Christie’s Asian Art sales in New York this March realised $69 million, demonstrating Christie’s continuing preeminence in this field across all Asian Art categories. This summer, Christie’s London Asian Art Week will run from 15 - 18 May 2012, featuring a stellar array of works which further exemplify excellent provenance, rarity and beauty, with many highlights offered from important private collections. The sales include: Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 15 May at King Street; and at South Kensington: Interiors – dedicated to Chinese Art – on 16 May; Japanese Art & Design on 16 May; Masterful Exuberance, Artistic Craftsmanship of Imperial Japan, A Private Collection on 18 May and Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles on 18 May.

Christie’s London Asian Art week in summer 2012 opens with a superb offering of Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, on Tuesday 15 May 2012. Continuing Christie’s longstanding and unrivalled strength of presenting Asian Art with excellent provenance, the auction features lots with exceptional provenance and three important private collections: Property from a Private English Collection; Property from a European Royal Family; The Property of the late 7^th Earl of Harewood, Sold by Order of the Executors; The Leonard Gow Collection of Chinese Jade Carvings and Works of Art; The Fryers Collection of Chinese Art and An Important Private European Collection of Chinese Works of Art. Spanning the Shang dynasty (12^th century B.C.) to the early 20^th century, the sale features over 400 lots with an emphasis on rarity, beauty, imperial manufacture and fine condition, with a particularly strong array of important jades, as well as stellar ceramics, bronzes and hard stones. With estimates ranging from £1,000 to £1.2 million the sale is expected to realise in excess of £12 million.

Leading the auction is a magnificent pair of recently rediscovered large Imperial famille rose vases,  Jiaqing Iron-red seal marks and of the period (1796-1820), which are offered from the property of aPrivate English Collection (estimate: £800,000-£1.2 million). Having been in the same family since the early 20^th century, their importance and value was not known until a recent Christie’s valuation.The Property of the Late 7^th Earl of Harewood, Sold by Order of the Executors features another ceramic highlight, a large and very rare coral-ground famille rose jardinière, Qianlong mark and of the period (1736-1795) (estimate: £200,000-300,000).

 A magnificent pair of recently rediscovered large Imperial famille rose vases,  Jiaqing Iron-red seal marks and of the period (1796-1820). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012 

Each vase is of baluster shape and has an elegantly tapering neck that is applied with stylised archaistic dragon handles. The yellow-ground necks are decorated to each side with a large bat and chime above a stylised lotus bloom flanked by serpentine chilong. The ovoid body is finely enamelled with a continuous landscape scene depicting a procession of foreigners bearing tributes, all between bands of ruyi-heads above and below. 26¾ in. (68 cm.) high (2). Lot 318. Estimate £800,000 - £1,200,000 ($1,274,400 - $1,911,600)

Foreign Tribute and Auspicious Wishes. Rosemary Scott, International Academic Director Asian Art

This magnificent pair of vases combine a wealth of traditional auspicious motifs with evidence of an imperial fascination with foreigners from the West. In addition, the large size and exceptional quality of the painting on these vases mark them out as particularly important vessels, probably commissioned for a special occasion. The style and fine quality of painting on the yellow-ground areas on the shoulders and necks of the vases is very close to that seen on the impressive Jiaqing yellow-ground pear-shaped vase sold by Christie's Hong Kong on 1st December 2010, lot 2981. In both cases the yellow enamel has a richness and clarity that shows the other enamel colours to their best advantage. The vases share a number of auspicious motifs, including upside-down bats, lotuses and wan characters, as well as particularly graceful vegetal scrolls. These vessels are closely linked to imperial yellow-ground altar garnitures such as the Jiajing censer, pair of gu vases and pair of candle sticks preserved in the Nanjing Museum (illustrated by Nanjing Museum in Treasures in the Royalty -The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, pp. 374-5).

On either side of the necks of these vases are upside-down bats. The bats symbolize happiness, while the word for upside-down in Chinese is a homophone for 'arrive'. The motif, therefore, symbolises the arrival of happiness. In their mouths the bats each hold the tip of a halberd. This weapon is especially associated with one of the heroes of The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Lu Bu. It came to symbolize rank and military success, while during the Tang dynasty a halberd was often displayed at the gate of households of the third rank and above. The word for halberdji is also a rebus for 'rank'. However on these vases a chiming stone is suspended from the halberd, and in this combination the halberd provides a rebus for 'auspicious, to provide a wish for auspicious happiness. The chiming stone qing, which has its origins in China as early as Neolithic times, also provides a rebus for 'celebrate'.

The happiness and rank are multiplied by the golden wan characters, meaning ten thousand, which hang from the ends of the qing chiming stones. Hanging from the centres of the chiming stones are lotus blossoms, which are Buddhist symbols of purity and beauty, while scattered amongst the vegetal scrolls that surround these motifs are multi-coloured clouds. the word for cloud yun, sounds like the word for luck , while the word for coloured cai also so sounds like a word meaning lucky, and so reinforces the wish.

There are particularly beautiful large lotus blossoms painted below each bat, halberd and qinggroup, while resting just above each of these blossoms is a naturalistically painted lingzhifungus. The lingzhi fungus is one of the most auspicious motifs in the Chinese decorator's repertoire. The name literally means 'divine branch' or 'efficacious branch', and is usually identified with the fruiting body of species of fungi belonging to the Polyporacae family, which are rare in north China, but more common in the south. The lingzhi fungi grow on the roots or trunks of trees, and instead of decaying, like most other fungi, they become woody and appear to survive indefinitely. It is this latter quality, and the fact that they are believed to grow near springs in the vicinity of the abodes of the immortals, that has contributed to their reputation as conveyors of long life. Because the shape of the fungi often resembles the head of ruyi sceptres, it is associated with the ruyi and its meaning of 'everything as you wish it'. The bands under the mouths of these vases, as well as those around the shoulders and the bases, are in the form of multiple ruyi . Another belief in relation to the lingzhi fungi was that they would appear when a virtuous ruler was on the throne and the empire was peaceful and prosperous. Their inclusion in the decoration of an imperial vessel was, therefore, a compliment to the reigning emperor.

On either side of the large blossoms on the shoulders of the vases are confronted archaistic pink kui dragons. They have flower stems in their mouths and their heads turned back. Their tails are raised in order to form a pleasing addorsement with the dragons which appear either side of the blossoms beneath the handles of the vessels. These handles are also in the form of archaistic kui dragons. This use of archaistic dragon handles as well as the general form of the vases is a continuation of forms popular amongst imperial porcelains of the Qianlong reign. Indeed the current vases may be compared in form and archaistic handles with the Qianlong revolving vase sold by Christie's London in June 1999, lot 99, although the current vessels are more slender since they have no need to accommodate an additional interior wall. A single-walled Qianlong vase of smaller size, but with similarly sharp shoulders to the current pair of vases is illustrated by Liu Liang-yu in A Survey of Chinese Ceramics - 5 - Ch'ing Official and Popular Wares, Taipei, 1991, p. 202, right-hand image). This latter vase, however, has bat-shaped handles. Also see a similar vase from the collection of Sir Frederick Bruce, sold in these rooms, 16 December 1981, lot 86. Another vase with an identical shape and similar famille rosedecoration to the neck, was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 29 May 2007, lot 1378.

The decoration of figures in landscape that encircles the main body of the current vases is particularly remarkable. The lively depiction of figures in landscape, painted in famille roseenamels became popular in the Qianlong reign, as can be seen on vessels such as the lantern vases in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 39 - Porcelains with Cloisonne Enamel Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 146, no. 128 and p. 150, no. 132. The majority of these Qianlong vessels depicted boys at play, but in the Jiaqing reign other figures also appeared in these encircling landscapes. A group of Lohan, for example, is shown on a Jiaqing brush pot in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei (illustrated by Liu Liang-yu in A Survey of Chinese Ceramics - 5 - Ch'ing Official and Popular Wares, Taipei, 1991, p. 218, upper image). A Jiaqing lidded lantern vase, with very similarly shaped borders to the current vessels, is encircled by a depiction of Daoist immortals walking towards their home at Penglai. This lidded vase, which is in the collection of the Shanghai Museum is illustrated by Liu Liang-yu, op, cit., p. 232, upper images.

The large size of the current vases provided the decorator with extensive 'canvases' and he has taken full advantage of this, providing the most complex and interesting scenes of figures in landscape on any of the surviving vessels. The scenes include crenelated walls in which there is a large gateway apparently leading to a palace. In this gateway stand two of the six Chinese figures on each vase. Two other Chinese figures are a splendidly dressed courtier with golden headdress and official scepter who stands on a bridge, apparently indicating the way to the travellers, and his attendant who is offering him refreshment from a golden ewer on a lacquer tray. The final Chinese figures are two scholars, identified by their hats, one of whom is carrying books and the other scrolls. All the other figures on the vases can be identified as western foreigners by their curly red hair and clothing, although some of the clothing includes Chinese elements. They are all tribute bearers, bringing precious and auspicious gifts for the emperor.
Western servants are shown transporting a range of gifts either in two-wheeled carts or on yokes carried across their shoulders. Their masters either ride in two-wheeled carts or ride on a variety of extraordinary animals. One rides a horse, but the others ride creatures such as a white elephant, a tiger, a blue Buddhist lion, and a range of colourful mythological animals including a qilin and a bixie. In sculpture a male Buddhist lion is usually shown with its paw on a brocaded ball. However, this creature, along with the qilin and bixie, could also represent one of the mythical creatures which are believed only to appear when a virtuous ruler is on the throne.

The theme of tribute bearers was a particularly popular one in the 18th and early 19th century. A very similar Jiaqing vase depicting a continuous scene of tribute bearers was sold in London Sotheby's, 4 June 2004, lot 225. This subject is also depicted in a number of court paintings, such as the anonymous hanging scroll Envoys from Vassal States and Foreign Countries Presenting Tribute to the Emperor, in the Palace Museum, Beijing (illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures - 14 - Paintings by Court Artists of the Qing Court, Commercial Press, Hong Kong, 1996, pp. 240-1, no. 64). A very similar Jiaqing vase depicting a continuous scene of tribute bearers was sold in London Sotheby's, 4 June 2004, lot 225. On this scroll elephants are shown bearing some of these tribute gifts, including a vase, as the foreigners riding the elephants on these vessels are also shown holding vases. Elephants are associated with strength, wisdom and long-life in China and are also significant animals within the Buddhist religion. Elephants were a popular theme in Chinese art, especially that for the imperial court. The word for elephant in Chinese is xiang, which can also mean appearance, and which additionally sounds like a word meaning happiness. Elephants also provide another message when combined with a precious vase. The word for vase in Chinese is ping, which sounds the same as the word for peace. The combination of an elephant with a vase on its back thus suggests the phrase taiping youxiang, 'great peace in the world'. The depiction of these elephants, bearing on their backs someone carrying a vase, was therefore a very appropriate symbol which offered a subtle compliment to the emperor, as a monarch who ruled over a peaceful empire. Added to this the figures on the elephants have a branch of coral in their vases. Coral was regarded as precious and was traditionally one of the Eight Treasures. It was also a symbol of the First Rank, because only those who had reached that rank were permitted to wear coral finials on their hats. The vases also contain ruyi sceptres, conveying the message 'everything as you wish'. A single large ruyi sceptre is carried by another of the tribute bearers on each of the vessels, while the figures riding tigers carry vases containing ruyi, coral branches, halberds and qing chiming stones. In this case the coral is a precious treasure, the halberd and chiming stone provide a wish for auspicious happiness, while the ruyi suggests 'everything as you wish' and the vase itself offers a wish for peace. Other foreign tribute bearers on the vases carry musical instruments in silk cases, elaborate caskets, which probably contain precious jewels, trays of peaches - symbolizing longevity, scrolls or bolts of precious silk, and other precious items.

While these large and impressive vases would themselves have been valuable gifts, their decoration additionally contains a range of auspicious wishes and subtle compliments to the emperor.

The acanthus leaves reflect the strong influence of European Rococo styles which were popular from the early Qing period; this specific motif was a particular favourite with the Emperor Qianlong. From the same period is a pair of finely enamelled famille rose ‘hundred boys’ jars and covers, incised iron-red six-character seal marks and of the period (1736-1795) (estimate: £150,00-200,000).

It is rare for such jars to be offered as a pair complete with their covers. Traditionally this motif represents the wish for abundant offspring, in particular sons, and wealth. The festive nature of the design brings great vivacity to the composition.

A pair of finely enamelled famille rose ‘hundred boys’ jars and covers, Qianlong incised iron-red six-character seal marks and of the period (1736-1795).  Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012 

The jars are finely enamelled around the exterior with a lively scene depicting small boys performing the dragon dance, carrying banners and lanterns, setting off fire crackers, playing gongs, trumpets, drums and cymbals. The covers are decorated with colourful lotus scrolls, surmounted by a finial formed as a lotus bud. 10 in. (25.4 cm.) high (2). Lot 328. Estimate £150,000 - £200,000 ($238,950 - $318,600)

Notes: This is a rare pair of jars which have retained their covers. The festive nature of the 'Hundred Boys' design brings much animation and vivacity to the composition on these jars. The subject of boys or of children was very popular on decorative arts of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Traditionally, they represent the wish for abundant offspring, or in particular, sons, and wealth. This theme can be found on several Qianlong bowls and vases, similarly rendered to the present lot, with boys at play within a garden scenery against a mountainous backdrop.

The bountiful array of important Jades meets the ongoing strength of demand for excellent examples in this medium, crossing the spectrum of colours. From the Property of a European Royal Family, there is a spectacular massive Imperial spinach green Jade disc, Bi (£400,000-600,000).  Measuring an impressive 16 in. (40.7 cm.) diameter, the disc is beautifully and thickly carved from a substantial jade boulder, and is finished with an attractive soft polish. It is supported on a finely cast stand consisting of two powerful writhing dragons amidst clouds. It appears to have been appreciated by royal households in both China and Europe and it is likely that both the jade bi and its bronze stand were made for the Qianlong Emperor (1736-95), prior to being purchased 300 years later by an important European private collector and gifted to a European royal family in the 1950s

A spectacular massive Imperial spinach green Jade disc, Bi. Qianlong period  (1736-1795). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012 

The disc is finely carved from a substantial jade boulder, with thick walls and finished to an attractive soft polish. The stone is of a dark green tone with lighter inclusions. The disc is supported on a finely cast stand consisting of two powerful writhing dragons amidst clouds. The disc 16 in. (40.7 cm.) diam. Lot 88. Estimate £400,000 - £600,000 ($637,200 - $955,800)

Provenance: An English private collection
With Spink & Son Ltd., London in the 1950s
Acquired by an important European private collector and gifted to a European royal family in the late 1950s
Thence by descent

Property of a European Royal family

A MASSIVE IMPERIAL SPINACH-GREEN JADE DISC, BI
This spectacular jade bi and its magnificent bronze stand appear to have been appreciated by royal households in both China and Europe. It is probable that both the jade bi and its bronze stand were made for the Qianlong Emperor (1736-95), while some 300 years later, having been purchased by an important private collector in the mid-20th century, it was gifted to a European royal family in the 1950s. The jade and stand are undoubtedly worthy of display in a palace.
The jade bi is a massive 40.7 cm. in diameter, some 5 cm. thick, and weighs more than 17 kg. Of the six ritual jade forms mentioned in the Zhouli (The Rites of Zhou, probably compiled in the 3rd century BC), the bi disc with central hole seems to have appeared earliest in Chinese material culture, and remained popular to the present day. Jade bi were being made in the Neolithic period (c. 6000- c. 1700), and indeed in the Liangzhu culture, which flourished in eastern China between 3000 and 2000 BC, the bi and the cong appear most frequently in tombs. Two sections in the Zhouli provide particular information on jade bi. One section contains an instruction to 'Use jade to make six auspicious [objects], to rank the various states', noting that: 'The fourth-ranking noble holds the gu bi; The fifth-ranking noble holds the pu bi' (translated by Ming Wilson in Chinese Jades, London, 2004, p. 10). Another section contains the instruction to 'Use jade to make six [ritual] objects, to sacrifice to Heaven, Earth and the Four Directions', noting 'A blue bi to sacrifice to Heaven' (ibid.). While the ritual use of jade biwas revived in a number of periods, over centuries its ritual importance diminished and in the Qing dynasty both antique and contemporary bi were often used for decorative purposes.

In the reign of the Qianlong Emperor jade carving received new impetus both in terms of imperial patronage and also in the availability of jade material. The Qianlong Emperor's passionate interest in jade was expressed in a variety of ways, including that approximately 800 of his poems took jade as their subject, whether commenting on their aesthetic qualities or aspects of their manufacture. Not only did he take a personal interest in the jades produced in the imperial ateliers, but also in the sources of jade stone. He was especially concerned with jade from Xinjiang province and several of his poems mention the Hetian jade from the Kunlun Mountains in Xinjiang. After it was quarried, this jade had to travel some 3,000 miles from Xinjiang to Beijing - a journey that could take up to three years. Sources of this Xinjiang jade were made more secure by Qianlong's military campaigns in the areas during 1759 and 1760, and it has been estimated that from 1760 to the end of his reign an average of about 2,000 kg. of jade were received by the court each year.

Jade items of the size of the current jade bi are very rare, not only because of the scarcity of raw jade boulders of a size that would allow such a large items to be made, but also because of the time it would take to work the stone. Interestingly, although still extremely labour-intensive and slow, the making of large items such as this bi benefitted in the 1760s from the introduction of steel. Saws made of steel could significantly reduce the amount of time taken to cut through a large jade boulder. In discussion of a large jade vessel the Qianlong Emperor himself commented that: 'If abrasive sand and stone tools had been used, it would have taken twenty years to finish it. One person experimented with steel saws and shortened the grinding process by fourteen years.' (Asian Art Museum San Francisco, Later Chinese Jades - Ming Dynasty to Early Twentieth Century From the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2007, p. 23).
The large bronze stand made for the jade bi is exceptionally well cast and depicts two powerful five-clawed dragons writhing through ruyi-shaped clouds to confront each other across a mountain which rises out of turbulent waves. It seems possible that this stand was inspired by bronze dragon and cloud stand holding the huge armillary sphere, which can still be seen at the Beijing Observatory, made by the Jesuit missionary Ferdinand Verbiest for Qianlong's grandfather, the Kangxi Emperor (1662-1722) in 1673. This was one of six large astronomical instruments made for the emperor by Verbiest after Kangxi re-examined the trumped up charges that had resulted in Verbiest and his fellow missionary Johann Adam Schall von Bell being imprisoned. The charges were dropped and Verbiest was reinstated to the Board of Astronomy. The armillary sphere is illustrated by Wan Yi, Wang Shuqing and Lu Yanzhen (compilers), translated by Rosemary Scott and Erica Shipley Daily Life in the Forbidden City- The Qing Dynasty 1644-1912, Harmondsworth, 1988, p. 68, pl. 95.
It is also possible to see links between the depiction of powerful five-clawed dragons with waves and ruyi-shaped clouds on this bronze stand and the pair of large imperial Qianlong cloisonn dragons with ruyi clouds and gilt bronze wave-form stands (sold by Christie's New York in October 2004, lot 452), which were included in the important exhibition China: The Three Emperors 1662-1795, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2005-2006, exhibit no. 9. It is additionally noteworthy that imperial interest in large bronze imperial dragons continued into the latter years of the Qing dynasty. When the Palace of Gathering Excellence was refurbished in 1884 for the celebration of the 50th birthday of the Empress Dowager Cixi, at a cost of 630,000 taels of silver, two large bronze dragons on stands depicting turbulent waves, with mountains rising from them on each of the four sides, were placed in front of the building. These remain in place today and are illustrated by Yu Zhouyun in Palaces of the Forbidden City, New York, 1984, p. 98, pls. 86 and 87.

The Qianlong Emperor (r.1736-95) was renowned for his patronage and appreciation of the arts and one of his great passions was jade. It is very rare to find a pair of jade boxes of this large size exhibited by a pair of superb white jade mughal-style 'chrysanthemum' boxes and covers,Qianlong period (1736-1795), offered from the Property from an Important Private European Collection (estimate: £300,000-500,000).  Previously in The Buchanan-Jardine Collection, these boxes and covers would have to have been carved from a large boulder of stone of even colour throughout. This collection was formed in the early 1970’s, purchased from Spink & Sons; it is expected to realise in excess of £500,000. 

A pair of superb white jade mughal-style 'chrysanthemum' boxes and covers, Qianlong period (1736-1795). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012 

The boxes and covers are finely carved in the form of an open-form chrysanthemum blossom, with geometric-scroll borders along the mouth rims. The stone is of an even pale tone with some snowy inclusions. 6 in. (15.3 cm.) diam. (2) - Lot 127. Estimate £300,000 - £500,000 ($477,900 - $796,500)

Provenance: The Buchanan-Jardine Collection.
Spink & Son Ltd., London, 20 February 1962.
Property from an Important Private European Collection. 

Notes: It is very rare to find a pair of jade boxes of this size, which would have to have been carved from a very large boulder of stone of even colour throughout.

The Qianlong Emperor (r.1736-95) was renowned for his patronage and appreciation of the arts. One of his great passions was jade, and among those items he particularly treasured were some he termed 'Hindustan' (Hendusitan or Wendusitan) jades. Such was his fascination with these foreign jades that in 1768 he wrote a scholarly text on the geography of Hindustan and the derivation of its name, identifying an area in what is now northern India centering on the city of Agra. In the eighteenth century this area was part of the Mughal Empire and thus the jades are today often referred to as 'Mughal' jades. Jade carving had reached new heights under the rule of the great Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan (1627-58), and it was this style that appears to have particularly appealed to the Qianlong Emperor, although he also collected jades from other parts of the Muslim world.
The current boxes are carved in a very similar style to Mughal-style 'chrysanthemum' dishes. Compare for instance a spinach-green jade dish carved with rows of fluted petals radiating from the centre in the Palace Museum Collection, Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo Meishu Quanji, Jade, vol. 9, Beijing, p. 176, no. 305. See also a pair of pale celadon jade 'chrysanthemum' dishes sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 30 November 2011, lot 3267. The current lot is however, more thickly carved than such dishes which are usually thin and semi-transluscent. 

Also offered in the sale is a remarkable set of three 18^thcentury celadon jade ‘dragon’ seals are offered at a similar price level. Each is carved with lines extracted from famous poems composed by Qu Yuan (340-278 BC) of the Chu Kingdom, in the Warring States period (475-221 BC) and is expected to realise £400,000-500,000).

A remarkable set of three 18^thcentury celadon jade ‘dragon’ seals, 18th century.. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

Each rectangular seal is surmounted by a dragon in possession of the flaming pearl, and all three seal faces are carved with characters in zhuanshu script. The stones are of a celadon tone with russet and paler inclusions. Each 2 3/8 in. (6 cm.) high, fitted zitan box (3). Lot 38. Estimate £400,000 - £500,000 ($637,200 - $796,500)

Property from The Leonard Gow Collection of Chinese Jade Carvings and Works of Art (Lots 192 - 204) is expected to realise in excess of £200,000. It includes a very distinctively shaped pale celadon jade archaistic vessel and cover, Tulu, Qianlong period (1736-1795) (estimate: £80,000-120,000), which was carved in imitation of an archaic bronze form, that would have been used to hold artist's materials. Gow was a successful Scottish shipping magnate whose discerning eye for Chinese porcelain – having built one of the finest collections of Qing ceramics in the early years of the twentieth century - also extended to jade carvings and other Chinese works of art.

A very distinctively shaped pale celadon jade archaistic vessel and cover, Tulu, Qianlong period (1736-1795).  Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

The vessel is carved with a rectangular body and columnar corners rising from four waisted feet. The body is decorated with a band of interlocking serpentine dragons above a further band of stylised cicadas, with a pair of dragon-head handles with loose rings to the sides. The cover is surmounted by a pierced coiled dragon finial, surrounded by four further coiled chilongs to the corners. The stone is of an even pale tone. 5½ in. (14 cm.) wide  Lot 198. Estimate £80,000 - £120,000 ($127,440 - $191,160)

Provenance: The Leonard Gow Collection, no. 45. 

Notes: This very distinctively shaped vessel was carved in imitation of an archaic bronze form, which was used to hold artist's materials. Coloured pigments were kept in the tubular compartments at each corner and subdivided by wooden compartments. The central compartment held a saucer and water for mixing the colours. For a discussion of the bronze prototypes, see Cheng Te Kun, 'The T'u-Lu Colour-Container of the Shang-Chou Period', B.M.F.E.A., no. 37, 1965, p. 239-249, pl. 1-6, where examples in jade, marble and pottery are also illustrated.

Compare the current vessel with one with very similarly carved serpentine dragons and cover sold in our New York rooms, 17 September 2008, lot 594. See also a similarly decorated example but with strap handles sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 29 April 2002, lot 519. 

The Fryers Collection of Chinese Art comprises 23 works including extremely fine jade carvings as well as pieces of cloisonné enamel and glass works of art, with further works being sold at South Kensington later in the week. This portion of the collection is expected to realise in excess of £600,000. With a keen eye for top quality pieces, Dr Gordon Fryers (1922-2008) and Dr Rosemary Fryers (1922-1994), who were both medical doctors, amassed this collection in the mid-20th century, with many pieces from leading auction houses and dealers in London. Their fascination in Chinese culture began in the late 1940s when they moved to Singapore. The top lots in this collection include a finely carved pale celadon jade circular table screen, Qianlong period (1736-1795) (estimate: £80,000 - 120,000); a pale celadon jade naturalistic carving of a bitter melon on a carved ivory stand (estimate: £60,000-80,000) and a rare white ground famille rose Qianlong mark and period tripod censer (1736-1795) (estimate: £60,000-80,000).

A finely carved pale celadon jade circular table screen, Qianlong period (1736-1795). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

The table screen is finely carved to one side depicting figures in a rocky landscape with tall trees, with a fenced garden and a pavilion in the distance. The other side is also carved with a rocky landscape, with a crane standing beside a tall pine tree and another crane in flight. The stone is of an even pale tone.
9½ in. (24 cm.) high, wood stand  Lot 10. Estimate £80,000 - £120,000 ($127,440 - $191,160)

Provenance: The Fryers Collection of Chinese Art. 

A pale celadon jade naturalistic carving of a bitter melon on a carved ivory stand, 18th century. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

The stone is finely and natualistically carved as three bitter melons of various sizes borne on leafy tendrils, with two bats resting on the fruits. The skin of the melons is delicately carved to simulate their uneven rind. The stone is of a pale celadon tone with some russet inclusions. 6 3/8 in. (16 cm.) high, ivory stand  Lot 13. Estimate £60,000 - £80,000 ($95,580 - $127,440)

Provenance: With René Kitchen, London, 22 June 1972.
The Fryers Collection of Chinese Art. 

A  famille rose  tripod censer. Qianlong Iron-Red Six-Character Sealmark And Of The Period (1736-1795). Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2012

he globular body of the censer is finely enamelled with the Eight Buddhist Emblems,bajixiang, amidst lotus blooms borne on leafy scrolls. The sides have two handles decorated with further lotus scrolls and bats, and the three cabriole legs and the recessed neck are similarly enamelled with lotus scrolls. The sides of the handles and the mouth rim have classic S-scrolls, and the cover is surmounted by a jade finial carved as a mandarin duck with a floral spray in its mouth.
15¼ in. (38.7 cm.) high, wood cover with jade finial and wood stand  Lot 23. Estimate £60,000 - £100,000 ($95,580 - $159,300)

Provenance: The Fryers Collection of Chinese Art. 

Elsewhere in the sale is an important and very rare pair of large imperial bronze altar vases, Qianlong cast six-character marks within a rectangular panel and of the period (1736-1795) (estimate: £300,000-500,000). Each powerfully and heavily cast vase is decorated to either side with a pair of confronted five-clawed writhing dragons in pursuit of the flaming pearl and all amidst vaporous clouds. This pair of magnificent vases exemplifies the artistic and technical quality of bronze vessels cast for the Imperial court. They would have been made as part of a five-piece temple or altar garniture comprising a censer, a pair of vases and a pair of pricket candlesticks, all of equally impressive size and weight. Having been acquired in Belgium in the 1980s, they are being offered from the Property of a Lady. Other highlights include a magnificent pair of paintedenamel jardinières with inset hardstones the jardinières 18^th century, the stem inserts 18^th/19^thcentury, which are offered from the Property of a Gentleman (estimate: £150,000-200,000).Beautifully painted with soft tones of pink, red, yellow and blue, on a pale lilac ground, they are part of a well-documented group of wares richly embellished with hardstones and semi-precious stones.

An important and very rare pair of large imperial bronze altar vases, Qianlong cast six-character marks within a rectangular panel and of the period (1736-1795). 

Each powerfully and heavily cast vase is decorated to either side with a pair of confronted five-clawed writhing dragons in pursuit of the flaming pearl and all amidst vaporous clouds. The shoulders are decorated with a band of pendant ruyi heads above C-scrolls. The flaring necks are divided into two registers, each containing a further pair of dragons in the pursuit of flaming pearls and applied on either side with archaistic chilong handles supporting large rings. The tall flaring foot with a 'cicada' band above a further band containing the reign marks. 30¼ in. (76.5 cm.) high (2). Lot 188. Estimate £300,000 - £500,000 ($477,900 - $796,500)

Provenance: Acquired in Belgium in the 1980s. 

Notes: This pair of magnificent vases exemplifies the artistic and technical quality of bronze vessels cast for the imperial court. They would have been made as part of a five-piece temple or altar garniture comprising a censer, a pair of vases and a pair of pricket candlesticks, all of equally impressive size and weight. As they bear a Qianlong reign mark it is most likely that they were made for a specific shrine or temple within the Forbidden City.

Sacrificial ceremonies were among the most important rituals of the Qing court, with the emperor attending, if not performing, all of the major rites. Buddhism was the primary religion of the Qing dynasty and there were numerous Buddhist shrines and temples, as well as altars in the private quarters of the emperor and empresses. All of these necessitated ritual paraphernalia, including altar garnitures, which were made in various materials including bronze, porcelain and cloisonné enamel, and these garnitures were of varying size.

A complete garniture in bronze, but of far more simple design, is illustrated by Wan Yi, et al., insitu in the shrine in the Hall for Worshipping Buddhas, Daily Life in the Forbidden City, New York, 1988, p. 467. Three different bronze altar garnitures can be seen in a photograph of the Qin An Temple illustrated by Yu Zhuoyun, Palaces of the Forbidden City, Hong Kong, 1986, pp. 198-9, pl. 222. Another imperial bronze five-piece garniture of smiliar size also heavily cast with dragons, and with Qianlong reign marks, was sold at Sotheby's, Hong Kong, 11 April 2008, lot 2826. A pair of imperial bronze vases of this impressive type, but of smaller size (16 in. high), also with Qianlong marks, but of fanghu form and decorated with dragons and phoenix, was sold at Sotheby's, Hong Kong, 9 October 2007, lot 1322. See, also, the pair of massive (36 in. high) imperial bronze vases cast with Qianlong reign marks from the Alfred Morrison Collection, Fonthill House, sold in our London rooms, 9 November 2004, lot 17. Of the same shape as the present vases, they were cast with phoenix.

Both vases have incised inscriptions in the interiors of the necks making reference to their weight, and numbers which may be a location or inventory reference.

A magnificent pair of painted enamel jardinières with inset hardstones the jardinières 18^th century, the stem inserts 18^th/19^thcentury. 

The lobed jardinières are delicately painted around the exterior with various blooms borne on scrolling vines with dense foliage. The interiors are applied with a carved ivory panel emulating crashing waves into which tall stems have been inserted. The stems are supporting lotus leaves carved from spinach-green jade, elaborate lotus blooms carved from white jade and with jadeite pods, and further pods and flowers carved from tourmaline. One jardinière is further adorned with two Mandarin ducks carved from malachite, which are perched on a large amethyst rock. The other jardinière has a large pale celadon jade crane perched amongst the stems. Each 38 in. (96.5 cm.) high overall (2). Lot 99. Estimate £150,000 - £200,000 ($238,950 - $318,600)

Notes: These magnificent jardinières are part of a well documented group of wares richly embellished with hardstones and semi-precious stones.

The jardinières are beautifully painted with soft tones of pink, red, yellow and blue, all reserved on a pale lilac ground. There are a number of these delicately painted enamel wares in the Forbidden City, Beijing; compare a painted enamel Kang-table with the same type of floral decoration but on a yellow ground and published in Jin Shu Tai Falanqi or Metal-bodied Enamel Ware, The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2002, p. 239, pl. 226.

A number of these hard and semi-precious stones-embellished wares are also in the Forbidden City, but none of them of such size as the current lot. Compare a miniature landscape of narcissus but on a carved jade pot, illustrated in Treasures of Imperial Court, The Complete Collection of Treasures of The Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2004, p. 48, pl. 41. See also a miniature landscape of a coral peach tree, where the flowers are carved from jade, quartz and malachite, ibid, p. 40, pl. 33.