Lot 2112. A Rare Molded and Gilt-Decorated Turquoise-Ground Vase, Hu, Qianlong molded and gilded seal mark and of the period (1736-1795). Estimate: $300,000-500,000. Price realised USD 386,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

NEW YORK, NY.- On March 22 and 23, Christie's New York will present Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, which comprises over 650 works across a myriad categories and tastes, including jades, bronzes, sculpture, paintings and furniture. Highlighting the sale is a very rare and important massive gilt-bronze figure of Vairocana from the Ming dynasty (estimate: $2-3 million), which is exceptional for its enormous size, superb casting and fine attention to detail. With estimates ranging from $4,000 to $2 million, the sale is expected to realize in the region of $23 million.

Highlights include:

Lot 1717. A Rare Well-Cast Bronze Ritual Wine Vessel, Zun, Late Shang dynasty, 11th century BC; ; 13 1/8 in. (33.4 cm.) high. Estimate: $200,000-300,000. Price realised USD 266,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

The faceted sides decorated with lotus scroll and bands of flower scroll, some of the lotus scroll on the rounded, flared neck enclosed in wide blades divided by notched gilt-bronze flanges at the corners, which are repeated at the corners of the middle section and the flared foot, as well as in the center of each side, the flowers in red, white, yellow, purple, mottled blue, and the leaves in dark green, all reserved on a rich turquoise ground, the inside of the gilt-bronze foot cast in relief with a Jingtai mark.

明十五/十六世紀 掐絲琺瑯蓮紋出戟尊

Provenance: By repute, Spink & Son, Ltd., London, 1960s.

Notes: The shape of the present zun is based on an ancient bronze ritual wine vessel of the Shang dynasty. The trend towards archaism was widespread in the Song, Yuan and Ming dynasties, with numerous vessels based on ancient bronze forms copied in cloisonné, jade, porcelain, and other materials.

A Very Rare and Important Large Bronze Ritual Bell, Nao. Late Shang-Early Western Zhou dynasty, 11th-10th century BC. Estimate: $800,000-1,200,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

 Of lenticular section, each side cast with a decorative panel containing three rows of raised bosses reserved on a band of hooked scrolls alternating with three rows of coiled scrolls and bordered by bands of further scrolls, bisected by a vertical row of scrolls on both sides, terminating above shaped panels containing similar patterns, the tubular shank with a rounded collar cast in similar fashion, above four graphs cast on the flat surface, with overall milky green patina and some malachite encrustation. 18¼ in. (46.4 cm.) high, wood stand 

晚商/西周早期 青銅雲紋大鐃 

Provenance: C. Ogawa Collection, Kyoto, prior to 1935.

Literature: S. Mizuno, Inshu Seidoki to Gyoku (Bronzes and Jades of Ancient China), Tokyo, 1959, p. 113.

S. Umehara, Selected Relics of Ancient Chinese Bronzes from the Collections in Japan, vol. 4, Osaka, 1959, p. 285.

M. Hayashi, Inshu Jidai Seidoki Monyo no Kenkyu, vol. 1, Tokyo, 1984 edition, p. 63 and 1986 edition, p. 364.

Notes: Lavishly decorated bells, such as the present example, were an important component of larger ceremonial functions within Shang and Zhou dynasty ritual culture. Signifiers of wealth and power, bronze bells served as markers of cultural sophistication and erudition. Archaeological excavations have found sets of bells placed within elaborate burial chambers accompanying prominent figures. Sumptuary laws determined the number of bells alotted to the deceased. The most famous and possibly most spectacular example is an assemblage of 65 bells from the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng dated to the 4th century BC discovered in Hubei, illustrated by J. So, ed., Music in the Age of Confucius, Freer Gallery of Art, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Washington DC, 2000, p. 37.

Unlike the suspending zhong bells from the tomb of the Marquis Yi of Zeng, nao bells, such as the present bell, would have been mounted on the tubular shank with its mouth open to the player. Technological advances and musical tastes affected both the shape and the method of suspension of nao and zhong bells, but the decorative scheme interestingly remained relatively consistent. The typical decoration features three rows of protruding bosses alternating with three rows of scroll pattern. In Eastern Zhou Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, 1995, p. 436, J. So suggests "the bosses derive from the eyes and protruding spirals of the mask motif that dominated earlier pieces." The decorative language of bosses and tight spirals is not only limited to bells but is also employed on other bronze vessel shapes as seen on an example of a yu vessel illustrated by R. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronze Vessels in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Washington DC, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1987 pp. 504-5, with similar decorative features of bosses set within panels of tight scrolls. The consistent decorative language suggests that bells were held in a similar status to other ritual vessels and played an important role in rituals and ceremonies.

Supported on its shank, the nao would have been struck by players using wooden mallets. The elliptical cross-section of the bells produced a "well-focused, definite pitch, and they also have faster attenuation than circular bells; their sound dies away fairly quickly (So, Music in the Age of Confucius, p. 48). In addition to the clarity of sound, casters realized the potential of the elliptical shape to produce two distinct tones depending on where the bell was struck (ibid., p. 41). Later examples dating from the 4th century BC show small markings indicating where a mallet should strike for optimum tone. 

The present bell contains four graphs cast on the flat surface on either side of the shank. The first graph to the left of the shank, of a man holding a halberd, may be interpreted as a clan sign. The graph is among the illustrated examples of clan signs found on bronzes compared with oracle bone script illustrated in A Catalogue of Shang Dynasty Bronze Inscriptions, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1995, p. 23. The next two graphs may be translated as Fu Zhou. The last graph located to the bottom right of the shank is of a galloping beast, possibly a horse. Similar examples of animal graphs, such as a single- horned rhinoceros found on a tripod ding and a bird found on a zun, are also illustrated in Catalogue of Shang Dynasty Bronze Inscriptions, p. 149 and p. 101, respectively, which may also be interpreted as clan signs.

Several extant examples of nao bells from this period are found in prominent collections throughout the United States and China. One illustrated by J. Rawson, Western Zhou Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Washington DC, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1990, vol. IIB, p. 730, fig. 123.5, dates to the Shang or early Western Zhou, and bears similar resemblance to the present bell. (Fig.1) Another similar nao bell featuring bold spiral patterns and raised bosses found in Ningxiang, Hunan province, and dated 11th/12th centuries is illustrated by So, ibid., Music in the Age of Confucius, p. 49. It is interesting to note that though bells share a common visual language, each state had its own set of pitch standards. The well-cast decoration and generous proportions make the present bell a spectacular example of bronze nao bells from the 11th and 10th century B.C.

A Magnificent Carved Black Limestone Figure of a Lion and Prey. Tang dynasty (618-907). Estimate: $300,000-500,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

 The slightly curved rectangular top supported by the finely modeled figure of a courtier lying on his side with head raised and turned slightly to the side above the gift held in his hands, his broad face detailed in brown beneath his faceted brown cap, also wearing an amber-glazed torque with foliate medallion, and layered, sash-tied green robes decorated with appliqués molded with buddhistic lions playing with brocade balls; 17¼ in. (43.8 cm.) long 

北宋/元 彩繪人形陶枕

Provenance: Sotheby's, New York, 4 June 1986, lot 54. 

Gisèle Croës, Brussels, 1986. 

Exhibited: Gisèle Croës, XIII Biennale Internationale des Antiquaires, Paris, 25 September - 12 October 1986, no. 7. 

Notes: This exceptional pillow is rare in both its subject and its decoration. Pillows in the form of adults, as opposed to children, are relatively rare, and human-form pillows decorated in three-color glazes even more so. The posture of the figure on this pillow is particularly interesting. He appears to be fully prostrated, but with his head raised and his arms held forward offering what appears to be a gift. This relates to the Song dynasty sancai pillow in the form of a child offering a circlet excavated in 1975 from a tomb in Mituo township, Taihu county, Anhui province (illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 8 - Anhui, Beijing, 2008, no. 170). However, it also relates to earlier figures of adult courtiers, which were not apparently intended as pillows. A painted earthenware Tang dynasty figure in similar posture of full prostration, with his whole body lowered, was excavated in 1953 from the tomb of Di Zhang Wen (d. 744) at Xianyang, Shaanxi province, and is illustrated in Wenwu, 1954:10, pl. 55, and by J. Fontein and R. Hempel in China, Korea, Japan, Berlin, 1968, pl. XIX. This figure wears a tall courtier's hat. A similar Tang dynasty figure, not fully prostrated but bending forward from a kneeling position, was sold in these rooms, 22 March 1999, lot 251. Both these figures are larger and were not designed as pillows.

Certain aspects of the current pillow suggest an association with the Liao, which would make the piece exceptionally rare. Ceramic pillows are not normally found in Liao tombs. Nevertheless, a number of Liao ceramic pillows have been found outside a funerary context. The majority of the excavated Liao pillows are decorated with sancai glazes - either in combination or separately. A sancai-glazed Liao dynasty pillow with similarly shaped upper surface to that of the current pillow, but with a molded trapezoidal plinth, excavated in 1978 from a tomb at the No. 2 Forest Farm, Tongliao City, Inner Mongolia, illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 4 - Inner Mongolia, Beijing, 2008, no. 107. Also illustrated is a Liao amber-glazed pillow of trapezoidal form with molded sides was excavated in 1985 at Buhetehada, Bayan'erdeng, Balinyouqi, Inner Mongolia, no. 64.

Indeed, in this use of lead-fluxed green, amber and cream glazes from the sancai palette, the Liao kilns appear to embrace the traditions of the Tang kilns more enthusiastically than either the Song or the Jin kilns. Also following Tang dynasty traditions, the Liao kilns often combined these glazes with sprig-molded applied robes of the current pillow figure. A Liao dynasty green-glazed kundika, with a wealth of sprig-molded applied relief roundels and forms suggesting pendent jewels, was excavated in 1988 from the Yexian pagoda deposit, Miyun county, and is illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 1 - Beijing, Beijing, 2008, no. 40. It may also be significant that a green-glazed Tang dynasty vase with floral appliqus was excavated in 1960 from the Tuchengzi City site in Helinge'er county, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, and is illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 4 - Inner Mongolia, Beijing, 2008, no. 8. While they contain flowers, rather than the animals seen on the robe of the figure in the current pillow, these appliqus are of similar type. Also of interest is a Northern Song globular jar with stupa-shaped cover and high stand, which was excavated in 2005 from a Song dynasty tomb at Gangxicun, Lincheng county, Hebei province - just to the south of Liao territory. The stand is inscribed dating it to the Zhihe period (AD 1054-56). The jar has green and amber sancai glazes and also sprig-molded applied relief roundels, of similar type to those on the current figure, as seen in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 3 - Hebei, Beijing, 2008, no. 115.

One of the few other examples of a human-form sancai-glazed pillow is a Song dynasty pillow in the form of a reclining child holding a lotus, the leaf of which forms the upper surface of the pillow. This pillow was excavated in 1985 at Boshan, Zibo City, Shandong province, and is illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 6 - Shandong, Beijing, 2007, no. 139. A Song dynasty sancai-glazed pillow in the form of a kowtowing child, apparently presenting a circlet, was excavated in 1975 from a tomb in Mituo township, Taihu county, Anhui province. This pillow is smaller and simpler than the current example, but is similar in its complete prostration of the body with head raised, no plinth, and in the fact that it is apparently proffering a gift. However, the excavated pillow does not have an additional surface placed on the figure's back - the head would have rested directly on the back. See Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 8 - Anhui, Beijing, 2008, no. 170).

Pillows in the form of male children holding either a lingzhi fungus - symbolizing long life - or a lotus leaf - suggesting the successive birth of sons - came to prominence during the Song dynasty. A Ding ware example of a boy holding a lingzhi fungus in the collection of the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, is illustrated by He Li in Chinese Ceramics, London, 1996, no. 218, while a similar Ding ware pillow with the boy holding a lotus leaf was formerly with Eskenazi, illustrated in Song ceramics 10th to 13th century, London, November 2003, p. 50, no. 21. Ding ware pillows where the head rest is provided by the back of the child, rather than a fungus or a lotus leaf, are in the collections of the Palace Museum, Beijing and the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 32 - Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (I), Hong Kong, 1996, p. 46, no. 39; and Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Ting Ware White Porcelain, Taipei, 1987, no. 15, respectively. Although the figure on the current pillow is dressed in adult clothes, the face is full-cheeked and has an expression of innocence. It may be that it is intended to represent an older boy or young man.

Girl children also appear as pillows in the Song dynasty. A Cizhou-type pillow in the form of a reclining girl decorated in white, black and amber slip under a colorless glaze was excavated in 1978 from a Jin dynasty tomb in Zhangzi county, Shanxi province (illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 5 - Shanxi, Beijing, 2008, no. 44. A similar pillow in the form of a reclining girl was excavated in 1983 at Huangling county, Shaanxi province. This figure bears an inscription dating it to the sixteenth year of Dading - equivalent to AD 1176, and is illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China - 15 - Shaanxi  Beijing, 2008, no. 171.

One of the few other examples of a human form sancai glazed pillows is a Song dynasty pillow in the form of a reclining child holding a lotus, the leaf of which forms the upper surface of the pillow. This pillow was excavated in 1985 at Boshan, Zibo City, Shandong province (illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China 6 Shandong, Beijing, 2007, no. 139). Adult female figures have also been found supporting pillows, although these are usually white-glazed. A Ding ware white-glazed Northern Song pillow in the form of a reclining lady was excavated in 1985 from the Ding kiln site at Jiancicun, Quyang county, Hebei province. This figure has her head turned to the side and is resting on a low plinth. (illustrated in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China 3 Hebei, Beijing, 2008, no. 120). Another Song dynasty white-glazed reclining figure, which originally supported a pillow was excavated in 1973 at Beizhancun, Quyang county (ibid., no. 143). This figure too reclines on a low plinth.

Lastly, it is interesting to note that a comparison may be made between the clothing of the current pillow figure and two painted figures, each holding a guduo sceptre, which stand on either side of the door on a wooden coffin excavated from a Liao tomb of a woman of high status at Tuerji Hill tomb (illustrated in Gilded Splendor - Treasures of China's Liao Empire (907-1125), Hsueh-man Shen (ed.), New York, 2006, p. 62, fig. 33). The robes of these figures are belted at the waist, decorated with gilt roundels, and below their robes the figures wear boots. On their heads they appear to wear similar hats to that worn by the pillow figure. One of the painted figures appears to be wearing something resembling a torque around his neck. In the same tomb the lid of the inner coffin is decorated with three golden dragon roundels (ibid., fig. 34), which also share some similarities with the roundels on the pillow figure's robe.

Lot 2112. A Rare Molded and Gilt-Decorated Turquoise-Ground Vase, Hu Qianlong molded and gilded seal mark and of the period (1736-1795); 15 3/8 in. (38.5 cm.) high. Estimate: $300,000-500,000. Price realised USD 386,500 © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

 Of flattened pear shape, relief-decorated with rows of stylized shou characters separated by a wide band of wan fret on the neck which is flankee by a pair of lion mask handles, all above a petal lappet border and between borders of wan fret at the mouth and encircling the foot, all highlighted in gilding in contrast to the bright turquoise enamel ground which also covers the interior and base, box.

清乾隆　松綠石地描金壽字紋雙獅耳壺　描金六字篆書印款　

Provenance: Christie's, Hong Kong, 30 October 2001, lot 836.

Note: The decoration of a 'hundred shou' characters on the present vase suggests that it was likely made for a birthday celebration. The decoration is in imitation of champlevé enamel, a cross-media practice which J. Ayers, in The Baur Collection, Geneva, 1969, vol. IV, p. 12, describes as a 'striking phenomenon' during the Qianlong period. A nearly identical vase in the Yunnan Provincial Museum, gifted by the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in "A Selection of Porcelain from the Yunnan Provincial Museum Collection," Art & Collection, 2003:2, no. 125, p. 63. (Fig. 1) 

A Magnificent Large Pale Greenish-White Jade Tree Trunk-Form Brush Pot. Qing dynasty (1644-1911) . Estimate: $700,000-900,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

Thick-walled and well carved in the shape of an irregular section of a gnarled prunus tree carved in high relief around the sides with blossoming branches growing in different directions as well as from the large, undercut gnarled branch that forms a handle to one side, with countersunk base, the semi-translucent stone with some opaque white and brown mottling; 8 1/8 in. (20.5 cm.) high, hardwood stand 

清 青白玉梅樹樁形筆筒

Provenance: By repute Prince Kung (possibly The Prince Kung Collection; American Art Galleries, New York, 1913, lot 130)

S. Yamanaka (by repute). 

Sir Bernard Eckstein (by repute).

Edward I. Farmer (by repute).

Mrs. Sidney G. deKay (by repute).

Stanley Charles Nott.

Mrs. Lucille Nott, 11 January 1966

Note: The present jade brush pot, carved from a massive section of stone, is an exceptionally rare example of its type. Its unusual shape, which is realistically carved as the section of a prunus tree, with a handle formed by one of the smaller trunks, may suggest that it was also intended for use as a vase as opposed to solely being used as a brush pot.

A slightly larger (22 cm.), though perhaps more slender white jade brush pot, carved with the trunks of a pine tree along the sides, is in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji - 6 - Qing, Hebei, 1991, p. 199, no. 284, where it is dated to the middle Qing Dynasty. Of particular note is the style of carving, with both examples exhibiting secondary trunks with rounded edges carved in low relief around the sides. 

Lot 1663. Anonymous (Qing dynasty), Daoist Ritual Paintings. Pair of hanging scrolls, ink and color on silk. Each scroll: 64¾ x 40½ in. (164 x 103 cm.). Estimate: $30,000-50,000. Price realised USD 52,500. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

From the collection of Philip Wood of San Francisco

Note: Inscriptions in cartouches identify the deities depicted in the scrolls. One noteworthy group is pictured in the top left-hand corner of the left-side painting and includes the three gods Fuxing, Luxing, and Shouxing. Like the other figures in the painting, these gods are shown as Daoist priests, although they are not exactly Daoist gods. Instead, they are gods of popular religion, quite possibly instituted at the imperial level in the early Ming dynasty, and today their images are among the most commonly encountered of any Chinese gods. 

Lot 1746. A Fine and Rare Large Huanghuali Painting Table, Hua’an, 17th century; 32¾ in. (83.2 cm.) high, 81¾ in. (207.6 cm.) wide, 23¼ in. (59 cm.) deep. Estimate: $400,000-600,000. Price realised USD 1,202,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012.

With large, single-panel top set within the wide rectangular frame with beaded edge above plain aprons and spandrels, the whole supported on thick legs of rounded section joined by pairs of stretchers. 

明末/清初 黄花梨畫案

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong in the 1980s.

Note: The present table is an exceptional example of its type, using thick, substantial sections of huanghuali for the top, frame, aprons and legs. As the supply of huanghuali dwindled, tables of this form generally became thinner and less impressive, owing to the fact that the material was harder and more costly to obtain. The generous proportions of the present table would therefore suggest an earlier date.

The spare, economic lines of this design make it one of the classic forms found in Chinese furniture construction. The basic proportions were adapted to make large painting tables, smaller tables, benches and stools. This form is referred to in the Classic of Lu Ban as a 'character one' table, due to its similarity in profile to the single horizontal stroke of the Chinese character for 'one'.

Several examples of this elegant form have been published. See R.H. Ellsworth, Chinese Furniture: One Hundred Examples from the Mimi and Raymond Hung Collection, New York, 1996, pp. 164-5, no. 61, where it is dated circa 1600-1650; and G. Ecke, Chinese Domestic Furniture, Vermont and Tokyo, 1962, p. 46, pl. 36.

Auction: Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art March 22 and 23
Viewing: Christie’s Rockefeller Galleries March 16-21