is pleased to present two unprecedented exhibitions of Tintoretto's work on canvas and on paper, as well as a complementary exhibition on Venetian print making to mark this momentous anniversary," said Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art, Washington. "Together, the exhibitions will draw upon the Gallery's rich holdings of work by Tintoretto and provide an American audience with a deeper understanding of this remarkable artist. The full picture of Tintoretto's oeuvre would not be possible without generous international loans, many of which will make their first trip to the U.S. for this momentous occasion." 

Jacopo Tintoretto, Summer, c. 1555, oil on canvas, overall: 105.7 x 193 cm (41 5/8 x 76 in.) framed: 135.9 x 224.8 x 8.5 cm (53 1/2 x 88 1/2 x 3 3/8 in.) , National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., Samuel H. Kress Collection. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Tintoretto: The Artist of Venice at 500 
Palazzo Ducale, Venice, September 7–January 6, 2019 
National Gallery of Art, Washington, March 3–June 30, 2019 
Tintoretto: The Artist of Venice at 500, the first retrospective of the artist in North America, features nearly 50 paintings and more than a dozen works on paper spanning the artist's entire career. Included in the rich selection of domestic and international loans are works ranging from regal portraits of Venetian aristocracy to religious and mythological narrative scenes. In addition, Tintoretto will explore the artist's working methods 

The exhibition curators are Tintoretto experts Robert Echols, independent scholar, and Frederick Ilchman, chair of the Art of Europe department and Mrs. Russell W. Baker Curator of Paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. While Tintoretto was considered one of the "Big Three" 16th-century Venetian painters alongside Titian and Paolo Veronese during his lifetime and in the succeeding centuries, works by Tintoretto's assistants and followers have frequently been misattributed to the master. Echols and Ilchman are widely responsible for a new and more accurate understanding of Tintoretto's oeuvre and chronology, first explored in the Museo del Prado's Tintoretto exhibition in 2007. A fully illustrated exhibition catalog will be published in English and Italian and include a range of essays by the curators and other leading scholars as well as new research and scientific studies of Tintoretto's work. 

Jacopo Tintoretto, Man with a Golden Chain, c. 1555, oil on canvas, overall: 104 x 77 cm (40 15/16 x 30 5/16 in.), Museo Nacional del Prado, ©Photographic Archive Museo Nacional del Prado. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Drawing in Tintoretto's Venice 
The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, October 12, 2018–January 6, 2019 
National Gallery of Art, Washington, March 3–May 26, 2019 
The first exhibition to focus specifically on Tintoretto's work as a draftsman, Drawing in Tintoretto's Venice provides new ideas about his evolution as a draftsman, about the dating and function of the so-called "sculpture drawings," and about Tintoretto's place in the Venetian tradition. 

The exhibition begins with drawings by Tintoretto's predecessors and contemporaries, including Titian, Veronese, and Jacopo Bassano, to show his sources as well as his individuality. Tintoretto's distinctive figure drawings are the heart of the show, which includes both preparatory drawings and a group of his studies after sculptures by Michelangelo and others that document the teaching practice in Tintoretto's workshop. The exhibition also considers artists whose drawing style was influenced by Tintoretto's, particularly his son Domenico Tintoretto and Palma Giovane. A final section of the exhibition considers an interesting group of drawings—always connected with Tintoretto and his followers—that has recently been proposed as the work of the young El Greco, dating from his time in Venice. 

An accompanying catalog will be written by John Marciari, the Charles W. Engelhard Curator and head of the department of drawings and prints at The Morgan Library & Museum, with possible contributions from other scholars. The exhibition curator in Washington is Jonathan Bober, Andrew W. Mellon Senior Curator of Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Art. 

Jacopo Tintoretto, Study of a Bust of Vitellius, turned slightly upwards to right, charcoal, heightened with white, on blue paper, 30.3 x 19.8 cm, The British Museum, 1885.0509.1656. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Jacopo Palma il Giovane, Christ Carried to the Tomb, 1607/1620, brush and oil paints over chalk on tan oatmeal paper (laid on 18th (?) century mount), 27 x 40.9 cm (10 5/8 x 16 1/8 in.), National Gallery of Art, Washington, Wolfgang Ratjen Collection, Purchased as the Gift of Helen Porter and James T. Dyke. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Andrea Schiavone, Miracle or Apparition, wash and opaque watercolor over chalk, 28.2 x 21.4 cm (11 1/8 x 8 7/16 in.), The Morgan Library & Museum, Gift of János Scholz. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Venetian Prints in the Time of Tintoretto 
National Gallery of Art, Washington, March 3–May 26, 2019 
Completing the panorama of Venetian art in the time of Tintoretto is an exhibition that will present some 40 prints from the second half of the 16th century, ranging from the exquisite etchings of Parmigianino and his immediate followers in the Veneto, to the spectacular woodcuts of Giuseppe Scolari, most from the Gallery's own collection. They will reveal a critical source for Tintoretto's artistic formation, parallel developments toward a distinctively Venetian mannerism, and striking graphic responses to the dynamism and expressiveness of Tintoretto's style. 

The exhibition curator is Jonathan Bober, Andrew W. Mellon Senior Curator of Prints and Drawings, National Gallery of Art.

Battista Angolo del Moro, The Finding of Moses, 1540s, etching, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Ruth and Jacob Kainen Memorial Acquisition Fund. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Agostino Carracci, Mercury and the Three Graces, 1589, engraving on laid paper, sheet: 20.2 x 25.7 cm (7 15/16 x 10 1/8 in.), National Gallery of Art, Washington, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Giulio Sanuto, Bacchanale, engraving, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Lot 70. Rare et important vase en porcelaine à glaçure de type ru, hu, Chine, dynastie Qing, marque à six caractères en cachet en bleu sous couverte et époque Yongzheng (1723-1735). Hauteur: 59 cm. (23 ¼ in.). Estimate EUR 300,000 - EUR 500,000 (USD 352,787 - USD 587,979) © Christie's Images Ltd 2017 

A rare and important ru-type glazed vase, hu, China, Qing dynasty, Yongzheng six-character seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period(1723-1735)

Sa forme est inspirée des vases hu archaïques. De forme balustre sous un long col évasé, la panse renflée repose sur un pied légèrement évasé. Il est rehaussé de trois anneaux doubles moulés en léger relief: l'un à la base du col, les deux autres sur la panse. Il est entièrement recouvert d'une belle glaçure bleutée à fines craquelures dorées.  

Provenance: Collection of Martine Marie Pol de Béhague, Comtesse de Béarn (1869-1939), Paris, and thence by descent to the present owner.

Comtesse Martine de Béhague, par Dagnan Bouveret.

The young heiress Martine Marie Pol de Béhague, (1869 - 1939) became Comtesse de Béarn when she married René-Marie-Hector de Galard de Brassac de Béarn in 1890. She inherited from her parents an immense fortune and a beautiful house in Paris which became one of the most elegant places of her times. The Comtesse lived with grand style enjoying the company of artists such as painter Paul Helleu but also writers and musicians: Paul Verlaine, Paul Valery, George Bizet or Gabriel Fauré. She travelled the world collecting art and reunited a very eclectic collection mixing Old Masters with masterpieces by Tiepolo, Guardi, Watteau and also Titien, manuscripts, antiquities and Chinese works of art.  

Note: The shape is in imitation of a Han Dynasty bronze hu vase, and archaic bronze vases of this type were undoubtedly available in the Imperial collections in the 18th century. Ru glazes have traditionally been much admired by Chinese connoisseurs, and were copied on porcelain as early as the 15th century. Excavations at the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen have revealed that Ru-type glazes were being made for the Ming imperial court. In 1984 a porcelain bowl with inverted rim and Ru-type glaze was excavated from the Xuande stratum at the imperial kilns published in Imperial Porcelain of the Yongle and Xuande Periods Excavated from the Site of the Ming Imperial Factory at Jingdezhen, Urban Council Hong Kong, 1989, pp. 276-7, no. 97. The imitation of this revered glaze became even more popular at court in the 18th century under the Yongzheng and Qianlong Emperors.

Large Yongzheng-marked vases of this form covered in this glaze are extremely rare. Compare to a slightly smaller ru-glazed fanghu with a Yongzheng seal mark, also from a French collection, sold in Christie's Hong Kong, 30 November 2016, lot 3316. See a very simlarly decorated but smaller Yongzheng-marked guan-type glazed hu vase, from the Collection of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, sold in Christie's New York, 19 March 2015, lot 426. 

An important large and rare Ru-type baluster vase, fanghu, Yongzheng six-character seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period (1723-1735), from the Collection of Monseigneur le Comte (1908-1999) et la Comtesse de Paris (1911-2003); 19 1/2 in. (49.6 cm.) high. Sold for HKD 3,660,000 (USD 474,072) at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 November 2016, lot 3316. © Christie’s Images Limited 2016.

Cf. my post: An important large and rare Ru-type baluster vase, fanghu, Yongzheng six-character seal mark and of the period

 A rare guan-type hu-form vase, China, Qing dynasty, Yongzheng six-character seal mark inunderglaze blue and of the period (1723-1735), from the Collection of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth; 13 in. (33 cm.) high. Sold for USD 221,000 at Christie's New York, 19 March 2015, lot 426. © Christie’s Images Limited 2016.

Cf. my post: A rare guan-type hu-form vase, China, Qing dynasty, Yongzheng six-character seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period

Christie's. Art d'Asie, 13 December 2017, Paris

Lot 69. Vase en porcelaine à glacure de type ge, fanghu, Chine, dynastie Qing, premier quart du XVIIIème siècle. Hauteur: 19 cm. (7 ½ in.). Estimate EUR 300,000 - EUR 500,000 (USD 352,787 - USD 587,979) © Christie's Images Ltd 2017 

A Ge-type vase, fanghu, China, Qing dynasty, first quarter of the 18th century

De section rectangulaire, reprenant la forme des vases archaïques Hu, le col est rehaussé de deux anses tubulaires. Il est entièrement recouvert d'une belle glaçure gris bleutéà craquelures grises et or. 

Provenance: Previously in the collection of Dr. Hugh Shire.
Previously in the collection of Desmond Gure.

Note: The crackles on this vase are known as jinsi tiexian (Gold thread and iron wire), and were deliberately induced during the cooling process and later highlighted by staining. The glaze and black dressing are conscious imitations of Song Ge ware. 

Bamboo brush-holder depicting a letter-reading scene from the Romance of the West Chamber, Mid-17^th century. With signature of Ju Sansong, h. 13.5 cm, diam. of mouth 8.5 cm, diam. of foot 8.7 cm © National Palace Museum

Zhu Zhizheng, born around 1559 (year died unknown), active from 1573 to 1619, was Zhu Ying's third son. Among the many works which have come down to today carrying his sobriquet signature of "Sansong" (Third Pine), this holder is the most famous one. The high-relief scene shows a lady, her hair in tall topknots, her back to a screen, poring over a letter diffidently. A lush wutong (phoenix tree) is lightly engraved on the screen and a bird stands on a bough. The carver's name "San Song" in Kai (regular) script is inscribed at the right lower corner of the screen, appearing to serve the double functions of being the signature for the painting on the screen, as well as for the brush-holder itself. The lady in love is Ms. Cui Yingying from the Romance of the West Chamber. Peeking out at her from behind the screen, yet the whole person almost fully in view, is her naughty maid Hongniang. The latter seems to be hushing herself down with her index finger at the mouth. Farther back to the left of the screen is a wood table in relief, on which are arranged a crazed vase of lotus flowers, a potted miniature landscape with Lingzhi (Ganoderma lucidum), a qin (string instrument) in its protective wraps, and other sundry implements typical in a scholar's study: an incense burner, a brush, an ink stone, a water dish, and so on. All together, the foreground, the background, and the placement of various elements form a coherently streamlined composition around the tubular surface.

The overall layout of the image resembles that of one particular woodcut print by Chen Hongshou, active from late-Ming to early-Qing (1598-1652), for an illustrated editioni of the same famed love story. The two images are different in that in Chen's print, the screen is of four panels, and the room has no other furniture and displays, part of which however appear in the background of another illustration titled "Melancholy of Love" in a very similar manner. The illustrated edition was prefaced by Ma Chuanqi (1639), suggesting a close connection between this particular woodblock print of Chen's and the present brush-holder.

Bamboo brush-holder depicting a scene of horse herding, by Wu Zhi-fan, Late 17^th to early 18^th century, h. 15.5 cm, diam. of mouth 7.4 cm © National Palace Museum

The three-footed brush-holder is made of a stem section, with one joint kept for the base which curves a little inward. The surface is slightly scraped off using the jiandi technique (thinning the ground) along the top and bottom rims so both look somewhat flared. In low relief is carved a horse lying on the back rolling and kicking. A stableman wearing a puto (bandanna-like headgear), both hands grasping the reins, is trying to subdue the angry horse: its mane all flaring, the front legs bending along with upper body twisting toward the left, and the rear hooves thrusting up high into the air. The artist captures a split-second moment of the taming attempt. The images of the pair are both raised above the surface only slightly. The fine lines of the engraved mane, tail, and hairs around the hooves, go gradually flush with the ground. All this speaks vividly of the carver's superb mastery of the buodi (thin ground) technique. Further, against the slightly raised figures, in negative engraving are the features, the folds, the muscles and texture. The folds of sleeves are represented as in portrait painting: dintou shuwei, literally translated, "nail head and mouse tail", a style of line drawing which starts deep and hard, then finishes off lightly. The man's facial muscles are done in low relief; even the eyelids are there. So are the body muscles of the rolling horse. Each of the four hooves is carved with varying degrees of depths against the surface, achieving an impressive three-dimension effect. The exposed horse teeth are carved one by one, with every single detail carefully tended. Some semi-translucent pigment of dark brown dots the horse eyes, fully serving the purpose of the final touch, "Marking the Pupils", so to animate the figures or the animals being depicted. The man and the horse form the only images on the brush-holder; all other space is left bare without decoration. The one exception is that behind the stableman, engraved are four characters in elegant yet forceful Xing(running) script "by Wu Zhifan". Here the carving knife goes either harder or lighter traversing through each character, as if it had been a calligraphic brush's movements. The exact precision in execution shows that the maker of the piece must have been a fine practicing calligrapher himself.

Wu Zhifan (byname: Luzheng; self-epithet: an East Sea Taoist) was born around early-Qin, died in either the late Kangxi reign or the first few years of Yongzheng reign and was active mainly during the mid to late-Kangxi. A resident of Nanxiang Township Jiading County, Jiangsu Province, later he moved north to Tianjin, Hebei Province and enjoyed the hospitality of an official there, surnamed Ma. Wu never returned south to his hometown and little was known about his final years. He was a fine painter and calligrapher, specialized in the genres of flower-and-bird and portrait painting; his calligraphy in Cao (cursive) script was very charming yet strong. He inherited the "Three Zhu's of Jiading" heritage shared by many bamboo carving artists in the region, that more than mere artisanship, a decent carver ought to be well-versed in painting and calligraphy. And he was one of the best in this tradition. A pity that he didn't get to achieve any fame and success back at home during his lifetime. Lack of any renowned literary figures among his acquaintances did not help either. As a result his life and doings have remained obscure as a whole.

Wu's carving was in Jiading's style, combining high relief, in the round, and openwork. This sophistication had been the hallmark of Jiading bamboo carving. He was expert in all these techniques and capable of another signature line of Jiading bamboo ware: the tube-shaped container made of a bamboo stem between joints. Composition on such an elaborately designed yet convex surface posed a major challenge for the carver. How to seamlessly flow from one element to the next, beginning to the end, had been the number one issue that had to be dealt with ever since the Three Zhu's time. Wu had to, too. Using the cliff wall surfaces in the image to connect it all was his usual solution.

His much-admired buodi yangwen, also known as buodi yangke, namely low relief, required a very thin layer of the outer skin to be scrapped off the bamboo stem, thus leaving the image very slightly raised above the ground. The similar jiandi technique of thinning the ground around the image had been used way back in the Han dynasty's portrait-carving on stone, such as the ones at a family temple in Jiaxiang County, Shantong Province. Wu took full of advantage of the firmness of bamboo texture to apply his buodi yangwen technique. The low relief design thus formed also leaves out much "white space" undecorated for the viewer to indulge his own imagination. The present brush-holder fully characterizes Wu's famous style.

Low relief in essence, buodi yangwen carves its raised images almost level with the skinned surface around. The fine grain and firm fiber of bamboo make this unique treating possible, which otherwise would have easily broken.

Lot 64. Vase rouleau en porcelaine de la famille verte, Chine, dynastie Qing, époque Kangxi (1662-1722). Hauteur: 47 cm. (18 ½ in.). Estimate EUR 30,000 - EUR 50,000 (USD 35,278 - USD 58,797) © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

A famille verte rouleau vase, China, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722)

La panse est à décor continu d'une scène festive représentant des personnages sur une terrasse dans un jardin arboré et rocailleux. Le col est orné d'oiseaux perchés sur des branchages dans des cartouches en réserve sur fond de motifs géométriques ponctué de deux chimères.

Provenance: Property of a Belgian private collector.

Lot 65. Vase rouleau en porcelaine de la famille verte, Chine, dynastie Qing, marque à six caractères sous couverte époque Kangxi (1662-1722). Hauteur: 44 cm. (17 ¼ in.). Estimate EUR 30,000 - EUR 50,000 (USD 35,278 - USD 58,797) © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

A famille verte rouleau vase, China, Qing dynasty, Kangxi six-character mark and of the period (1662-1722) 

La panse est à décor continu d'une scène inspirée d'une légende de l'époque Wei-Jin (III-Vème siècle AP.JC.) selon laquelle des jeunes femmes jettent des fruits en offrande à Wei Jie qui passe sur son char, un jeune homme dont le charme fait l'admiration de toutes. La base émaillée vert est agrémentée d’un double cercle en bleu dans lequel est peinte une marque Kangxi à six caractères en noir sous couverte. 

Provenance: Property of a Belgian private collector, appraised by Lucien Delplace & Fils, Bruxelles,12 October 1957.

Boxwood brush-holder depicting a scholars' gathering in the West Garden, Late 17^th to early 18^th century, h. 18.5 cm, diams. of mouth 17.8 x 22.3 cm © National Palace Museum.

A popular legend in the Ming and Qing periods described how several centurie­s ago during the Yuanyuo reign (1086-1093) of North Song emperor Zhezong, a graceful literary gathering had taken place at West Garden, the property of Wang Shen, husband of a mid-Song emperor's daughter, and a painter-cum-calligrapher in his own right. Wang was the host, the list of guests including the famous brothers Su Shi (1037-1101)and Su Che (1039-1112), their calligrapher friend Huang Tingjian (1045-1105), as well as Qin Guang (1049-1100), Mi Fu (1051-1107), Li Gonglin (1049-1106), Chao Buzhi (1053-1110), Zhang Lei (1054-1114), Zheng Jinglao, Cheng Jingyuan (1024-1094), Wang Qinchen, Liu Jing, Cai Zhao, Li Zhiyi (1038-1117) and Yuantong the Great Monk. All were heavyweights of the then literary and art circle and had their respective significant places in the art or literature history of China. Among them, Li and Mi were both leading figures of great importance in the Chinese painting. Su, and Mi again, ranked among the top four calligraphers of Song. It was also said that Li had supposedly done a painting of the happy gathering, titled a "Graceful Literary Gathering at the West Garden", and that Mi had written a namesake account to go with it, making the story of this highbrow event even more prominent and enjoyable down the centuries. However, Mi's account didn't make its first appearance until Ming dynasty though it has survived to today since, and no other literatures or sources back in Song ever mentioned thus backed up the story of the gathering. Further complicating the matter is that since South Song, there have been all sorts of versions as to the place, time, and list of the guests. So did or did not the famous Garden Gathering actually take place? One is led inevitably to raise the question.

Of late some have commented that the well-known writing attributed to Mi Fu of Song dynasty was very likely a Ming "forgery", and that still the event as recorded in this account could have indeed happened, but might or might not have been called as an "Graceful Literary Gathering at the West Garden".

Regardless, the high-Qing carver who created the present boxwood brush-holder based his design on the descriptions in Mi's account of the Graceful Literary Gathering at the West Garden, with some of the carver's own artistic adaptations for better composition. The guests are arranged into five groups:

Group one: the center figure is the ever-popular and beloved poet Su Dongpo, with four other gentlemen and one lady. Our protagonist wearing his signature "Dongpo cap" is writing feverishly. The host Wang sits by him on the right, watching. Li Zhiyi stands on the other side of the long table, holding a plantain leaf and looking intently toward the calligrapher at work. Cai Zhao is seated right across facing Su, but glances sideways at Su's brother Su Che, who is leaned against a rock and reading. Beside Cai, the charming lady who also has her gaze fixed at the younger Su is a member of the Wang household. All six are surrounded by plantain trees, and each person leads the viewer to the next, together forming a seamlessly coherent whole.

Beyond the old pine tree, group two huddles around the painter Li Gonglin, who perches on a round mound, in front of a table, working his brush to render a painting based on the theme of Tao Yuanming's Returning Home after Quitting the Government Job. Across him Huang Tingjian sits against the table watching. Chao Buzhi stands by Huang, his left hand on the latter's shoulder, his gaze focused at the painter. To the left, Zhang Lei and Zheng Jinglao hold each other on the shoulders, appreciating a painting scroll together. A boy attendant behind Huang turns head to look over at group one, subtly joining the two groups together. Indeed a ingenious, well-thought-out arrangement.

Below, to the left of group two, is situated the third group, a party of two. The Taoist monk Zheng Jingyuan, settled at the root of a kuai juniper, is voluble with excitement and gesturing to an uncertain look on the face of poet Qin Guang, who sits on a rock facing him, hands covered in long sleeves. From where Qin is, now the viewer glances upward and finds Mi Fu wielding his brush writing on a cliff wall. His good friend Wang Qincheng looks up at him at work with both hands clasped behind the back. A boy holds the ink-stone in attendance. The three make up a fourth group.

Across the ledge, a bamboo grove comes into view. Yuantong the Great Monk sits cross-legged in lotus posture on a rush cushion, discoursing on wushenlun (the Buddhist concept of "being not born") with Liu Jing, who also sits in the same posture facing him. Below them, the water splashing against the rocks seems almost audible in the streaming creek under a small bridge. And this fifth group completes a full circle, back at the beginning with group one, delivering an immaculate composition round the brush-holder's entire circumference wall.

Boxwood has a beautiful sheen to it and the grain is very fine. Its hardness is just right and very easy on the knife. However, the tree grows extremely slow so a good-sized chunk is hard to come by. The fact that the diameter of the present brush-holder at where it is widest measures over twenty centimeters makes it a rather rare piece. The carving on the outside surface goes piercingly deep, and the inside is hollowed out for the practical use of holding brushes, and the uneven cross-sections form an irregular wall surface. All this makes it uniquely different from a typical counterpart made of bamboo, both visually and tactilely.

Boxwood sculpture of a lohan scratching his back, 18^th century, h. 4.4 cm, l. 4.6 cm © National Palace Museum.

A small chunk of boxwood is carved in the round into a sitting lohan (the Arhat, Arahat or Arahant in Theravada Buddhism), his legs crossed, clothing rolled down to the waist, and the upper body naked. With his left hand pressed against the ground for balance, a scratching stick in the right hand goes over his right shoulder giving his back a good up and down scratch. Between his knees, a pug jumps and frolics, the tail hoisted up high, happily wagging and yapping to his master. The lohan's forehead all wrinkled, his crow's feet deep-set, his features gaunt and angular, yet a contented grin is tilting up the right corner of his mouth and a relaxed look beaming in his eyes.

Boxwood is fine-textured and of an elegant tint. It's a slow-growing tree and doesn't get big easily, so not suitable for buildings or furniture but ideal for carving. The tiny lohan sculpture couldn't have been done in such fine manner if it was any other wood other than boxwood.

One branch in the early-Qing Jiading bamboo carving was headed up by the Feng family and Shi Tianzhang. One of their specialties was to sculpt the underground stems (commonly mistakenly called "roots") into vivid sculptures of figures in the round. Father and son two generations as well as the student Shi all served in the Imperial Workshops. The latter was highly regard by the emperor and thus became well-known for quite some time. All three had been recruited because of their mastery in bamboo carving, but once there they did more than just bamboo and extended their carving knives to other media such as ivory and wood. The maker of this exquisite work didn't leave his signature but obviously was an experienced fine carver. Perhaps, it was one of them?

Lot 29. Vase en porcelaine bleu blanc, Chine, dynastie Ming, époque Chongzhen (1628-1644); Hauteur: 37 cm. (14 ½ in.). Estimate EUR 4,000 - EUR 6,000 (USD 4,704 - USD 7,056). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

A blue and white vase, China, Ming dynasty, Chongzhen period (1628-1644) 

La panse globulaire est ornée d'une scène de personnages tirée de la 'Romance des trois Royaumes' montrant Liu Bei traversant la rivière Tan échappant à des soldats. Le col tubulaire renflé dans sa partie supérieure est décoré de frises de fleurs stylisées.

Provenance: Property of a French private collector.

Literature: Ben Janssens Oriental Art, Seventeenth century Chinese blue and white porcelain from the private collection of Eileen Lesouef, London, 1999, fig. 18.

Christie's. Art d'Asie, 13 December 2017, Paris

Lot 36. A blue and white double-gourd vase, China, Transitional period, 17th century. Hauteur: 33,5 cm. (13 ¼ in.). Estimate EUR 15,000 - EUR 25,000 (USD 17,639 - USD 29,399). © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Vase double gourde en porcelaine bleu blanc, Chine, époque Transition, XVIIème siècle 

En forme de double-gourde, sa panse globulaire est ornée d'une scène continue de personnages des 'Trois Royaumes' dans un paysage arboré et rocailleux. Le col est agrémenté de tulipes et lotus.

Provenance: Property of a French private collector.

Literature: Ben Janssens Oriental Art, Seventeenth century Chinese blue and white porcelain from the private collection of Eileen Lesouef, London, 1999, fig. 18.

Christie's. Art d'Asie, 13 December 2017, Paris