A magnificent and brilliantly enamelled wucai'fish' jar. Jiajing six-character mark and of the period, 40.8cm diam. (2). HK$14,000,000-16,000,000. Photo: Bonhams.
HONG KONG.- The Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art auction, offering 452 lots, is the largest sale in the Bonhams Hong Kong 2013 Spring Auctions series. A carefully curated collection of Chinese works of art sourced from around the world, the sale includes all the major categories that reflect the long history and rich diversity of Chinese art. In addition to a strong group of Ming and Qing Imperial porcelain, white jade carvings, scholar’s objects, there are several collections consigned by international clients.
Highlights of the sale include:
Lot 380 An exceptional large archaic bronze ritual wine vessel, zun. Shang dynasty Estimate: HK$10,000,000-15,000,000. Photo: Bonhams.
The massively constructed vessel powerfully cast of large beaker form, the prominent curved central body supported on a high flared foot, sloping at the shoulders and surmounted by a flaring mouth, intricately cast at the curve of the body with a continuous broad frieze with three registers of stylised kui dragons set in confrontation against a leiwenground, their bodies delineated by stylised bodies curling at the tip, ferocious masks highlighted by raised bosses as eyes and 'S'-shaped horns, separated from each other by raised vertical notched flanges, the decoration repeated on a narrow frieze at the foot and below the shoulder, further cast with a broader frieze of similar decoration at the shoulder, interspersed with three prominent taotie masks formed of raised bovine masks, the foot pierced with three cavities, the patina of an attractive crystallised malachite green with extensive areas of azurite encrustation. 36.5cm diam. (32.2cm high).
Provenance: Gisèle Croës， Brussels, 2001
This archaic bronze ritual wine vessel is an exceptional archaic bronze vessel, outstanding for its size and the quality of its decoration, and is arguably one the greatest extant Shang dynasty zun vessels recorded. No other ritual archaic bronze vessel of this size and form appears ever to have been offered for sale at auction.
However, an archaic bronze zun of similar decoration, but smaller size (20cm high), excavated in Shaanxi, is illustrated in Shaanxi chutu Shang Zhou qingtongqi,vol. 1, Beijing, Wenwu Chubanshe, 1979, no.61, and again by Robert Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sacklet Collection, Cambridge, Massachussets, 1987, p.278, fig.44.1. The shape, decoration and unique decorative elements all closely match each other. Both are cast of similar powerful form, constructed with similar pierced apertures at the foot, and similarly decorated with the lower frieze of decoration cast at the point where the foot meets the ground.
Lot 281 A magnificent and brilliantly enamelled wucai 'fish' jar. Jiajing six-character mark and of the period, 40.8cm diam. (2). HK$14,000,000-16,000,000. Photo: Bonhams.
Of sumptuous globular form with high shoulders rising to a thick lipped rim, the exterior brilliantly decorated in rich wucaienamels with a continuous scene of carp of various sizes depicted swimming in a lotus pond amidst aquatic plants, their lively and twisted bodies painted in bright orange enamels highlighting scales, lateral and dorsal fins in rich iron-red, happily plunging and rising amongst dense weeds, lotus leaves and blossom, further scattered with loose foliage, all between a band of overlapping leaf lappets at the foot with flaming lappets at the collar, the base with a six-character mark; together with a replacement cover. 40.8cm diam. (2).
Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 26 October 2003, lot 74
Jiajing 'fish' jars of this large size, brilliantly enamelled inwucai ('five coloured') enamels, are arguably the most prized of all Chinese porcelains, and hold centrepiece in some of the greatest museum and private collections in the world. In the Jiajing period, the Imperial kilns at Jingdezhen achieved a technical breakthrough in producing porcelains of such large size, and it is noteworthy that, unlike other Ming porcelains, these jars were not produced in later reigns. The complexity of firing jars of this large size, combined with the technical difficulty of enamelling such vibrant scenes on the exterior, would have made the production of these jars a costly enterprise.
The Jiajing Emperor was highly attracted to Daoism, and is known to have supported Daoist causes and demonstrated an interest in alchemy and other Daoist doctrines. As Steven Little expounds in Taoism and the Arts of China, Chicago, 2000, pg. 124, in a description of the painting The Pleasures of Fishes by Zhou Dongqing (active late 13th century), the motif of fish swimming in the water prompts the viewer to consider the story of the Daoist philosopher Zhuangzi, who was walking with two men by a river, and on seeing fish swimming in the water, remarked on their freedom and happiness. The Confucian Huizi challenged Zhuangzi,'How do you know what fish enjoy', to which Zhuangzi replied 'The answer is obvious to anyone standing by the river and seeing the fish'. True understanding, in Zhuangzi's worldview, should be acquired intuitively, without the need for explication. The freedom of the fish in the water is symbolic of the happy, carefree life of a Daoist practitioner. As such, the motif of fish swimming in water was a popular motif in Daoist paintings, as seen in the painting illustrated here by the Song dynasty artist Liu Cai.
In the Jiajing period, the Imperial kilns at Jingdezhen successfully introduced a new shade of orange was created through the combination of yellow enamel with pale-red. The porcelain artists, inspired by the rich tradition of scroll paintings of fish, were now able to accurately reproduce the cherished colour of 'golden fish' (the rebus jin yu man tangmeaning 'gold fish filling the pond', ie. 'May gold and jewels fill your hall'). The design on these sumptuous jars was focused on the fish, which are rendered in large naturalistic detail around the curve of the body, with the aquatic plants defined in lesser form, and without any waves or splash in the pond.
Jiajing 'fish' jars preserved with their original covers in museum collections include an example in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colours, Hong Kong, 1999, pg.16, pl.15. 'Fish' jars preserved with their original covers in private collections are extremely rare, and include a pair from the J.M. Hu Collection, of which one was sold at Sotheby's New York, 4 June 1985, lot 12, and the other 1 December 1992, lot 282, and again at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 29 October 2000, lot 18.
For examples of other Jiajing 'fish' jars with high quality replacement covers, see R.L. Hobson, Chinese Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1915, pl.69, fig. 2, and Eskenazi, Two Rare Chinese Porcelain Fish Jars of the 14th and 16th Centuries, London, 2002, no.2.
Fine Ivory Carvings from the Ashfield Collection, United Kingdom (310-313)
This is an outstanding group of Qing dynasty ivory carvings purchased from leading dealers, including Spink & Son, Gerard Hawthorn of the Oriental Art Gallery and S Marchant & Son. In terms of quality and rarity, several of the highlights are compared favourably with ivory carvings from the Qing court collection.
Highlights include:
• An ivory 'eighteen luohan' table screen Qianlong, attributed to Yang Weizhan HK$150,000-200,000
Surmounted and framed within a zitan border and stand, the panel brilliantly carved in high relief with a scene of the eighteen luohan descending from heaven and travelling above raging waves, all depicted with intricate details and complete with their respective attributes. 26.8cm high. (2).
Provenance: Spink & Son Ltd., London, 6 September 1990
Ashfield collection
For a closely related example of an ivory screen from the Qing Court collection, preserved in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, see an ivory 'immortal crossing the river' table screen illustrated by Ji Ruoxin, Uncanny Ingenuity and Celestial Feats: the Carvings of Ming and Qing Dynasties, Taipei, 2009, pp.29-30. Both screens are carved with eighteen luohans depicted riding on different animals and crossing a river. The National Palace Museum example was originally stored in the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the Forbidden City, and signed by Yang Weizhan, a famous carver working for the Imperial court. Extant Imperial records record him as having carved a pair of ivory lamps in 1744.
See also an ivory 'eighteen luohan' whistrest, with similar subject matter from the Qing Court collection, illustrated by Li Jiufang ed., The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Bamboo, Wood, Ivory and Rhinoceros Horn Carvings, Hong Kong, 2002, pp.192-193, no. 157.
For another related example of a table screen, signed Huang Zhao, see Hugh Moss and Gerard Tsang, Arts from the Scholar's Studio, Hong Kong, 1986, pp.128-129, no.96.
• An ivory 'landscape and poem' brushpot. Mid Qing dynasty, signed Gu Zhi. HK$250,000-310,000
Of cylindrical form, skilfully carved in high relief and on thin sides, the exterior carved with a continuous landscape scene featuring two travellers crossing a bridge, another two riding on horseback crossing rocky hills, all amidst lush pine trees and pavilions in the distance, surmounted by a series of incised kaishu poem with the signature and two seals of the artist.
8.8cm diam.
Provenance: The Oriental Art Gallery Ltd., London, 17 May 1993
Adrian Joseph collection
Ashfield collection
The poem literally translates as:
"Walking along the ancient road towards the deep forest,
listening to the bird's song and spring's flowing.
Written in the summer day, Gu Zhi."
For a closely related ivory 'landscape' brushpot from the Qing Court collection, preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, see Li Juifang ed., The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Bamboo, Wood, Ivory and Rhinoceros Horn Carvings, Hong Kong, 2002, pp.178-181, no. 152. There are several similarities between the two brushpots: both are carved at each level at an angle for the mountain and stone, utilising considerable skill in carving in high relief for the outline of branches and leaves, then in low relief for their details. Both are decorated in the typical traditional of classical landscape painting.
The auction concludes with Jade Belt Hooks from the Jason Chen Collection, which comprises 231 belt hooks of various shapes and sizes offered in 71 lots with no reserve price on any of the lots. The owner acquired all the hooks over the last 15 years, primarily at auctions around the world.
Jade belt hooks date back to the Liangzhu culture (3300 to 2250 BCE), which placed great value in the green stone, and many were found by archeologists in burial sites. The tradition of using belt hooks, worn by dignitaries, was further developed during the Western Han dynasty. Though they became less fashionable during the Eastern Han dynasties, losing their practical function, they rose back in popularity throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties, becoming purely decorative ornaments. They continued though to be made in the traditional shape, which had become fashionable during the Han dynasty, but were also made in more fragile materials like porcelain and glass.
The collection offered for auction includes hooks dating back to the Yuan dynasty and continues to the republic period. One highlight of the sale is a rare white jade “butterfly” belt hook dated to the Qianlong period, which was once in the Alan and Simone Hartman collection and was exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in 2004.
Julian King, Head of Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, comments: “We are pleased to be offering such a large and comprehensive range of works of art, which truly reflect the rich diversity of China’s long artistic history, from Shang dynasty bronzes through to Qing dynasty jades and ivories. With over 450 lots, there really is something for everyone, with estimates ranging from the Jiajing fish jar, that we expect to sell for up to HK$16,000,000, through to small jades and scholar’s objects, that are estimated at just HK$8,000”.