Lot 98. A small Guan-type vase Qing dynasty, 18th-19th century; 16,6 cm, 6 1/2  in. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 EUR. © Sotheby's

à panse aplatie et quadrangulaire reposant sur un court pied évasé, terminée par un col légèrement évasé et ourlé d'un épais rebord, les anses en forme de tête d'éléphants.

Lot 99. A small Guan-type baluster vase, six-character Qianlong seal mark and period (1736-1795); 21,5 cm, 8 5/8  in. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 EUR. © Sotheby's

la panse quadrilobé aplatie reposant sur un pied et prolongée par un col tous deux évasés, le col comportant deux anses aplaties en forme de  ruyi, marque Qianlong en cachet à six caractères sous couverte à la base.

DAVID MORRIS. Sensational pair of chandelier earrings featuring 25.91 carats of oval rubies and 8.31 carats of white diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. A rare and mesmering 4.01 carats Burma 'pigeon's blood' ruby mounted with a halo of oval white diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Ruby and diamond necklace from Le Jardin collection.

DAVID MORRIS. Peacock chandelier earrings comprising 41.48 carats of fancy-cut white and pink diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Spectacular ring of 8.59 carats cushion-cut Sri Lanka Padparascha sapphire and 5.24 carats of marquise and micro-set white diamonds and small round pink sapphires.

DAVID MORRIS. Ring from the Palm collection featuring 9.11 carats of rare Pigeon Blood oval and cushion-cut rubies in diamond micro-surround setting.

DAVID MORRIS. A 'en tremblant' white diamond ring featuring 13.37 carats of marquise, pear shaped and micro-set diamonds from the Palm collection.

DAVID MORRIS. Palm ring comprising 19.32 carats of a rare Colombian pear shaped emeralds and 7.48 carats of white diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Gorgeous chandelier earrings comprising 32.03 carats of brilliant-cut, emerald and pear shape white diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Colombian emerald drop necklace set with 140.35 carats of superb cabochon emeralds and 46.85 carats of pear shape and micro-set white diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Pearl Rose collection featuring Akoya pearls and brilliant-cut diamonds.

DAVID MORRIS. Diamond eternity bands, one with cushion-cut diamonds and the other with ovals, both with diamond micro-set surround setting.

DAVID MORRIS. Diamond jewellery watch featuring an oval diamond bracelet and bezel with hand carved mother-of-pearl dal, totalling 30.08 carats.

Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641 ), Marchesa Elena Grimaldi Cattaneo, 1623, Oil on canvas, 242.9 × 138.5 cm, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Widener Collection.

TURIN.- An extraordinary show devoted to Anthony van Dyck (Antwerp, 1599– London, 1641) opened to the public, in the Sale Palatine of the Galleria Sabauda at the Musei Reali in Turin. Van Dyck was Rubens' star pupil and one of the greatest exponents of 17th-century European art, revolutionizing the portraiture of the period. He was also an internationally famous personality, refined gentleman, charming conversationalist, brilliant artist and official painter to the most important European courts. 

The exhibition Van Dyck. Pittore di corte (“Van Dyck, Court Painter”) aims to reveal the exclusive relationship the artist enjoyed with Italian and European courts, through the four sections comprising it and 45 canvases and 21 engravings on display. The artist painted masterpieces whose formal development, quality of colour, elegance and painstaking detail were unique. This enabled him to satisfy the ruling classes’ need for status symbols and prestige, from the Genoese nobility to the Savoy family, from Archduchess Isabella to the courts of James I and Charles I of England. 

Van Dyck’s works allow us to enter the sumptuous world of the 17th century, to discover the ambitions of the personages who had themselves painted by the “glory of the world”– as Charles I described the Flemish master – in order to boost their court’s image and standing.

Antoon van Dyck, Prince Thomas of Savoy Carignano, 1635. Oil on canvas, 315 × 236 cm. On concession of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities - Turin, Royal Museums-Galleria Sabauda.

Van Dyck spent six years in Italy, from 1621 to 1627, visiting various cities and studying Italian art and especially that of the Veneto. Here he established contacts with the Genoese aristocracy, the royals in Turin and the dukes of Florence, who commissioned works and led him to specialize in portraiture. By basing himself on Titian’s models and fulfilling the celebratory needs of his clients, Van Dyck developed a completely personal genre, characterized by great formal perfection. Works like Marchesa Elena Grimaldi Cattaneo; Cardinal Guido Bentivoglio; Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Savoy; Archduchess Isabella Dressed as a Nun; Tomaso Francesco of Savoy, Prince of Carignano, and Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria are supreme examples of his portraiture which, due to their naturalness and spontaneous gestures, the meticulously rendered precious silks and lace, and the imperceptible brushwork that creates vibrant and seductive atmospheres, still exert an irresistible fascination today. Some large and important canvases are also devoted to mythology – whose tales were so fashionable in the iconography of the period – such as Jupiter and Antiope, Amaryllis and Mirtillo, Vertumnus and Pomona and Thetis Receives the Arms and Armour for Achilles from Hephaestus (Venus at the Forge of Vulcan). 

Antoon van Dyck, Portrait of Anton Giulio Brignole Sale, 1621-1625, oil on canvas, 282 × 198 cm. Museum 
of Strada Nuova Genova.

The Musei Reali in Turin and Arthemisia are devoting to the artist an important exhibition centering on his vast output of portraits and more: the 45 paintings and 21 engravings come from the most prestigious Italian and foreign museums and collections, such as the National Gallery of Art, Washington; Metropolitan Museum, New York; National Gallery, London, and British Royal Collection; Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh; Museo Thyssen-Bornemiza, Madrid; Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna; Alte Pinakotek, Munich; Kromeriz Castle, Prague; Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence; Musei Capitolini, Rome; Ca’ d’Oro, Venice, and Galleria Nazionale di Palazzo Spinola, Palazzo Reale and Musei di Strada Nuova, Genoa. These works create a dialogue with the large nucleus of masterpieces in the Galleria Sabauda. 

The exhibition was organized by the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities - Musei Reali of Turin and Gruppo Arthemisia, under the patronage of the Piedmont Region and City of Turin. It is curated by Anna Maria Bava and Maria Grazia Bernardini, in collaboration with a prestigious scientific committee composed of some of the most prominent Van Dyck scholars, namely Susan J. Barnes, Piero Boccardo and Christopher Brown.  

Antoon van Dyck, Tommaso di Savoia Carignano, oil on canvas, 112x103cm. Staatlische Museum zu Berlin -Gemaldegalerie zu Berlin © Gemäldegalerie Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Preußischer Kulturbesitz Photo credits Jörg P. Anders.

THE EXHIBITION 
The first section is devoted to the young Van Dyck’s training and his relationship with Rubens. 
After a short apprenticeship in Van Balen’s very busy workshop, Van Dyck began a close collaboration with the great 17th-century master Peter Paul Rubens, who crucially influenced the development of his style. Van Dyck’s remarkable skills enabled him to become a master of the Antwerp guild and to open his own studio at the age of eighteen, but he continued to collaborate with Rubens on important painting projects until he left for Italy. Although his very first works were still considerably indebted to Rubens’ style, there emerged in them an original and innovative language characterized by a lyrical, poetic vein, which diverged from the master's epic style.

Antoon van Dyck, Portrait of Lord Balasyse, oil on canvas, 102.2 × 81.2 × 2.5 cm. Koelliker Collection. Photo credits Manusardi Art Photo Studio Milano.

The second section examines Van Dyck’s activity in Italy. 
After a brief period at the court of James I in London, Van Dyck arrived in Italy in 1621 and stayed until 1627, visiting Venice, Turin, Rome, Bologna, Florence, Palermo and Genoa. In Genoa's “republican kingdoms” Van Dyck’s new elegant style of portraiture, which was magnificent and majestic but, at the same time, full of vitality and charged with emotion, enjoyed great success, since it satisfied the nobility’s desire for self-aggrandizement and ostentation. Moreover, it was precisely in Italy that the artist perfected his imperceptible brushwork and refined language by studying Italian art, and especially that of the Veneto and Titian, as evidenced by the studies in his famous Sketchbook, held by the British Museum and reproduced in the exhibition. 
The first portraits he made in Italy are real masterpieces, such as Cardinal Bentivoglio (Florence, Gallerie degli Uffizi) and Marchesa Elena Grimaldi Cattaneo (Washington, National Gallery of Art), both on display here. In the following years the artist executed a large number of portraits, in which he fine-tuned his rendering of the richly embroidered fabrics, the atmospheric setting and the psychology of the sitter.

Antoon van Dyck, Vertumno and Pomona, 1623-25. Oil on canvas, 142 × 197.5 cm. Museums of Strada Nuova, Genoa.

The third section is devoted to the years at the court of Isabella Clara Eugenia in Antwerp. 
When Van Dyck returned to Antwerp in1627, he replaced Rubens as court painter to Archduchess Isabella Clara Eugenia. He also had occasion to work for the stadtholder Frederik Hendrik, Prince of Orange, who collected various paintings by the artist, including those of mythological subjects, such as Amaryllis and Mirtillo and Thetis Receives the Arms and Armour for Achilles from Hephaestus (Venus at the Forge of Vulcan). During this period Van Dyck portrayed many personages in Isabella’s entourage, producing an exceptional gallery of paintings and engravings: the latter were gathered together in the volume Iconographia. Thirteen of the engravings from the Istituto Centrale della Grafica are on show, along with another eight from a private collection. The portraits of Archduchess Isabella dressed as a nun by Van Dyck and Rubens are both on display and can thus be compared.

Lot 34. A carved translucent light blue hard stone buffalo and wood stand, China, early 20th century. L. : 11,5 cm (4 1/2 in.). Estimation 300 - 400 €. Vendu 117 000 €. © Artcurial

Représenté debout, sellé et portant deux grandes jarres, socle en bois sculpté de pins.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 35. A carved rock crystal vase and its stained ivory and wood stand, China, Qing dynasty, late 19th century. Hauteur du vase : 9 cm (3 1/2 in.). Estimation 600 - 800 €. Vendu 4 160 €. © Artcurial

En forme de tronc d'arbre, sculpté en relief de lingzhi, pêches et chauves-souris, socle en bois et ivoire teinté sculpté de lingzhi; petits éclats.

On y joint une attestation d'expertise par Monsieur Michaël Combrexelle, expert près la Cour d'Appel de Paris, qui sera remise à l'acquéreur. 
Cette attestation établit que cet objet d'art travaillé, a été réalisé dans des éléments en ivoire d'Elephantidae spp (I/A), spécimen dit pré-convention et au vu de son ancienneté antérieure au 1er juin 1947, son utilisation commerciale dans l'UE est permise ainsi que sur le territoire national français conformément à l'arrêté ministériel du 4 mai 2017, relatif à l'interdiction du commerce de l'ivoire d'éléphants et de la corne de rhinocéros. 
En revanche une demande de CITES de ré-export sera nécessaire pour tout acheteur qui souhaiterait l'exporter hors de l'UE après la vente. 

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 46. A rare embellished gilt-bronze wall-vase clock, China, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795). Hauteur du vase : 21 cm (8 1/4 in.). Estimation 8 000 - 12 000 €. Vendu 24 700 €. © Artcurial

Le vase d'applique balustre reposant sur une base tétrapode à bandeau contourné, les arrêtes incrustées de verre rouge, la panse et le col légèrement bombés ciselés de rinceaux feuillagés en léger relief et incrustés de fruits en pierres semi-précieuses et perles, une horloge insérée au centre du vase, le dos plat et les côtés très finement ciselés d'un vase fleuri et de rinceaux feuillagés, deux anses en forme de chauve-souris en vol de part et d'autre du col ; les fleurs d'origine piquées dans le vase remplacées par des fleurs en porcelaine de Sèvre et un feuillage en cuivre doré ; manque des incrustations.

Note: Des pendules murales similaires ont été vendues à Christie's Paris, les 21 et 22 juin 2016, Lot 306, à Christie's Londres, le 10 novembre 2015, Lot 75, et à Sotheby's Londres le 12 juillet 2006, Lot 463. 

Similar embellished wall-vase clocks have been sold at Christie's Paris, June 21 and 22, 2016, Lot 306, at Christie's London, November 10, 2015, Lot 75, and at Sotheby's London, July 12, 2006, Lot 463. 

Lot 100. A white marble figure of bodhisattva, Western Wei dynasty, 6th century. H. : 24,8 cm (9 3/4 in.). Estimation 2 500 - 3 000 €. Vendu 9 750 €. © Artcurial

Représenté debout sur un lotus et une base rectangulaire, auréolé, vêtu d'une longue robe, le visage serein, inscription et datation 549 sur la base.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 106. A bronze figure of Zhenwu, Ming dynasty, 16th century. H. : 42 cm (16 1/2 in.). Estimation 3 000 - 4 000 €. Vendu 8 450 €. © Artcurial

La divinité taoïste est représentée assise, dans une attitude frontale, la main droite posée sur le genou, l'autre tenant sa ceinture, le visage serein, yeux mi-clos, les longs cheveux en arrière retombant dans le dos, vêtu d'une armure au plastron orné de pointes et de dragons en relief, des médaillons à décor de dragons sur les genoux ; manques.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 127. A small famille rose basin, China, Qing dynasty, second half of 19th century. D. : 27,5 cm (10 3/4 in.). Estimation 2 000 - 3 000 €. Vendu 31 200 €. © Artcurial

L'intérieur décoré au centre d'aigrettes et lotus en fleurs, le pourtour, de poissons rouges et plantes aquatiques, la bordure plate, de lotus, pêches et rinceaux, l'extérieur de fleurs, la base, de fleurettes.

Lot 131. A 'robin's-egg' blue lantern vase, Qing dynasty, 19th century. H. : 20,5 cm (8 in.). Estimation 800 - 1 200 €. Vendu 9 100 €. © Artcurial

La panse ovoïde, reposant sur un petit pied, le col évasé, deux anses en forme de vases en très léger relief de part et d'autre de la panse.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 142. Lê Phổ, (1907-2001), "Maternity", circa 1943, ink and gouache on silk. Signée 'Lê Phổ' en bas à gauche. Dimensions : 59,5 x 42,5 cm (23 1/2 x 16 3/4 in.). Estimation 4 000 - 6 000 €. Vendu 27 300 €. © Artcurial

Veuillez noter qu'un certificat d'authenticité signé de la main du fils et ayant-droit de l'artiste sera remis à l'acquéreur. 

Lot 145. A gilt bronze figure of Avalokitesvara Jinasagara and consort, Tibet, 18th century.H. : 19,5 cm (7 3/4 in.). Estimation 5 000 - 7 000 €. Vendu 26 000 €. © Artcurial

Représenté debout dansant sur une base lotiforme, enlaçant sa parèdre, les cheveux coiffés en chignon et rehaussés d'un diadème orné de cinq crânes, la parèdre tenant le kapala et le tambour ; petits manques à un doigt, et statuette refixée.

Lot 151. A bronze ear cup and stand, Han dynasty (206 BC- 220 AC). L. : 23,5 cm (9 1/4 in.). Estimation 500 - 700 €. Vendu 9 100 €. © Artcurial

Le réchaud supportant la coupelle ornée de tigre, tortue et dragon ailé, les pieds en forme de personnages.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 154. A Sancai glazed pottery figure of an official, Tang dynasty (618-907). H. : 43 cm (17 in.). Estimation 800 - 1 200 €. Vendu 2 210 €. © Artcurial

Représenté debout sur une petite base, coiffé d'un bonnet ; cassure au cou et petits éclats.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (Italian, 1610–1662), Royal Hunt and Storm, c. 1630–35. Gouache and black chalk on paper, laid down on linen, 109-5/8 x 138 in. (278.4 x 350.5 cm), The Norton Simon Foundation

PASADENA, CA.- The Norton Simon Museum presents Once Upon a Tapestry: Woven Tales of Helen and Dido, an exhibition of exquisite tapestries and rare cartoons (full-size preparatory drawings) that illustrate two iconic love stories found in the classical epic poems the Iliad and the Aeneid. Helen and her contested romance with Prince Paris of Troy, as described in Homer’s Iliad, is represented in four sumptuous Flemish tapestries from around 1500; and Queen Dido of Carthage and her passionate affair with Virgil’s hero Aeneas is represented in a rare set of six cartoons, and one related tapestry from the early 17th century. Seen together, these monumental works of art demonstrate the appeal of these female-centric narratives in early modern Europe, the power of tapestry to tell such stories, and the inventiveness and skill employed to produce these splendid objects, made for only the wealthiest and most distinguished patrons. 

Homer’s epic poem of the Trojan War, the Iliad, from the 8th century BCE, is the source for the story of Helen of Troy. Medieval poets updated the ancient tale and freely added commentary connecting the European nobles to their Trojan counterparts. In the visual arts, the primary focus of Le Roman de Troie (The Romance of Troy) was the conflict, and battle scenes were well suited to the large-scale, multi-paneled character of tapestry. It is notable then that Helen, an icon of beauty whose abduction provoked the Trojan War, figures so prominently in four of the weavings exhibited. They chronicle Helen’s fate from her arrival in Troy and marriage to Paris, to her return to Sparta and her reconciliation with her first husband, Menelaus. Rich with detail, these fabulous silk and wool tableaux introduce us to contemporary court attire and to medieval stagecraft where the jewel encrusted architectural framework calls attention to the principal subjects. 

Brussels, Workshop Unknown, Arrival of Paris and Helen at the Court of Priam, King of Troy, c. 1500–25. Wool and silk, 152 x 164 in. (386.1 x 416.6 cm), The Norton Simon Foundation.

Whereas the beautiful Helen functions mainly as a catalyst for conflict, the story of Dido, derived from Book IV of Virgil’s epic poem the Aeneid, 29–19 BCE, is considerably more personal and nuanced. The illustarred lovers—Queen Dido of Carthage and the Trojan prince Aeneas—are both ambitious, accomplished leaders. With great imagination and verve, the Italian Baroque artist Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (1610–1662) conceived of Dido as the central protagonist of each dramatic scene in a cycle that once numbered eight full-scale tapestry cartoons. From the banquet Dido hosts to welcome her guests from Troy—when her love for the warrior is kindled—to the prince’s abandonment of Dido as he leaves Carthage at the gods’ behest, the cycle revolves around her destiny. And Romanelli’s grand and sympathetic interpretation of this popular subject arouses compassion for her undoing. 

Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (Italian, 1610–1662), Aeneas Leaving Dido, c. 1630–35.Gouache and black chalk on paper, laid down on linen, 109-5/8 x 138-1/2 in. (278.4 x 351.8 cm), The Norton Simon Foundation.

The subject was immensely popular during the 17th century and inspired Romanelli’s design of eight full=scale cartoons to tell it. Six cartoons survive, fashioned in gouache and watercolor on paper. Inherently fragile, they are infrequently on view. That they exist at all is a testimony to the value accorded to them from the moment of their making. The Museum possesses one tapestry from the last episode of the lovers’ narrative. Recently restored, Death of Dido offers opportunity to comprehend the design process, compare the weaving with its cartoon prototype, and appreciate the unique character of each medium. In the weaving, the narrative appears in reverse, the result of its production on a low-warp loom. Surrounded by a faux frame, the tapestry’s composition is presented as a “woven picture,” bordered by the architectural motif of two Solomonic columns ornamented with garlands, and linked by an entablature at the center of which are ligatured letters that identify the Swedish aristocratic couple who commissioned the tapestry set: Count Gustav Otto Stenbock (1614–1685) and Christina Catharina De la Gardie (1632–1704). The tapestry set to which the Death of Dido belonged may date to the 1670s. 

Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (Italian, 1610–1662), The Death of Dido, c. 1630–35. Gouache and black chalk on paper, laid down on linen, 109-3/8 x 164-1/2 in. (277.8 x 417.8 cm), Norton Simon Art Foundation.

The tapestries derived from Romanelli’s cartoons were the masterpieces of Michel Wauters’ Antwerp studio during the 17th century. At least 8 sets of these tapestries were woven for royal and aristocratic patrons from Italy to Sweden; only three complete editions survive to the present day along with individual weavings. 

Once Upon a Tapestry: Woven Tales of Helen and Dido is organized by Curator Gloria Williams.

Antwerp, Workshop of Michel Wauters, after cartoons by Giovanni Francesco Romanelli, Death of Dido, c. 1620–40. Wool and silk, 158-1/2 x 224-3/4 in. (402.6 x 570.9 cm), The Norton Simon Foundation

Lot 159. A green, yellow and cream glazed pottery figure of a monkey, 17th century. H. : 38 cm (15 in.). Estimation 1 000 - 1 500 €. Vendu 2 080 €. © Artcurial

Représentant le signe du zodiaque : le singe debout, vêtu d'une longue robe ; côtés de l'épi coupés et manque un coin.

Lot 182. A famille verte porcelain bowl, Qing dynasty, Kangxi mark and period (1662-1722). D. : 15,3 cm. (6 in.). Estimation 6 000 - 8 000 €. Vendu 4 160 €. © Artcurial

L'extérieur orné de pivoines, feuillages et papillons vert et jaune et aubergine, masquant en partie un décor incisé de dragons ; petit fêle et craquelures de l'émail.

Provenance : M. Duchange-Garmigny, Art Ancien de la Chine, Paris, Juillet 1969 ; et Christie's Paris, Lot 280, 21 décembre 2009.

Lot 188. A pair of 'sang-de-bœuf' porcelain saucers, Qing dynasty, Qianlong mark and period (1736-1795). D. : 16,4 cm (6 1/2 in.). Estimation 6 000 - 8 000 €. Vendu 14 300 €. © Artcurial

Circulaires, recouvertes d'une belle glaçure monochrome sang-de-bœuf, marque en bleu sous couverte Qianlong à la base.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018

Lot 197. A gold lacquered bronze figure of luohan, China, Ming dynasty, 17th century. H. : 14 cm (5 1/2 in.). Estimation 800 - 1 200 €. Vendu 5 460 €. © Artcurial

Représenté assis, le coude appuyé sur une sellette, le genou droit relevé, un rouleau dans sa main gauche.

Artcurial. Vente Art d’Asie - 10 décembre 2018