A pair of hawks, Qianlong period

Each fierce bird modelled with its head turned, its feathers picked out in shades of brown, perched on one leg on a blue rocky base - 10¼ in. (26 cm.) high - Estimate: $30,000-50,000

Note: These small hawks, known as as haidongqing, were used for goose hunting in China, and were quite popular in both the French market, where they tended to give them ormolu bases, and the English market. Lazare Duvaux records a pair in his inventory sold to Monsieur Coguinot in March of 1756, and a pair of 'brown China hawks' were sold in the Waldegrave sale in 1763. For a further discussion and an illustration of a very similar pair in the Copeland Collection see Sargent, op. cit., pp. 150-1 and 170-1, fig. 79.

Christie's. The Hodroff Collection, Part II Chinese Export Porcelain. From The Collection Of Leo & Doris Hodroff. 23 January 2008. 20 Rockefeller Plaza, New York