Lot 652. A copper-red-glazed bottle vase, 18th century; 11 3/8 in. (28.8 cm.) high. Estimate 4,000 - USD 6,000 USD. Price realised 18,750 USD. © Christie's Image Ltd 2008.

The ovoid body tapering to a tall neck, covered with a crackle-suffused glaze of deep crushed strawberry tone thinning to pale olive-mushroom color below the white mouth rim, the base covered with a crackled glaze.

Lot 657. An unusual Jun-style flower-form bowl, 18th-19th century; 4 3/8 in. (11 cm.) across. Estimate 2,000 - USD 4,000 USD. Price realised 1,875 USD. © Christie's Image Ltd 2008.

The deep rounded sides molded as five petals rising from the conforming foot to the rim, covered inside and out with a soft slightly lavender- blue glaze pooling in a circle to a dark blue in the bottom of the interior and thinning on the interior ribs to a mushroom color, the bottom of the foot with a clear dressing showing the dark brown ware, wood stand, fitted cloth box.

Provenance: Mathias Komor, New York.
The Collection of Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., New York. 

Lot 672. A pair of deep yellow-glazed baluster vases, 19th century; 19 1/8 in. (48.5 cm.) high. Estimate 6,000 - USD 8,000 USD. Price realised 10,625 USD. © Christie's Image Ltd 2008.

Each with a bow-string band encircling the neck, the exterior covered with a glaze of deep golden-yellow color pooling to a darker shade on the shoulder of one, the interior glazed white, with apocryphal Kangxi mark on the base.

Lot 677. A pale lime-green-glazed carved brush pot, bitong, Wang Bingrong, circa 1820-1875; 5½ in. (14 cm.) high. Estimate 8,000 - USD 12,000 USD. Price realised 15,000 USD. © Christie's Image Ltd 2008.

The sides finely carved with figures and pavilions in a setting of trees and rocks on the banks of a lake, with mountains in the distance, covered with an opaque glaze of pale lime-green color that continues over the flat rim and covers the base and the four-character seal mark, Wang Bingrong zuo (made by Wang Bingrong).

Provenance: English private collection. 

Note: According to T. Miller and H. Hui in Elegance in Relief: Carved Porcelain from Jingdezhen of the 19th to Early 20th Centuries, Hong Kong, 2006, Wang Bingrong was "the most commercially successful of the Daoguang period porcelain carvers and was probably still active through at least one of the two subsequent reigns" and that his "enduring popularity owes much to the bold simplicity with which he executed classical motifs". See Miller and Hui, ibid, pp. 128-9, no. 21, for a pale yellow-glazed brush pot of similar style. 

Lot 679. A fine blue and white 'dragon' dish, Zhengde mark and period (1506-1521). Diameter 8 1/4  in., 21 cm. Estimate 50,000 — 70,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

 supported on a slightly tapered foot gently rising to rounded sides, vividly painted with a central medallion enclosing a five-clawed dragon writhing amidst scrolling stems of lotus flowers and trefoil leaves, the cavetto with two further writhing dragons also against lotus scroll all between double-line borders, the reverse similarly decorated, a ruyi-head border at the foot, the base with a four-character mark within a double-circle.

Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 20 October 1993, lot 49.
Spink, London.
Offered at Christie's Hong Kong, 30th October 1995, lot 702. 
Collection of Robert P. Youngman (1940-2018).

Note: The design of five-clawed dragons among dense lotus scrolls is perhaps the most characteristic pattern of the Zhengde period (1506-21) and appears on dishes, bowls and jars of zhadou shape. Although the dragon-and-lotus design was popular throughout the Ming period, this dense and even distribution of the decorative elements, and the soft tone of cobalt blue, are particular to the Zhengde period.

The design may be based on a Xuande prototype, although no exact counterpart is known. For the most closely related Xuande design compare a dish centered with two dragons facing forward among peony scrolls, or one with very similar dragons among lotus scrolls, both illustrated in Mingdai Xuande guanyao jinghua tezhan tulu/Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Selected Hsüan-te Imperial Porcelains of the Ming Dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1998, cat. nos 188 and 189; an example of the latter design was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 4th April 2012, lot 3156. Compare also a Chenghua mark and period (AD 1465-87) blue and white dragon dish from the Sir Percival David Collection in the British Museum, London, in Oriental Ceramics: The World’s Great Collections, Tokyo, New York, and San Francisco, 1980-82, vol. 6, col. pl. 32, which represents a much more loosely composed forerunner to this design.

On Zhengde dishes of this type, the placement of the surrounding dragons can vary. Two slightly larger dishes are in the British Museum, London, one with the dragons similarly arranged as on the present dish, both illustrated in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pls 8:15 and 16. Another dish similar to the present piece in the Shanghai Museum is published in Lu Minghua, Shanghai Bowuguan cangpin yanjiu daxi Mingdai guanyao ciqi Ming imperial porcelain /Studies of the Shanghai Museum Collections: A Series of Monographs, Shanghai, 2007, pl. 3-78; and one from the Eumorfopoulos Collection, illustrated in R.L. Hobson, The George Eumorfopoulos Collection of Chinese, Corean and Persian Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1925-8, vol. IV, pl. VII, no. D 18, was sold in our London rooms, 29th May 1940, lot 211.

A zhadou, a dish, and three different bowls with this design are in the Palace Museum, Beijing, see The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red, vol. 2, Shanghai, 2000, pls 57, 63 and 69-71, one of the bowls with the Zhengde reign mark replaced by a mark in Phags-pa script. A matching zhadou also in the Meiyintang Collection, Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 2, pl. 686, was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 7th April 2011, lot 60.

Lot 680. A rare polychrome-enameled 'dragon' jar and cover, Ming dynasty, 16th century. Height 15 1/2  in., 39.5 cm. Estimate 50,000 — 70,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of wide baluster form swelling generously from a slightly tapered flat base to a gently waisted short neck, the rounded sides brightly painted in red, green and yellow enamels with a wide band depicting two pairs of confronting dragons contesting a'flaming pearl' amid flame wisps and fiery cloud scroll enclosed within line borders, below a band of four striding dragons each in pursuit of a 'flaming pearl' and a row of stylized lotus scrolls encircling the neck, repeated above the foot, the domed cover with further floral meander and a row of ruyi-heads surmounted by a bud-form knop (2).

Provenance: French Private Collection, since the 19th century.

Note: There are few comparable jars to the present example.  The guan form with its colorful palette, large size and dynamic subject matter is rare and represents the ingenuity of Jingdezhen artisans working during the transformative 16th century. The exuberant painterly style and polychrome decoration reflects the changing aesthetic of the period initiated not only by the disparate tastes of the Zhengde and Jiajing Emperors, but also by the influence of increased international trade, much of which was clandestine, and the emergence of a wealthy merchant class.

A jar and cover of the same form and palette with dragon decoration is in the British Museum, London, bequeathed by Francis Howard Paget in 1945, illustrated in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pl. 9:105. The Tokyo Museum of Art has two similar jars and covers; one with dragon decoration is illustrated in Oriental Ceramics, The World's Great Collections, The Tokyo National Museum, vol. 1, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 35; and another but with phoenix, illustrated in Hirota Fukkosai Collection: Ceramics, Tokyo, 2007, cat. no. 72.

Compare also a related guan and cover with a design of Buddhist lions in the Matsuoka Museum of Art, Tokyo, illustrated in Toyo toji meihin zuroku [Catalogue of Oriental Ceramic Masterpieces], Tokyo, 1991, pl. 84

Lot 681. An incised white-glazed 'dragon' jar, Jiajing mark and period (1522-1566). Height 4 in., 10.2 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the ovoid body with rounded broad shoulders tapering to a recessed base, incised with a collar of ruyi around the short neck, a pair of sinuous dragons writhing amidst clouds and flames, a row of lappets at the foot, covered overall in a milky-white glaze, the base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle, wood stand and box (6).

Provenance: Collection of María Marcela Roca Funes, Baronesa de Marchi della Costa (1877-1981), acquired as a gift from a minister of China in Japan, 1910 (by repute).

Note: A similar jar was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 20th May 1987, lot 434, and another, also in our Hong Kong rooms, 15th November 1988, lot 155. A Jiajing mark and period jar with similar carving but under a blue glaze was included in the exhibition Ming Porcelain, China Institute in America, New York, 1970, cat. no. 51. Compare a Jiajing mark and period jar from the Huaihaitang Collection with white glaze and incised decoration similar to that of the present example except with phoenixes instead of dragons, illustrated in Enlightening Elegance: Imperial Porcelain of the mid to late Ming, the Huahaitang Collection, The Art Museum, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2013, cat. no. 15. Consider an earlier prototype, a white-glazed jar incised with dragons amongst clouds from the Yongle period, excavated at Jingdezhen and illustrated in Yuan and Ming Imperial Porcelains Unearthed from Jingdezhen, Yan-Huang Art Museum, Beijing, 1999, cat. no. 95.

Lot 682. A blue and white 'flower basket' dish, Wanli mark and period (1573-1619). Diameter 6 5/8  in., 16.7 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

painted in shades of dark blue with an arrangement of varying blooms in an arched-handled basket, a frieze of fans, leaves, pomegranate and waterweed and double lines encircling the cavetto, the exterior with flowering boughs and insects, the base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle.

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 29th November 1988, lot 182.

Lot 683. A blue and white polychrome-enameled 'flower basket' dish, Wanli mark and period (1573-1619). Diameter 11 3/4  in., 29.5 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the shallow rounded sides resting on a straight foot and rising to an everted rim, the center enclosing a basket of lush peonies and prunus branches, accents of iron red and enamel at the base and handle, the cavetto painted with free-floating branches, leaves, and auspicious objects including fans and pairs of dharma wheels, the exterior with sprays of peonies and chrysanthemums and two small butterflies, the recessed base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Lot 684. An extremely rare large blue and white 'carp' fishbowl , Wanli mark and period (1573-1619). Diameter 22 1/2  in., 57.2 cm. Estimate 50,000 — 70,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

stoutly potted, the steep sides rising to a lipped rim, finely painted on the exterior in vibrant tones of rich underglaze cobalt-blue with four lively fan-tailed fish including a carp, mandarin fish, and two types of bream, depicted in varying attitudes, swimming among flowering lotus, ferns and gently undulating aquatic plants, a band of stylized rolling and cresting waves encircling the base, all between line borders, the rim inscribed with a six-character mark in a horizontal line.

Provenance: Collection of Bertram Stanley Boggis (1887-1958), and thence by descent.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Lot 685. An extremely rare pair of blue-ground iron-red and green-enameled 'Mythical beasts' stem cups , Wanli marks and period (1573-1619). Diameter 3 3/8  in., 8.5 cm. Estimate 100,000 — 150,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

each with rounded sides rising from a spreading foot to a flared rim, decorated to the exterior with mythical beasts with incised features, frolicking among green cresting waves against a ground of bright blue inky tones, the rim mounted in silver above a collar of red-enameled ruyi between green and blue enamel line borders, repeating on the horizontal filet encircling the stem, the interior covered in brilliant green enamel and centered by nine underglaze blue lança characters, the base glazed white and inscribed with a six-character mark within a double circle (2).

Provenance: Nagatani, Chicago, 12th January 1959.
Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Note: Stemcups made in the Wanli period and decorated with sea creatures are rare, and those with details painted in overglaze green and iron red are even rarer. The design was modeled after Xuande period (r. 1426-1435) prototypes, which by the Wanli reign had become highly valuable and much sought after. A reconstructed Xuande mark and period stemcup painted in underglaze blue with this design, unearthed from the waste heaps of the Imperial kiln factory at Jingdezhen, is illustrated in Imperial Porcelain from the Reign of Xuande in the Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2018, pl. 29.

Known as haishou (sea creatures), the nine animals on these stemcups are believed to depict mythological creatures from the famous Shanhaijing (Classics of Mountains and Seas). Written between the Warring States period (475-221 B.C.) and the Han dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 220), it is a compilation of mythological stories and geographical information. The Sanskrit characters on the interior of these stemcups suggest an association with Tibetan Buddhism. It is likely that stemcups of this type were made as tribute gifts to Tibetan lamas. A Xuande mark and period stemcup with Sanskrit characters on the interior, and the exterior painted in wucai enamels with ducks swimming in a lotus pond, in the Sa-skya Monastery, Tibet, was included in the exhibition Treasures from Snow Mountains. Gems of Tibetan Cultural Relics, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai, 2001, cat. no. 94.

While no other closely related stemcup appears to be known, a stemcup painted with this design but lacking the overglaze enamels was sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 29th May 2013, lot 2247. Wanli mark and period stemcups with the creatures painted in underglaze blue against a white ground, but lacking the Sanskrit characters, are more commonly known. See for example, a pair from the collection of the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo, later in the Meiyintang collection, illustrated in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 4, London, 2010, pl. 1696, and sold twice in our London rooms in 1970 and 1986, and in our Hong Kong rooms in 1988 and again, 7th April 2011, lot 71; and a stemcup sold at Christie’s New York, 20th September 2005, lot 262.

The motif is also known on stemcups with an apocryphal Xuande mark, such as one from the Sir Percival David Collection, now in the British Museum, London, illustrated in Margaret Medley, Illustrated Catalogue of Underglaze Blue and Copper Red Decorated Porcelains, London, 1976, pl. C601.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Lot 686. An extremely rare wucai'boys' box and cover, Wanli mark and period (1573-1619). Diameter 3 3/8  in., 8.5 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of barrel form, the rounded sides boldly and freely painted in green, yellow, iron red, black and underglaze blue with a continuous scene of sixteen boys at play, the chubby children happily engaging in various activities such as flying a kite, galloping astride a hobby horse with an 'attendant', holding a parasol, marching in a procession, blowing on a suona, and flag waving, all in a garden lush with flowering plants, small shrubs, fan-shaped banana palms, a craggy pine issuing clusters of bright green needles, and a weeping willow tree suspending long leafy branches, a classic scroll border encircling the rim, the fitted slightly domed cover similarly decorated, the unglazed base of the box with a recessed glazed medallion enclosing an underglaze blue six-character mark within a double circle (2).

Provenance: Collection of Dolores Alzaga.

Note: It is extremely rare to find covered boxes in barrel form among Ming dynasty porcelains. The usage of these drum-shaped boxes is still not fully understood. The two most frequently cited explanations for the form are as containers for weiqi stones or as cricket cages. The rounded sides and fitted domed covers would work well for both purposes. The height of the present example suggests it would be better suited for crickets as the depth of the form would make scooping out playing pieces somewhat difficult.

Cricket fighting is a traditional game with a long history in China. Enthusiasm for this activity reached new heights in the Ming dynasty, with an observer noting that on the death of one enthusiast’s prized cricket, 'he made a silver coffin' for the insect in the form of a Buddhist reliquary. Porcelain cricket cages in barrel form, but with recessed covers, were first made for the Xuande Emperor (r. 1426-35), as discussed in Liu Xinyuan, Ming Xuande guanyao xishuai guan [Xuande period cricket jars from the Ming imperial kilns], Taipei, 1995. Cricket fights were popular during the Wanli period, especially in Beijing and southern China. A variety of imperial porcelain cricket cages from the Wanli period are illustrated in line drawings in Geng Baochang, Ming Qing ciqi jiandin [Appraisal of Ming and Qing Porcelains], Hong Kong, 1993, fig. 264.

While no other boxes of identical size and decoration to the present example appear to be known, related examples of this form include one in the Shanghai Museum of slightly smaller size, decorated with dragon motifs illustrated in Chugoku Toji Zenshu, vol. 21, Kyoto, 1981, pl. 41; another of this type, but without its cover, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is illustrated in Suzanne Valenstein, The Herzman Collection of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1992, cat. no.85. For an underglaze blue example of this type, see one from the C. P. Lin Collection illustrated in Elegant Form and Harmonious Decoration. Four Dynasties of Jingdezhen Porcelain, London, 1992, cat. no. 90. A wucai box and cover with figural decoration, formerly in the Jingguantang Collection of T.T. Tsui, is illustrated in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 4, London, 1994, no. 1704, and sold at Christie’s London, 15th November 2000, lot 32, and twice in in our Hong Kong rooms, 13th November 1990, lot 149, and 7th April 2011, lot 70. Compare also a box and cover with ‘mythical beast’ decoration that sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th October 2016, lot 110.

Lot 611. A pierced blue and white 'dragon' sweetmeat box and cover, Wanli mark and period (1573-1619). Diameter 8 5/8  in., 21.6 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of compressed globular form, resting on a straight foot surmounted by a domed cover, the sides of the box and cover each painted with leaping dragons in profile amidst flowerheads on leafy scrolls, the cover centered with a pierced 'coin' painted with flowers and conch shells, encircled by a 'wave' band, the interior of the box divided into a central floriform walled compartment radiating six segments, the footring with bands of scrolls, the recessed base glazed white and with a six-character mark in underglaze blue (2).

Provenance: Sotheby's London, 9th December 1986, lot 190.
C. C. Lai Antiques, Toronto, 1960s-1980s, and thence by descent.

Note: Blue and white sweetmeat boxes of this design include one sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 7th July 2003, lot 652; another with a cover of this type from the Toguri Museum of Art sold in our London rooms, 9th June 2004, lot 39. A wucai enameled box with the same decoration was included in the exhibition Treasures from the Shanghai Museum: 6000 years of Chinese Art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 1983, pl. XXXVII. 

Compare also Wanli mark and period sweetmeat boxes with dragons enclosed in lobed medallions reserved on a pierced diaper ground; one was included in the exhibition Ming and Ch'ing Porcelain from the Collection of the T. Y. Chao Family Foundation, Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1978, cat. no. 25. Another example sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 21st May 1979, lot 46, and a further box and cover sold in our London rooms, 10th July 1979, lot 147.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Lot 610. A blue and white 'figural' garlic-neck bottle vase, Ming dynasty, Chongzhen period (1628-1644). Height 14 1/2  in., 37 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the compressed globular body supported on a straight foot, tapering to a waisted neck with a raised bulb below a flared mouth, finely painted in brilliant shades of cobalt with a lush landscape framing an elderly man giving directions to a grateful soldier, accompanied by five flag bearers, one on horseback, above a band of petal lappets and below a floral scroll band at the shoulder, the neck with sprays of stylized tulips, the bulb with a meandering lotus scroll, the recessed base glazed white.

Provenance: C. C. Lai Antiques, Toronto, 1960s-1980s, and thence by descent.

Note: The present vase belongs to a group of similarly shaped vessels painted with figural scenes and stylized tulips, which may suggest that they were made for or influenced by the Dutch market. See a similar example exhibited in Transitional Wares and Their Forerunners, Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1981, cat. no. 70, where it is noted that a vase of this type appears in Still Life with a Pilgrim Flask, Candlestick, Porcelain Vase and Fruit by Willem Kalf, likely painted before 1646. A similar vase is also illustrated in Chinese Porcelain: The Transitional Period 1620-1683: A Selection from the Michael Butler Collection, Leeuwarden, 1986, pl. 72, where it is noted that the form originates in 16th century Isnik ceramics. 

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Lot 698. A rare lavender-blue 'Jun' narcissus bowl, Early Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Diameter 8 in., 20.3 cm. Estimate 300,000 — 500,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of circular section, the wide rounded sides gently tapering to a flat base supported on three ruyi-shaped feet encircled by a band of evenly spaced bosses repeated between two raised filets below the slightly incurved rim, the thick glaze of milky-lavender tone mottled with crimson-purple flecks, thinning to a mottled mushroom tone around the rim, raised studs and ribs, and pooling attractively in rich purple tones on the feet, the glaze on the interior a pale lavender color with feathery flecks of milky-blue and pale mushroom and traces of characteristic ‘worm tracks’, the base applied with a thin golden-brown wash, a ring of minute unglazed spur marks, and incised with the character si (four).

Provenance: Collection of Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858-1937).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in memory of her sister Lucy Maud Buckingham (1870-1920) in 1924 (acc. no. 1924.361).

Note: This piece is representative of a distinct and rare group of Jun flower receptacles known as ‘numbered’ Jun wares, on account of the Chinese numerals inscribed on their bases before firing. These bulb bowls were most likely made for the Imperial court and were displayed in elegant gardens through the Qing dynasty (1644-1911).

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926), Maisons au bord de la route, 1885, oil on canvas, 25 x 32 inches. High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection.

ATLANTA, GA.- The High Museum of Art announced today that Atlanta-based philanthropists Doris and Shouky Shaheen have donated their entire impressionist, post-impressionist and modernist painting collection, totaling 24 artworks, to the Museum. The Shaheen gift is one of the most significant groups of European paintings ever to enter the Museum’s collection, rivaled only by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation donation in 1958, which established the core of the High’s European art holdings. This marks the High’s first acquisition of paintings by renowned artists such as Henri Fantin-Latour, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani and Alfred Sisley. 

“We are exceptionally grateful for the generosity of this landmark gift,” said Rand Suffolk, Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr., director of the High. “The Shaheens’ contribution single-handedly elevates the quality of our European collection and will greatly enhance the visitor experience.” 

Atlanta residents since 1965, the Shaheens began to amass their remarkable collection in the early 1970s when they acquired Maurice de Vlaminck’s “Banlieue de Paris” (ca. 1922) from a local gallery. Over the past 50 years, the collection has grown to include paintings by some of the most recognized artists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In addition to the first works by Fantin-Latour, Matisse, Modigliani, Sisley, Maurice Utrillo and Vlaminck to enter the High’s collection, the gift includes paintings by Eugène Boudin, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Édouard Vuillard. The paintings’ subjects range from sweeping landscapes and village scenes to intimate portraits and figure studies. 

In recognition of the gift, the High will establish the Doris and Shouky Shaheen Gallery in its Stent Family Wing, where the paintings will be on view starting later this year. 

“It’s been a great blessing of our life together to build this collection and live with these incredible works,” said the Shaheens. “Given our love for this collection, and our love for this city, we knew the High was the best home for these paintings. We’re thrilled that Atlantans will enjoy them for generations to come.” 

The Shaheens have a long history of philanthropic support for organizations across the Southeast and beyond that reflects their love for the arts and commitment to healthcare access and education. Their financial donations led to the creation of Piedmont Hospital’s Doris Shaheen Breast Health Center in 2004 and helped the hospital significantly expand its emergency room. As a birthday gift to her husband in 2007, Doris established the Shouky Shaheen Lecture series, which brings nationally and internationally recognized artists and scholars to present lectures at the University of Georgia’s Lamar Dodd School of Art. The Shaheens have contributed to other institutions of higher learning, including the University of Memphis and Birzeit University. In addition to this major gift of artworks, the couple have contributed generously to the High as members since 1983 and as Friends of the Collection. The Shaheens are the founders of Shaheen & Co., which develops warehouse space throughout the metro area. 

“The Shaheens’ generous gift strengthens the High’s already significant holdings of impressionist and post-impressionist works to an extraordinary new level,” said Claudia Einecke, the High’s Frances B. Bunzl Family curator of European art. “In addition to making the Museum a must-see destination for visitors and scholars alike, the Shaheen collection now gives the High much greater depth of works by artists such as Monet, Pissarro and Sisley, providing deeper context for our overall collection and allowing our audiences to gain a fuller understanding and greater appreciation for these artists’ individual achievements.” 

Highlights of the Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection include: 

•Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (French, 1796–1875), “La bohémienne à mandoline assise” (ca. 1860s–1870s) — Though primarily a landscape painter, Corot would dress models for figure paintings, often with items from his personal collection. In this case, he depicts a young girl holding a mandolin. 

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, “La bohémienne à mandoline assise” (ca. 1860s–1870s). High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection. Courtesty of the High Museum of Art.

• Henri Fantin-Latour (French, 1836–1904), “Grand bouquet de chrysanthèmes” (1882) — This floral still life, the first work by Fantin-Latour to enter the High’s collection, is characteristic of his celebrated style. 

• Henri Matisse (French, 1869–1954), “Femme assise devant son piano (Marguerite)” (ca. 1924) — This colorful oil on canvas is a study for a larger painting by Matisse and is one of two works by the artist included in the gift. 

• Amedeo Modigliani (Italian, 1884–1920), “Portrait de Beatrice Hastings” (1914) — This early portrait by Modigliani is the High’s first acquisition of the artist’s work. 

• Claude Monet (French 1840–1926), “Maison au bord de la route” (1885) — This beautiful landscape is one of three Monet paintings entering the High’s collection. 

• Camille Pissarro (French, 1830 – 1903), “Paysanne assise” (1882) — The gift features three works by Pissarro, including two landscapes and this portrait of a peasant woman, a recurring motif in his paintings. 

Camille Pissarro, Paysanne assise, 1882. High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection. Courtesty of the High Museum of Art.

Camille Pissarro (French, 1830–1903), Pièce d'eau à Kew, Londres, 1892, oil on canvas, 18 1/8 x 21 5/8 inches. High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection. Courtesty of the High Museum of Art.

• Alfred Sisley (French, 1839–1899), “Une rue à Marly” (1876) — Of the four Sisley paintings entering the High’s collection, this is an early landscape from the height of the impressionist movement.

Alfred Sisley, “Une Rue à Marly”, 1876. High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Doris and Shouky Shaheen Collection. Courtesty of the High Museum of Art.

Lot 521. A Rare and Important Gilt Bronze Figure of Chijang Bosal (Ksitigarbha), Goryeo dynasty (918-1392), 13th-14th century. Estimate: $800,000-1,200,000 (€ 720,000 - 1,100,000). Photo: Bonhams.

NEW YORK, NY.- On September 11, Bonhams will present the sale of The Collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis, which is highlighted by a rare and important gilt bronze figure of Chijang Bosal (Ksitigarbha), Goryeo dynasty (918-1392), 13th/14th century (estimate: $800,000-1,200,000). The collection of 115 lots also includes fine Japanese lacquer boxes, Buddhist sculptures, inro, ceramics and contemporary Japanese art. 

At auction for the first time, this important sculpture of Chijang Bosal (Ksitigarbha) was on the cover of Orientations magazine in 2003. It was also exhibited at the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco and published in their exhibition catalogue, Goryeo Dynasty, Korea’s Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392 in 2003. Sculptural representations of Ksitigarbha are commonly found in Japanese art but are extremely rare in Korea; only one other Goryeo-dynasty Korean bronze figure of the deity is known in a Japanese private collection. 

Lot 521. A Rare and Important Gilt Bronze Figure of Chijang Bosal (Ksitigarbha), Goryeo dynasty (918-1392), 13th-14th century; 20 7/8in (53cm) high (figure only). Estimate: $800,000-1,200,000 (€ 720,000 - 1,100,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The compassionate bodhisattva shown in the guise of a monk, seated cross-legged in meditation and dressed in flowing robes open at the chest, a long cowl covering the head gathered at the back and secured with a band, the right hand raised with the thumb and middle finger joined in a mudra of teaching and the left hand holding a chintamani (wish-granting jewel or pearl), the urna of inlaid amber, traces of gilding over black lacquer; set on a later fitted wood stand.

Exhibited and Published: Kumja Paik Kim, Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco-Chong-Moon Lee Center for Asian Art and Culture, in cooperation with the National Museum of Korea and Nara National Museum, 2003, exhibition catalogue, October 18, 2003 - January 11, 2004.

Published: Stephen Little, "A Korean Gilt-Bronze Sculpture of Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva," Orientations, September 2003, pp.52-56.

Note: As noted by Stephen Little in the article referred to above, Ksitigarbha's reputation as a savior of deceased children and of tortured souls in the underworld led to his great popularity throughout East Asia, where the earliest extant images of the deity are to be found at the seventh-century Longmen cave complex in China's Henan Province; he is also depicted in paintings of the Five Dynasties period (late ninth-early tenth century), originally preserved at Dunhuang and now in museums in Paris and Kyoto. The Dunhuang paintings represent the deity as a monk and we see him in the same guise in the present lot, with elaborate bracelets, necklace, and a string of jewels suggesting his divine status. When the bodhisattva is shown as the principal figure at the center of a group of attendant deities in Goryeo-dynasty Korean paintings (themselves based on Chinese prototypes), he shares several features in common with the Lewis Collection Chijang Bosal, including the squarish face and upper body as well as similar cowl, urna, cape and jewels; in later Korean versions, whether paintings or sculptures, the cowl and other features are no longer present.

Sculptural representations of Ksitigarbha are commonly found in Japanese art but are extremely rare in Korea; only one other Goryeo-dynasty Korean bronze figure of the deity is known, a smaller and less ambitious work in a Japanese private collection.

Jeff Olson, Bonhams Director of Japanese and Korean Art, commented: “Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis have studied and collected fine examples of works from all across Asia and we are honored to offer select highlights from their collection of Japanese and Korean art as Part One of the Lewis Collection to be sold at Bonhams. We are particularly delighted to bring this rare Korean Buddhist sculpture to auction for the first time.” 

Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis 
Known for their keen scholarship and high aesthetic standards, for the past three decades Ed and Julie have focused on collecting lacquer art, painting and Buddhist sculpture from Japan. Both physicians and internationally recognized as renown experts in nephrology, they hold positions as tenured professors at Rush Medical College in Chicago and Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, respectively. They met professionally and later married in 1997, and have since continued to collect Japanese art together, actively seeking the best they could find from the finest dealers in the field. As they traveled widely their desire to collect Buddhist art grew, and they have expanded their collection to include important Pan-religious sculpture from Greater Asia. 

Additional highlights in the sale include: 

Lot 616. Morita Shiryu (1912-1998), Ryu chi ryu (Dragon knows dragon). Large four-panel screen with three characters brushed in aluminum flake pigment in polyvinyl acetate medium and yellow alkyd varnish on paper. Artist's certificate on reverse titled Ryu wa ryu o shiru (Dragon knows dragon), signed Morita Shiryu, sealed Sei no in and dated 1967.; 44 1/2 x 88 3/16in (113 x 224cm). Estimate: $60,000 - 80,000 (€ 54,000 - 72,000). Photo: Bonhams.

Provenance: Previously sold, Butterfield and Butterfield, San Francisco, November 16-17, 1994, lot 2314.

Note: Inspired by an elementary-school teacher to assume the name Shiryu, literally "Child Dragon," Morita used the three characters seen on this lot as the subject for the first major calligraphy he exhibited overseas, at the fifth São Paulo Bienal in 1959, and would continue to produce variations on this theme for much of the rest of his career, often in characters that are so barely readable as to resemble contemporary Western works of abstract art. Each calligraphy was a personal expression of Morita's commitment to the Buddhist principle of self-knowledge, as well as an assertion of his dragon-like artistic ability.

Lot 572. Fukami Sueharu (1947-), Kei (Landscape II), Heisei era (1989-2019), 2000. Pressure-slip-cast porcelain with pale blue glaze, on a granite base, incised underglaze signature S. Fukami 6/8; 65 1/4in (165.7cm) high (sculpture only), 71 1/4in (180.9cm) high overall. Estimate: $50,000 - 70,000 (€ 45,000 - 63,000). Photo: Bonhams.

Provenance: Purchased Japonesque, Inc., San Francisco, March 5, 2003.

This sculpture is number six from an edition of eight. 

Note: Born into an artisan family that owned and operated a factory producing porcelain tablewares, from an early age Fukami Sueharu learned the importance of pursuing the highest standards in the selection of his materials, the thoroughness of his preparations, and the quality of his finished work. In his late twenties he started to specialize in his trademark combination of porcelain with a luminous seihaku (bluish-white) glaze inspired by wares made at the Jingdezhen kiln complex in China's Jiangxi Province during the eleventh century, and from 1980 he started to explore the potential of high-pressure slip casting, which he employs to create large-scale works such as the present lot. By injecting liquid clay into a plaster mold under high pressure, using techniques whose details remain a closely guarded secret, he minimizes the risk of the finished work distorting during the firing process. Now a ceramic superstar, Fukami Sueharu is widely honored both in Japan and throughout the world for his serene, crisply modeled sculptures that are on view in major public collections of Japanese art across the United States and beyond. His mature abstract style embodies a contemporary global vision, yet also reflects a traditional Japanese disregard for the time and effort required to produce works of flawless beauty.

Lot 541. A large wood figure of Tamonten (Kubera), Heian period (794-1185), 12th century; 38in (96.5cm) high, figure only, 40 1/8in (102cm) high overall.  Estimate: $25,000 - 35,000 (€ 23,000 - 32,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The head and torso carved from a single block of wood, the figure shown in a contrapposto stance dressed in Chinese-style armor and holding a pagoda and spear, with traces of gesso, standing on a subdued demon.

Provenance: Purchased from Hiroshi Yanagi Oriental Art, Kyoto, 2010.

Note: Tamonten, literally "The heavenly king who hears much," is the most potent of the Shitenno (Four Heavenly Kings) and the only one to be included, in more recent centuries, in the popular grouping of Shichifukujin (The Seven Gods of Good Fortune). He is nearly always identifiable by a pagoda in his left hand from which he bestows teachings and treasures upon the worthy, and a spear in his right hand which guards against distraction and deviation from the Buddhist law. For a related eleventh-century example, made like the present lot from a single block of wood in the ichibokuzukuri technique and with similarly dramatic yet uncomplicated carving and modeling, compare an example in Nara National Museum, https://www.narahaku.go.jp/collection/1138-0.html, inv. no Cho (Sculpture) 104; also published in Nara National Museum, Nara Kokuritsu Hakubutsukan zohin zuhan mokoroku (Illustrated Catalogues of Nara National Museum), 1999, p.108.

Lot 529. A matching suzuribako (writing box) and ryoshibako (document box), Edo period (1615-1868) or Meiji era (1868-1912), 19th century. Suzuribako 10 3/8 x 9 1/2 x 2in (26.4 x 24.2 x 5cm), ryoshibako 16 3/4 x 13 5/8 x 5 7/8in ( (42.8 x 34.9 x 15.3cm). Estimate: $25,000 - 40,000 (€ 23,000 - 36,000). Photo: Bonhams.

Each decorated in several shades of gold and silver takamaki-e, uchikomi and kirikane on a nashiji ground, the suzuribako decorated with cranes in a mountainous landscape, the interior with scenes of blossoming cherry trees on Mount Yoshino and maple tres and cottages by the Tatsuta River, fitted with a silver water dropper cast as a raft, and a paper knife, a paper-pricker, and two writing brushes, the ryoshibako with landscape featuring a crashing waterfall, pine, plum and bamboo, and cranes and a bushy-tailed tortoise, the interior with a further design of cherry blossoms on Mount Yoshino. With lacquered wood tomobako storage boxes.

Provenance: Purchased from Grace Tsumugi Fine Art Ltd., London, 2012.

Note: The imagery on this sumptuously decorated set of boxes combines traditional propitious New-Year's subjects—cranes, a bushy-tailed tortoise, and the "Three Friends" grouping of pine, bamboo and plum that thrive simultaneously at winter's end—with two of the most renowned seasonal landscapes in Japan's ancient capital region: the cherry-blossom-clad Yoshino Hills (south of Kyoto) in spring, and the rich red foliage of maples by the Tatsuta River (near Nara) in the fall. Celebrated in verse since the seventh century, the flowering cherry trees of Yoshino became a favored subject for elite pictorial art in sixteenth-century screen pairs, animated by a literary conceit that the white blossoms might easily be mistaken for snowflakes; somewhat later, screen pairs featuring contrasting scenes from Yoshino and Tatsuta also became a popular production of the Kano-academy painting ateliers. The present lot, most likely dating from the years between about 1860 and 1880, gives the lie to the myth, propagated shortly afterwards by American and Japanese thought leaders, that lacquer art underwent a catastrophic decline at the end of the Edo period; demonstrating as it does a mastery of a wide range of sophisticated techniques, along with a playful melding of traditional Kyoto and more contemporary Edo/Tokyo auspicious themes.

Lot 591. Shibata Zeshin (1807-1891), A tobacco tray with a bird-shaped kite, Meiji era (1868-1912), circa 1870-1890; 13/4 × 11 1/4 × 9 in (4.5 × 28.5 × 22.9 cm). Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000 (€ 18,000 - 27,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The deep tray with curved corners, and slightly recessed interior with indented corners, the wood body entirely covered in almost black chado-nuri finished to an ishime-nuritexture, the interior decorated in highly polished low black takamaki-e with a kite in the form of a crow viewed from below and upside-down (as indicated by the location of the signature on the base), details of the feet and eyes in silver lacquer, the kite string and its ties depicted in gold hiramaki-e partly incised in subori technique to indicate the individual twisted threads, the string extending over the top side and the base to the long-handled itomaki (winder) depicted on the side, its wood and bamboo components rendered in takamaki-e of gold, shibuichi, and shakudo powder incised in subori technique with wood grain, signed on the underside Zeshin in gold hiramaki-e.

With a wood tomobako storage box with label inscribed Tako maki-e tabako-bon Zeshin saku (Maki-e tobacco tray by Zeshin) and letter of authentication from Shoji Hoshin (1898–1993), reading Zeshin-o saku tako maki-e seidoji tabako-bon shinsaku mugi mono nari Showa gojukyunen uzuki hachijuroku-o Hoshin kan (Seido-ground tobacco tray by Zeshin, authentic work examined by Hoshin, aged 86, April 1984) with seals Shoji, Koma; wrapper sealed Hoshin no in.

Provenance: Yoshiie Family, Suisekitei Collection
Previously sold, Bonhams, London, The Misumi Collection of Important Works of Art and Paintings, Part II, November 10, 2015, lot 3.

Exhibited and Published: Nezu Bijutsukan (Nezu Museum), Shibata Zeshin no shikko, urushi-e, kaiga (Shibata Zeshin: From Lacquer Arts to Painting), exhibition catalogue, Tokyo: Nezu Bijutsukan, 2012, cat. no.18.

Note: In his catalogue note for the 2012 Zeshin exhibition at the Nezu Museum referred to above, lacquer historian Takao Yo comments that the kite depicted here is no ordinary toy but a special variety that was probably, and typically, Zeshin's own invention. An accompanying certficate refers to the present lot as having been the property of the Yoshiie family who lived in Tokyo and were owners of a panel depicting a harvest festival, completed in 1882, that is one of the finest works in the Khalili Collection; see Joe Earle and Tadaomi Goke, Meiji no Takara, Treasures of Imperial Japan, Masterpieces by Shibata Zeshin [in the Khalili Collection], London: Kibo Foundation, 1996, cat. no.27.

Lot 552. A seated wood figure of Nyoirin Kannon, Kamakura period (1185-1333), 13th-14th century; 17in (43.1cm) high. Estimate: $18,000 - 25,000 (€ 16,000 - 23,000). Photo: Bonhams.

Constructed in yosegizukuri (joined-block) technique and decorated in gilt over lacquer, the figure is shown in the posture of rajalilasana (royal ease), the right knee raised to support the right arm, the right cheek resting gently against the knuckles of the right hand, the robes loosely draped over the shoulders falling in folds across the lap, the hair gathered up in a high topknot and framed by a narrow crown, with gilt- metal crown, bracelets, and necklace adorned with glass beads, the eyes and urna inlaid in glass.

Provenance: Purchased from Hiroshi Yanagi Oriental Art, Kyoto, 2008.

Note: For a similarly delicate small-scale image (32.7cm high) of the wish-granting Kannon, dated 1275, compare an example in Nara National Museum (formerly in the Tennojii Temple, Osaka; multiple images accessible at https://www.narahaku.go.jp/collection/v-1070-1.html).

Lot 597. A Standing wood figure of Jizo (Kshitigarbha), Muromachi period (1333-1573), 16th century; 21 1/4in (53.8cm) high overall, 18 1/4in (46.1cm) high (figure only). Estimate: $18,000 - 25,000 (€ 16,000 - 23,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The figure shown standing, leaning slightly forward and holding a wish-granting jewel in the left hand, the right hand clasped as if to hold a staff, now lost, the face with full cheeks and lidded eyes and an urna inlaid in glass, dressed in monastic robes and set on a lotus stand.

Provenance: Purchased from T. Fuji Japanese Antiques, Honolulu, 1988.

Lot 585. An export lacquer cabinet, Edo period (1615-1868), second quarter of the 17th century; 12 1/4 x 16.7/8 x 14 7/8in (31.2 x 42.8 x 37.7cm). Estimate: $18,000 - 25,000 (€ 16,000 - 23,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The rectangular cabinet fitted with hinged doors and decorated in gold and silver hiramaki-e, takamaki-e, nashiji, kirikane and aogai, the top and sides all decorated with shaped panels containing moonlit landscapes, blossoming autumn plants, and an owl perched in a camellia tree, each panel set against a dense gold nashiji ground, the edges finished in bands of geometric design and chrysanthemums and vines, the interior of the doors decorated with blossoming flowers, the removable drawers black lacquer, the silver hardware decorated with chrysanthemum heads and stylized vines.

Published: Edmund J. Lewis and Joe Earle, Shadows and Reflections: Japanese Lacquer Art from the Collection of Edmund J. Lewis at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu Academy of Arts, 1996, cat. no. 6.

Note: The unusually fine decoration of this cabinet, in the style associated with lacquerwares manufactured for the Dutch market starting in about 1620, allows us to associate with it a famous group of pieces dating from the 1630s, several of them special commissions for leading officers of the Dutch East India Company. The landscape panels, in particular, match those special commissions in the quality of their execution and their exotic medley of Japanese with Chinese, Korean and other foreign motifs; see Joe Earle, "Genji Meets Yang Guifei: A Group of Early Japanese Export Lacquers," Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society, 47 (1982-3), pp.45-75.

Lot 567. A wood figure of one of the juni Shinsho (12 Divine Generals), Kamakura period (1185-1333), 13th/14th century; 20 1/8in (51cm) high, figure only, 21 5/8in (55cm) high overall. Estimate: $15,000 - 25,000 (€ 14,000 - 23,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The dynamic figure, perhaps of Haira, shown dressed in Chinese-style armor and standing on a rock base, the right arm extended out to the side and the left hand held at chest level, the sleeves, sash and hem of his garment fluttering as it is blown by the wind, the eyes inlaid in reverse-painted glass, some traces of lacquer and gilt in the crevices of the armor.

Provenance: Purchased from Hiroshi Yanagi Oriental Art, Kyoto, 2015.

Note: Followers and protectors of the Yakushi (Medicine Master) Buddha, the 12 Divine Generals typically each wear Chinese-style armor and carry an identifying weapon; from the Kamakura period onwards (although not in this case) they were also frequently associated with the 12 animals of the East Asian zodiac. The posture and the position of the hands of the present lot suggest that the figure may once have held a bow in the right hand and drew back the bowstring with the left; although the weapons carried by each of the Divine Generals varied over time, it is worth noting that Butsuzo zui (Collected Illustrations of Buddhist Images), a woodblock-printed illustrated book published in 1690, includes a set of the 12 Generals in which it is Haira who carries a bow; see http://www.lib.ehime-u.ac.jp/SUZUKA/316/index.html, p. 64. In purely sculptural terms, the present figure appears to belong within a stylistic lineage most famously represented by a set of 12 in the dynamic manner established by the great Nara sculptor Unkei (died 1223)—now shared between Tokyo National Museum and the Seikado Bunko Art Museum—that were originally enshrined at Kyoto's Joruriji Temple; compare http://www.seikado.or.jp/collection/sculpture/001.html and https://www.tnm.jp/modules/r_collection/index.php?controller=dtl&colid=C1853

Lot 687.  A blue-splashed pottery jar, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 7 5/8  in., 19.4 cm. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of slightly compressed ovoid form, the rounded sides tapering to a short splayed foot, and rising to an everted rolled rim, the buff pinkish body covered by a thin layer of white slip around the neck and sides, flecked with irregular splashes of vibrant cobalt blue glaze cascading in painterly drips from the rim, beneath a pale straw glaze stopping just above the foot revealing the pinkish-buff body.

Provenance: Collection of Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858-1937).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in memory of her sister Lucy Maud Buckingham (1870-1920) in 1924 (acc. no. 1924.291).

Lot 688. A small sancai-glazed pottery 'Mandarin duck' dish, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 7 5/8  in., 19.4 cm. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the gently flaring sides rising from a flat base to an everted rim, the interior with a molded symmetrical design of two ducks each against a stylized lotus leaf and enclosed within a beaded roundel, the details picked out in blue, amber and cream glazes on a cream-colored ground.

Provenance: Collection of Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858-1937).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in memory of her sister Lucy Maud Buckingham (1870-1920) in 1928 (acc. no. 1928.140).

Lot 689. A blue-glazed pottery jar, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 8 1/4  in., 21 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of slightly compressed globular form tapering to a flat base and rising to rounded shoulders surmounted by a short neck and everted rim, generously covered with dark blue glaze applied in layered, broad splashes stopping unevenly at an unglazed base revealing the pinkish buff body, the interior with a thin pale yellow glaze. 

Provenance: Collection of Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858-1937).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in memory of her sister Lucy Maud Buckingham (1870-1920) in 1928 (acc. no. 1928.249). 

Lot 690. A sancai pottery jar, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 7 5/8  in., 19.4 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the shouldered ovoid body tapering towards a slightly spreading base and surmounted by a short neck with lipped rim, liberally splashed with a resist pattern of cascading layers of merging rivulets of green and ocher on a white ground, the glaze stopping unevenly above the foot, the interior with a thin pale yellow glaze. 

Provenance: Collection of Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858-1937).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in memory of her sister Lucy Maud Buckingham (1870-1920) in 1926 (acc. no. 1926.1591).

Lot 707. A molded sancai and blue-glazed cup, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 7 5/8  in., 19.4 cm. Estimate 10,000 — 15,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the shallow rounded sides rising to a straight rim, the exterior molded two staggered rows of florets beneath the rim and the underside with a central stylized flowerhead encircled by eight double-rings all splashed with blue, amber and cream in a dappled pattern, the interior with alternating streaks of cobalt blue, amber and cream and three small spur marks.

Provenance: Collection of Janis H. Palmer (1917-1984).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in 1975 (acc. no. 1975.648-1).

Lot 708. A sancai and blue-glazed basin, Tang dynasty (618-907). Diameter 9 1/4  in., 23.5 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the interior neatly impressed with an eight-petaled floral central medallion encircling a smaller floret, all picked-out in blue, amber and straw glazes, the cavetto splashed with a blue, white and amber chevron pattern, the exterior amber-colored with the glaze stopping unevenly above the unglazed base.

Provenance: Collection of Rose Movius Palmer (1909-2003).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in 1976 (acc. no. 1976.538).

Lot 709. A sancai and blue-glazed tripod dish, Tang dynasty (618-907). Diameter 11 1/4  in., 28.6 cm. Estimate 10,000 — 15,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

of circular section, the shallow sides flaring to an everted rim all supported on three cabriole feet, crisply impressed on the interior with a central roundel of a goose in flight amid stylized clouds encircled by two staggered rows of lush, undulating lotus leaves, all picked out in green, amber, and blue glazes on a pale straw-glazed ground.

Provenance: Collection of Rose Movius Palmer (1909-2003).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in 1976 (acc. no. 1976.534).

Lot 733. A rare sancai and blue-glazed quatrfoil dish, Tang dynasty (618-907). Width 8 1/2  in., 21.6 cm. Estimate 10,000 — 20,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

formed from four radiating ruyi heads, each cupped and lobed and supported on a foliate scroll foot, finely decorated to the interior with elegantly contrasting swathes of bright cobalt blue and pale straw glazes, the exterior amber-glazed.

Provenance: Collection of Russell M. Tyson (1867-1963).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in 1951 (acc. no. 1951.305).

Lot 734. A rare sancai-glazed candle stand, Tang dynasty (618-907). Height 10 5/8  in., 27 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the cylindrical candle holder centering a circular drip pan raised on a ridged columnar support above a larger drip pan, all raised on a flared foot, covered overall with amber, green and cream glaze in vertically-oriented splashes.

Provenance: Collection of Russell M. Tyson (1867-1963).
Gifted to the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, in 1951 (acc. no. 1951.306).

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 11 September 2019

A highly important Beijing-enamelled pouch-shaped glass vase, blue enamel mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 18.2 cm. Estimate upon request (Expected to fetch in excess of HK$200,000,000/ US$ 25,000,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

Hong Kong - Sotheby’s Hong Kong Chinese Works of Art Autumn Sale Series 2019 on 8th October will be led by A Highly Important Beijing-Enamelled Pouch-Shaped Glass Vase, Blue Enamel Mark and Period of Qianlong, arguably the greatest example of Qing dynasty art in private hands. Two other highlights include An Exceptionally Rare Blue and White ‘Dragon’ Stem Bowl, Mark and Period of Xuande, unseen on the market since 1986 and A Superb and Fine Blue and White ‘Day Lily’ Palace Bowl Mark and Period of Chenghua from the Alan Chuang Collection. In addition, we are offering three private collections, namely Important Chinese Art from the Collection of Sir Quo-Wei Lee II, riding on the success of its first sale in October 2018, Qing Imperial Porcelain – A Private Collection, a carefully selected group of twenty-two pieces of Qing Imperial porcelains, as well as An Important Collection of Chinese Ceramics.

Nicolas Chow, Chairman, Sotheby’s Asia, International Head and Chairman, Chinese Works of Art, comments, “This season we are thrilled to present a stellar line-up of objects, showcasing the sheer breadth and depth of Chinese works of art. We are particularly honoured to have been entrusted with the Qianlong enamelled pouch-shaped glass vase, arguably one of the finest objects ever made at the Forbidden City and the greatest example of Qing dynasty art in private hands.”

AN ENAMELLED JEWEL, THE LE CONG TANG COLLECTION

A highly important Beijing-enamelled pouch-shaped glass vase, blue enamel mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 18.2 cm. Estimate upon request (Expected to fetch in excess of HK$200,000,000/ US$ 25,000,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

This truly extraordinary glass vase, enamelled by imperial command of the Qianlong Emperor in the early years of his reign, is arguably the greatest example of Qing dynasty art in private hands. Enamelled glass vessels were by far the most complex and demanding of all works of art commissioned at the Beijing Palace Workshops, and the current example is the most successful of all surviving examples, in the intricacy of its pouch-shaped form with simulated pink sash tied at the neck, and with its unique and brilliantly enamelled design of a pair of phoenix soaring amidst clouds and peonies, one bud with the blue-enamel mark. Emanating from the legendary collection of Prince Gong, it later passed through the hands of A.W. Bahr and Paul and Helen Bernat, before being acquired by the present owner in October 2000 for a then record price. Its appearance on the international art market now is a moment of celebration.

BLUE AND WHITE ‘DRAGON’ STEM BOWL

An exceptionally rare blue and white ‘Dragon’ stem bowl, Mark and period of Xuande (1426-1435); d. 15.6 cm. Estimate upon request (Expected to fetch in excess of HK$60,000,000/ US$7,650,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

The stem bowl is of outstanding quality, encapsulating the highest achievements of early Ming porcelain. Powerfully painted with a majestic design of dragons amidst waves, its skillful use of shading demonstrates the developments achieved at the Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen in the Xuande (1426-35) period.

Only three other Xuande stembowls of this exact design are recorded, one in the Capital Museum, Beijing, another in the National Museum, Beijing, and a third sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in April 2012 for HK$114m, from the Meiyintang collection. With impeccable provenance, published in the landmark book on Ming porcelain by Adrian Joseph in 1971, and later in the collection of T.Y. Chao, it has been in a private collection for the last 33 years.

TWO MING PORCELAIN MASTERPIECES FROM AN IMPORTANT COLLECTION

The sale consists of two outstanding masterpieces of 15th century blue and white porcelain assembled by Hong Kong collector Alan Chuang: a Chenghua palace bowl painted with scrolling day lilies and a Xuande reverse-decorated ‘pomegranate’ dish.

A superb and fine blue and white ‘Daylily’ palace bowl, Mark and period of Chenghua (1465-1487), 14.8 cm. Estimate upon request (Expected to fetch in excess of HK$50,000,000/ US$6,400,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

Blue and white ‘palace bowls’ created in the Chenghua (1465-87) reign rank amongst the most coveted of all Chinese ceramics, and have consistently achieved very high prices, with one selling for HK$141m at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in October 2013. The current example from the Alan Chuang collection is a particularly fine and rare example, with an exquisite design of day lilies. There are only two other ‘palace bowls’ of this design, both in the British Museum, London.

An exceptionally rare and important blue and white reverse-decorated ‘Pomegranate’ dish, Mark and period of Xuande (1426-1435); 29.5 cm. Estimate  HK$25,000,000 - 30,000,000 (US$3,190,000 - 3,830,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

This exceptional large Xuande (1426-35) dish from the Alan Chuang collection, beautifully painted with a design of fruits and flowers, is arguably the greatest example of reverse-decorated porcelain in private hands. Only three other similar dishes are recorded – one in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, another from the Rockefeller collection, in the collection of the Asia Society, New York, and a third damaged one in the Palace Museum, Beijing. 

IMPORTANT CHINESE ART FROM THE COLLECTION OF SIR QUO-WEI LEE II

Following on from the success of the October 2018 sale, the second instalment of the Chinese art collection assembled by Sir Quo-Wei Lee (1918-2013) consists of a selection of over 40 lots of the finest imperial porcelain and jade. Highlights of the sale include a Yongle blue and white ‘rose’ conical bowl and a Qianlong white jade barbed gu-form vase of the finest quality.

A superbly carved and rare white jade barbed vase, Gu, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795); 20.8 cm. Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000 (US$384,000 - 640,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

A fine and extremely rare blue and white conical ‘Rose’ bowl, Ming dynasty, Yongle period (1403-1425); 19.9 cm. Estimate HK$HK$2,500,000 - 3,500,000 (US$320,000 - 448,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

QING IMPERIAL PORCELAIN – A PRIVATE COLLECTION

This superb collection consists of twenty-two Qing Imperial porcelains assembled by a private collector with a highly discerning eye for quality. One of the great strengths of the collection is the sheer range and breadth of the Yongzheng monochromes. Highlights include a magnificent and extremely rare large Qianlong blue and white ‘anbaxian’ moonflask and a Qianlong Ru-type handled vase. 

A magnificent and extremely rare large blue and white 'Anbaxian' moonflask, Seal mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 50.5 cm. Estimate upon request (Expected to fetch in excess of HK$40,000,000/ US$5,100,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

A fine and superb Ru-type handled vase, Seal mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 19.9 cm. Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000 (US$384,000 - 480,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

A fine and exceptional famille-rose'Prunus and Lingzhi' bowl, Mark and period of Yongzheng (1723-1735); 10.1 cm. Estimate HK$HK$12,000,000 - 15,000,000 (US$ 1,530,000 - 1,920,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

A very rare blue and white 'Peach' vase, Seal mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795); 25.3 cm. Estimate HK$6,000,000 - 8,000,000 (US$76,500 - 102,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

A unique glass holy bowl, Tang dynasty (618-907); 31 cm. Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000 (US$510,000 - 765,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

A magnificent and extremely rare large seated wood figure of Shakyamuni Buddha, Jin dynasty (1115-1234); 122 cm. Estimate HK$16,000,000 - 18,000,000 (US$2,040,000 - 2,300,000). Courtesy Sotheby's.

NEW YORK, NY.- On September 9 and 11, Bonhams will offer four Asian art sales — Fine Chinese Snuff Bottles, Chinese Works of Art, Property from the Collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis Part I, and Fine Japanese and Korean Art. The sales present 700 lots of quality and rarity that span centuries ranging from sculpture, ceramics, prints, paintings, among others. Public exhibitions begin September 5. In conjunction with the sales, Bonhams will also host a day of lectures on September 7 and 9, featuring guest speakers and prominent scholars. 

Fine Chinese Snuff Bottles - September 9 at 10AM 
The sale of Fine Chinese Snuff Bottles features over 150 exquisite bottles in a wide range of materials, including jade, glass, agate, porcelain, and amber. Highlights include a white jade 'Mallow Blossom' snuff bottle, Qianlong period, 1736-1795 (estimate: $10,000-15,000); an embellished celadon jade snuff bottle, the bottle: 1780-1850, embellishment: Tsuda family, Kyoto, Japan, 20th century (estimate: $8,000-12,000); and a faceted blue jadeite snuff bottle, 1780-1880 (estimate: $8,000-12,000). This superbly cut bottle belongs to a group of several extant bottles of blue jadeite and in this form that were made at the Imperial Palace Workshops. This bottle was treasured by Bob Stevens, appearing as one of the Favorites Among the Favored in his classic 1976 overview The Collector’s Book of Snuff Bottles. 

Lot 218. A white jade 'Mallow Blossom' snuff bottle, Qianlong period, 1736-1795; 2 1/4in (5.6cm) high. Estimate US$ 10,000 - 15,000 (€ 9,000 - 14,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Well-hollowed, the shape of the bottle carved in the outline of a mallow blossom, each main face lightly carved to depict an open bloom with six curled overlapping petals radiating from a circular flower heart, surmounted by a short tubular neck with a flat lip, the stone an even white color. 

Provenance: A Private Canadian collection formed prior to 1955
Sotheby's, New York, Important Chinese Snuff Bottles, 17 March 1997, lot 273.

Lot 194. An embellished celadon jade snuff bottle, the bottle: 1780-1850, embellishment: Tsuda family, Kyoto, Japan, 20th century; 2in (5.2cm) high. Estimate US$ 8,000 - 12,000 (€ 7,200 - 11,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Of square section, tapering gently towards the base, surmounted by a cylindrical neck with a concave lip, each side with a raised panel of conforming shape overlaid with hardstone, one panel decorated with a lady fanning herself in a garden, revered by an attendant carrying a basket of peaches, the other two panels decorated with birds swooping towards blossoming plants growing from rock work, the details picked out in pigments and accented with red and green lacquer.

Provenance: Collection of Thomas C. Van Nuys 
Collection of Bob C. Stevens 
Sotheby's Parke Bernet, Fine and Important Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Collection of Bob C. Stevens, Part III 25 June 1982 lot 203
Collection of Eric Young 
Sotheby's, Hong Kong, Important Chinese Snuff Bottles from the collection of Eric Young, Part IV 28 October 1993 lot 1179
Sotheby's, New York, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 17 October 2001 lot 248.

Published: Bob C. Stevens, The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles, New York, 1976, no. 815

Note: For a discussion of Tsuda family embellished bottles, refer to Bob C. Stevens op. cit. pp. 222-224.

Lot 193. A faceted blue jadeite snuff bottle, Imperial, Palace Workshops, Beijing, 1750-1830; 2 1/8in (5.3cm) high. Estimate US$ 8,000 - 12,000 (€ 7,200 - 11,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Well-hollowed, with a decagonal outline, surmounted by a short tubular neck and supported on a flat foot, the two main sides crisply carved with a flowerhead with faceted petals radiating from a circular center, the stone of semi-translucent blue-gray color with icy-white inclusions.

Provenance: Bob C. Stevens
Sotheby's, Honolulu, Fine and Important Chinese Snuff Bottles from the collection of Bob C. Stevens, Part I, 7 November 1981, lot 123
Sotheby's, Hong Kong, Important Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Collection of Eric Young, Part IV, 28 October 1993, lot 1222
Sotheby's, New York, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, 17 October 2001, lot 263.

Published: Bob C. Stevens, The Collectors Book of Snuff Bottles, New York, 1976, no. 1009.

Published and Exhibited: Mikimoto Hall, Tokyo, October 1978, Catalogue, no. 167.

Note: This superbly cut blue jadeite bottle belongs to a group of several extant bottles in this form that were made at the Palace Workshops. The technique of faceting was introduced to Chinese Imperial craftsman by the Jesuits, and the overlapping radiating cuts recall the chrysanthemum flower. This profile also appears in bottles fashioned from glass, crystal, and agate, but the majority of extant bottles in jadeite share the pale blue color of the present example. 

This bottle was treasured by Bob Stevens, appearing as one of the Favorites Among the Favored in his classic 1976 overview The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles. This bottle was later in the collection of Eric Young, offered with two others from this exclusive group in 1993. A fourth bottle in the Joe Grimberg collection was sold at Sotheby's New York 14 September 2010

Chinese Works of Art - September 9 at 1PM 
The sale of Chinese Works of Art includes 140 lots, representing works from a variety of collecting categories including sculpture, ceramics, paintings, jade carvings, and furniture. Leading the sale is a carved wood figure of a Bodhisattva, Song/Jin dynasty, measuring over four feet tall (estimate: $125,000-200,000) and a fine and rare gilt lacquered bronze figure of guanyin, 10th/11th century (estimate: $50,000-70,000) from the collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis. Additional highlights include Pine and Cicada, a hanging scroll by Qi Baishi (1864-1957) (estimate: $80,000-120,000); a fine huanghuali ‘Southern Official's Hat’ armchair, nanguanmaoyi, 17th/18th century (estimate: $60,000-80,000); and a rare pair of famille rose enameled chicken cups, Yongzheng marks and of the period (estimate: $40,000-60,000). 

Lot 853. A carved wood figure of a Bodhisattva, Song-Jin dynasty (960-1234); 48 1/2in (123cm) high. Estimate US$ 8,000 - 12,000 (€ 7,200 - 11,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

The deity portrayed in the relaxed posture of lalitasana with the left leg pendant and the right arm gracefully resting atop the bent right knee, the left arm straight and appearing to support the weight of the figure to the left, the serene face with fleshy cheeks flanking the straight nose and well-formed lips, beneath a pair of downcast eyes, the forehead with a circular depression meant to receive an inlaid urna, the hair divided into strands, with two knotted strands falling over the shoulders and the remainder swept up and secured into a tall topknot, the soft, fleshy upper body bare except for a long sash draped over the left shoulder, the layered dhoti tied at the waist falling in graceful folds around the lower body, the figure adorned with necklace, armbands, bracelets and beaded chains, the back of the figure cut with a rectangular chamber to hold consecrated materials, the surfaces with traces of pigments. 

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 22 September 2004, lot 32.

Note: The bodhisattva represented by the present figure is likely a representation of Guanyin. An identifying characteristic of Guanyin is the figure of Amitabha that appears in the bodhisattva's headdress. In this case the removable headdress is missing, but there are extant Song dynasty Guanyin figures with intact headdresses in similar poses, such as the examples illustrated in Angela Falco Howard, Li Song, et. al., Chinese Sculpture, Yale Univeristy Press, 2006, pp. 384-385, nos. 4.26 and 4.27. 

According to the Lotus Sutra Guanyin can take any form necessary to save sentient beings. Thirty-three forms are mentioned, of which seven are female. The name Guanyin is a translation of the Sanskrit name Avalokiteśvara, and the bodhisattva was originally depicted in male form, as in the present example, where the figure is dressed essentially in the attire of a male Brahmin, a throwback to Buddhism's Indian origins. The figure's sensual curves however, evoke a distinctly feminine feel, and by the Ming dynasty, Guanyin was usually depicted in a feminine form.

Guanyin images seated in the relaxed position of royal ease are referred to zizai Guanyin, literally meaning Guanyin at ease. When such figures are placed in a grotto or seated on a rocky platform, they reference the Water Moon Guanyin, who sits by the water's edge contemplating the reflection of the moon in the water and recognizing the illusory nature of all phenomena, gently smiles at the humans, who grasp for the reflection of the moon mistaking it for reality. 

A similar figure of Guanyin is in the collection of the British Museum, London, and illustrated in Hai-wai yi-chen: Buddhist Sculpture I, Taipei, 1986; and another similar figure in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is illustrated by Denise Patry Leidy and Donna Strahan, Wisdom Embodied, New York, 2010, p. 180, no. A44; pl. 133. Like the present lot, the example in the Metropolitan Museum which is dated Northern Song dynasty, is of almost the same size and has a similar necklace, armbands, bracelets, attire and facial expression.

A similarly-posed wood Guanyin from the Song dynasty was offered at Christie's Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 1957.

Lot 849. A fine and rare gilt lacquered bronze figure of Guanyin, 10th-11th century; 8 1/8in (20.7cm) high. Estimate US$ 8,000 - 12,000 (€ 7,200 - 11,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Cast with a gentle, contemplative expression, the hair worn in a topknot with knotted tresses falling over the shoulders, seated in rajalalitasana with right arm resting on the raised right knee, the left hand resting on the level surface to arm support the weight, wearing a sash tied across the left shoulder and a long dhoti secured by a sash around the waist, adorned with floral earrings, elaborate necklace, and beaded armbands.

Provenance: Giselle Croes, 6 September 2006
Collection van Tieghem.

Note: Bodhisattvas seated in the posture of 'royal ease' with right leg raised and left leg extended in front, depicting the "water-moon shuiyue guanyin also referred to as a Potala guanyin first appeared in paintings in China during the late Tang dynasty, and reached the height of popularity in sculpture in the Song period. See Denise Leidy's discussion of the Metropolitan Museum's Shuiyue Guanyin (28.56, Flectcher Fund, 1928) in Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011, no. 24 pp. 116-119. 

The slender form and sumptuous garments of the Lewis guanyin find parallels in the diminutive wood Cleveland Museum of Art Potala guanyin, dated to the Five Dynasties (907-960) period (1965.556, Gift of Mrs. A Dean Perry). See also a small gilt bronze Water and Moon (Potala) Guanyin in Cleveland (1984.7, the Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund), dated to the Five Dynasties-Song period (960-1279), 17.6cm (6 5/16cm). A Liao-Jin dynasty example of a wood figure in the same pose and attire was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2018, lot 2858. A Song-Yuan dynasty gilt-lacquered bronze figure in the same pose was sold at Sotheby's New York, 16 September 2017, lot 874

 Lot 920. Qi Baishi (1864-1957), Pine and Cicada. Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper, inscribed by the artist in seal script Ju gao sheng zi yuan, followed by a signature Jipingtangshang laoren, Qi Baishi, with one seal of the artist reading Qi Da. 52 x 13 3/8in (132 x 40cm). Estimate US$ 80,000 - 120,000 (€ 72,000 - 110,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Provenance: Far East Fine Arts, San Francisco, California
Christie's Hong Kong, 13 January 1986, lot 113.

Published: Tsao Jungying, The Paintings of Xugu and Qi Baishi, San Francisco, 1993, pp. 295-298.

Note: The cicada has been a longstanding motif in Chinese art, with its unusually long life cycle evoking ideals of permanence and longevity. Carved jade models of cicada can be traced to the Shang dynasty (1600-1100 b.c.e.), and during the Han dynasty jade cicada-form amulets were placed under the tongue of the deceased as part of the burial ritual. In nature, the cicada lives at the tops of trees, and thus became a symbol of the lofty scholar or high official. 

In this scroll, Qi Baishi pairs a single cicada with a pine-- also a symbol of longevity due to its evergreen qualities. The composition recalls the verse Cicada 蟬 by the early Tang dynasty poet and calligrapher Yu Shinan (558-638) 

"居高聲自遠 From its high position, its sound carries far" 

here written by Qi Baishi in seal script. The powerful brushwork of the poetic inscription and the pine branches contrasts with the delicately rendered cicada, its gossamer wings and anatomical details meticulously captured.

Lot 890. A fine huanghuali‘Southern Official's Hat’ armchair, nanguanmaoyi, 17th-18th century; 48 1/2in (123.3cm) high; the seat frame 25 x 19 1/2in (63.5 x 49.5cm). Estimate US$60,000-80,000 (€ 54,000 - 72,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

The elegant arched crest rail joined to a thick, curved back splat and set off by curved stiles accented by beaded spandrels and run through the seat as the back supports, the well-set arm rests and curved posts continuing to the finely curved front legs set with further brackets over the seat frame and beaded aprons and foot rest, the boxed stretchers butted to u-shaped lower aprons, the thick wood of the chair a rich, honey tone and well figured.

Note: Constructed of thick, lush, well-figured wood, this rare chair has the distinction of having paired spandrels under the crest rail and arms, unusual for a nanguanmaoyi. See a comparable chair sold at Christie's New York, September 16 2016, lot 1202, and a pair of chairs sold at Sotheby's New York, 16, November 2009, lot 20. See also Sarah Handler, Ming Furniture in the Light of Chinese Architecture, Berkeley, 2005, p. 117

Lot 864. Two rare famille rose enameled chicken cups, Yongzheng marks and of the period (1723-1735); 3 3/8in (8.5cm) diameter. Estimate US$ 40,000 - 60,000 (€ 36,000 - 54,000). Courtesy Bonhams.

Each with flared sides rising from a flat well, finely painted to the exterior with three majestic cockerels, each with differently colored plumage, scratching and pecking at the ground amid tufts of grass, beside pierced blue rockwork in front of chrysanthemums and peonies with large blossoms and buds, the foot inscribed in underglaze blue with the six-character mark enclosed within a double-circle, one cup with a bat painted on the interior just below the rim.

 Provenance: Virginia Hobart (1876-1958), and thence by descent.

Note: As is de rigeur for Chinese decorative arts, the subject matter of roosters and flowers satisfies the requirement of being auspicious. Refer to Terese Bartholomew Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art (San Francisco: Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2006) 6.34.11, p. 157, where the author notes that the motif of peony (fuguihua) and rooster (gongji) forms a rebus meaning 'May you be conferred official rank and gain prosperity' (gongming fugui). 

Other than the usual wishes for good fortune however, in the present lot the choice of subject would also have hearkened back to the doucai chicken cup of the Ming Chenghua era. Held then and now as the one of the high points of technical mastery, this was a benchmark for the potters at Jingdezhen against which they could prove their skills for a very, very exacting imperial patron. The present lot however is not a slavish imitation of the doucai prototype but rather a variation on a theme, displaying a slightly varied wine cup shape with decoration fastidiously rendered in a sharply focused fencai rather then in a gauzy doucai. For another Yongzheng iteration inspired by Ming chicken cup prototypes, see the pair from the Meiyintang collection, Sotheby's Hong Kong, 9 October 2012, lot 51: as noted there, that pair also shows slight variations in shape and choices of execution but clearly were also produced to conform to exacting Yongzheng imperial standards

Property from the Collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis, Part I - September 11 at 10AM 
Among the highlights of the week is Property from the Collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis Part I, a 115-lot sale which is highlighted by a rare and important gilt bronze figure of Chijang Bosal (Ksitigarbha), Goryeo dynasty (918-1392), 13th/14th century (estimate: $800,000-1,200,000). Sculptural representations of Ksitigarbha are commonly found in Japanese art but are extremely rare in Korea; only one other Goryeo-dynasty Korean bronze figure of the deity is known in a Japanese private collection. Additional highlights in the collection include a seated wood figure of Nyoirin Kannon, Kamakura period (1185-1333), 13th/14th century (estimate: $18,000-25,000); Ryu chi ryu (Dragon knows dragon), 1967, a large four-panel screen by Morita Shiryu (1912-1998, estimate: $60,000-80,000); and Landscape II (2000), and a ceramic sculpture by Fukami Sueharu (1947) Heisei era (1989-2019, estimate: $50,000-70,000). 

 Cf. my post: Bonhams to offer the collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis 

Fine Japanese and Korean Art- September 11 at 1PM 
Following the Collection of Drs. Edmund and Julie Lewis Part I, Bonhams will offer a large range of nearly 300 Japanese and Korean works of art dating from the 16th to the 20th century. The sale of consists of screens, ceramics, paintings, prints, armor and metalwork. Among the Japanese art highlights is the celebrated print of Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (Under the Wave off Kanagawa, but best known by its popular name “The Great Wave”) by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) Edo period (1615-1868), circa 1830-1831 (estimate: $200,000-300,000). Among an impressive selection of works from the Meiji era are a large and rare Satsuma vase by Sozan for the Kinkozan workshop (estimate: $18,000-25,000), a large and boldly decorated circular bronze plaque with peonies and butterflies by Ippo (estimate: $10,000-15,000), and a fine and large inlaid-iron tray, Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th century, Komai Company, circa 1880 (estimate: $20,000-30,000). The Korean art highlights include a painting of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Ten Directions, Joseon dynasty (1392-1897), dated 1699 (estimate: $40,000-50,000); a glazed porcelain moon jar (dal hang-ari), Joseon dynasty, 18th century (estimate: $20,000-30,000); and a mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer storage chest, Joseon dynasty (1392-1897), 19th or early 20th century (estimate: $10,000-15,000).

Lot 715. Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) Edo period (1615-1868), circa 1830-1831. An oban yoko-e print entitled Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (Under the Wave off Kanagawa), from the series Fugaku sanjurokkei (36 Views of Mount Fuji), signed Hokusai aratame Iitsu hitsu; 9 3/4 x 14 1/2in (24.2 x 36.8cm). Estimate: $200,000 - 300,000. Photo: Bonhams.

Lot 881. Sozan for the Kinkozan workshop (circa 1900). A large and fine Satsuma vase, Meiji era (1868-1912), early 20th century; 15 3/4in (40cm) high. Estimate: $18,000-25,000. Photo: Bonhams.

The tall cylindrical vase tapering to the foot and decorated in polychrome enamels and gilt with areas of moriage, with two large panels, the obverse painted with numerous species of birds flocking to an ancient pine tree by a pond before a thatched-roof cottage, the reverse with visitors before the main gate of a temple, the various buildings surrounded by distant mountains and mist, the panels signed Sozan and Sozan ga, the surrounding area decorated with ferns on a ground of rich chocolate brown, the sides with rectangular panels of trailing wisteria on a navy ground, the rim decorated with tightly scrolling chrysanthemum scroll, signed on the underside in overlapping card-poem reserves surrounded with blossoming peonies Dai Nihon Kyoto Awata Kinkozan tsukuru Sozan (Made by Kinkozan of Awata in Kyoto, Great Japan, [painted by] Sozan).

Lot 914. Ippo (active late 19th century), A large and impressive inlaid bronze plaque, Meiji era (186-1912), late 19th century; 17 3/4in (45.1cm) diameter. Estimate: $10,000 - 15,000. Photo: Bonhams.

Cast in bronze with a low ring foot and decorated with a bold, highrelief design of butterflies alighting on peonies, the flowers inlaid in two shades of copper, gold, shakudo and shibuichi takazogan the details of the petals carved in kebori, some of the leaves in shishiaibori and pitted to resemble the naturalistic texture of insect damage and several of the leaves finished in an ishime texture, the butterflies decorated in polished gold and shakudo takazogan with kebori details, signed Ippo in copper inlay and with a gold seal Ippo.

Lot 921. Komai Company, circa 1880, A fine and large inlaid-iron tray, Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th century; 15 x 19 7/8in (38 x 50.3cm). Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000. Photo: Bonhams.

The rectangular tray barbed on the sides and lobed at the corners and richly decorated in high-relief gold, silver, shakudo and shibuichi, and gold and silver nunomezogan with two shaped central panels featuring a Chinese sage playing a stringed instrument while two children peer at him through a curtained window, the rim with leafy vines and grapes, the ground with shaped reserves of landscapes, butterflies and fans, brocade balls, and textiles, all against a ground of floral lozenges, the undecorated base signed in gold nunomezogan within a silver rectangular reserve Kyoto no ju Komai sei (made by Komai of Kyoto).

Lot 1000. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Ten Directions, Joseon dynasty (1392-1897), dated 1699. Painted in ink, color and gold on silk with five of the 10 buddhas and bodhisattvas the ten directions among clouds, inscribed in the top left and right 十方諸佛 十方 여러 부처 Sibbang yeoleo bucheo (Buddhas of the 10 directions) and 十地菩薩　십지 보살 Sibji bosal (Bodhisattvas of the 10 directions), with a Kangxi reign date 康熙三十八年十月吉日　강희 팔년 시월 길일　Ganghui palnyeon siwol gil-il (An auspicious day in October 1699) and with a list of donors. Estimate: $40,000 - 60,000. Photo: Bonhams.

Lot 898. A glazed porcelain moon jar (dal hang-ari), Joseon dynasty, 18th century; 12 5/8in (32cm) high. Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000. Photo: Bonhams.

Thickly potted with a rounded lip to the flared neck, a full globular body that slumps slightly to one side and a flared foot ring surrounding the recessed base, the clear glaze showing a very pale blue-green cast with some patches of pale russet burn and covering all surfaces except the foot pad.

Provenance: Property from the Estate of Professor Donald Howard Shively (1921-2005), purchased in Seoul around 1965, by repute.

Donald Howard Shively (1921-2005)

founder of Japanese literary and historical studies in the United States, Shively served for over forty years on the faculties of UC Berkeley, Stanford, and Harvard. He served, too, as Director of Harvard’s Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies; a member of the National Commission for UNESCO; Chair of the U.S. delegation to the Commission for U.S.-Japan Cultural and Educational Exchange (Department of State); and Director of the American Oriental Society. The Japanese government honored Shively in 1982 with the Order of the Rising Sun.

Born and raised in Kyoto by missionary parents who acquainted him with such eminent artists as Hamada Shôji, Kawai Kanjirô, and Munakata Shikô, Shively began building his own collection following service as a Japanese language officer in WWII and the completion of his graduate studies at Harvard. At its heart are Japanese and Korean ceramics.

Shively was an authority on the urban life and popular culture of the Edo period (1603-1868). In a host of celebrated publications, he explored the societies of the kabuki theater and the licensed brothels as well as the histories of censorship and satire, urban administration, and commercial publishing. Much of his work explored the subversion of Tokugawa law - against luxurious consumption, erotic art, and scandalous news – by the resourceful writers and rising bourgeoisie of one of the world’s most vibrant urban cultures.

Note: A large white porcelain jar of similar size (13 1/2in [34.3cm] high) with a more symmetrical profile was sold in Christie's, New York sale 15 April 2016, lot 102. However moon jars sharing the irregular shape the Shively jar also survive from the 18th century : see the exhibition Choson Paekja hang'ari [Special Exhibition of White Porcelain jars in Choson Period] (Ewha Woman's University Museums, Seoul, May 1985), no. 8, p. 14 (31.5cm high); nos. 10 (45cm high) and 11 (44cm high). See also the moon jar of asymmetrical shape (18in [45.7cm] high), in the the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, published and illustrated in Asian Art Museum of San Francisco: Collection Highlights (Tuttle, 2018), pp. 222-223 [The Avery Brundage Collection, B60P110+]. Multiple views of the Brundage vase are also available on the museum website.

Lot 997. A mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer storage chest, Joseon dynasty (1392-1897), 19th or early 20th century; 22 x 25 x 16 1/4in (55.7 x 63.5 x 41.1cm). Estimate: $10,000 - 15,000. Photo: Bonhams.

The rectangular chest fitted with two hinged doors opening to reveal six drawers of various size, decorated on the exterior of the doors and the sides with scholars and attendants enjoying tea beneath pine trees,or admiring fish in a stream, the upper surface with crane in flight above fruiting trees, and a central auspicious medallion, all bordered by grape vines or key fret bands, the interior of the doors with auspicious medallions and scrolling vines and the drawers decorated with blossoming peonies, chrysanthemums, peaches, prunus and bamboo, bronze hardware with traces of gilding and brass drawer pulls.

Note: The decorative panels of Chinese sages under pine trees on the door fronts, as well as the key-fret pattern that frames the edges of this storage chest also appear in mother-of-pearl inlay on a lacquered wardrobe (nong) of typical Korean format in the collection of Tenri University Sankokan Museum, Japan, dated to the 19th-20th century in Uri nara shont’ong munaeiu(Korean Traditional Pattern 3: Lacquerware Inlaid with Mother-of-Pearl, Woodenware Adhered with painted Ox-horn Sheet) (National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, 2005), no. 105, pp. 362-365). The same volume also reproduces a game board for go (badukpa) with similar mother-of-pearl inlay of four Chinese sages playing go in the Koryo Museum of art, Kyoto: no. 106, pp. 366-367, also dated to the 19th-20th century.

However the shape of this lot mirrors a late 19th century two-door cabinet-on-stand of brown lacquered wood with shark skin, tortoise shell, mother-of-pearl and crimped wire inlays, in the Museum fur Lakkunst, Munster, published in Patricia Frick and Son- Chim Jung, Korean Lacquer Art: Aesthetic Perfection (Munster, 2012), no. 45, pp.186-189. The authors note in the entry that these cabinets, called gakkesuri (safe-chests) in Korea were inspired by Japanese ship captains’ sea-chests (funadansu) introduced to Korea in the late Joseon period to Korea, and became highly valued in Korean households for keeping documents and other valuable items. The Museum fur Lakkunst cabinet is dated to the 19th century.