A blanc-de-chine 'hunting party' figure group. Circa 1690

The hollow form moulded as a hillside with a winding trail leading to a pavilion amidst pine trees and grottoes, with two hunters aiming their rifles at a deer, followed behind by a horseman holding a whip and an attendant bearing a flag all working their way up the hillside with their hunting dogs. 20.2cm (8in) high. Estimate: £2,000 - 3,000 - Unsold

Footnote: Various similar groups are published. See D.Howard and J.Ayers, China for the West. Chinese Porcelain and other Decorative Arts for Export illustrated from the Mottahedeh Collection, London, 1978, p.98, no.64 for a related example which was subsequently sold at Sotheby's New York, 19 October 2000, lot 118. Another comparable group is illustrated by P.J. Donnelly, Blanc de Chine, New York, 1969, pl.118A, where the author notes that a group of this type is known to have been collected by Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony, listed as number N31 in the 1721 inventory.

Bonhams. Fine Chinese Art, 14 May 2009. New Bond Street www.bonhams.com