24 mars 2019

STOCKHOLM.- Nationalmuseum has acquired three English works by miniaturists Jeremiah Meyer, Ozias Humphry and John Cox Dillman Engleheart. The portraits in question are all examples of the blossoming of portrait miniatures as an art form from the mid-eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries. The acquisitions represent an important addition to the museum’s collection of portrait miniatures, which is one of the foremost in the world. Despite the name, a portrait miniature is defined not by its format but by its materials... [Lire la suite]

Lot 750. An underglaze-blue, copper-red and celadon-glazed brushpot, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Diameter 7 in., 17.8 cm. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 USD. Lot sold 37,500 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. of cylindrical form, the exterior painted with a continuous landscape depicting a thatched-roof pavilion lakeside among leafing trees, a fishing boat off-shore plying the calm water, a cluster of rustic huts alongside a rocky outcropping, and further trees among... [Lire la suite]

Lot 749. A large blue and white 'Peach Blossom Spring' brushpot, Transitional period, circa 1640. Height 8 in., 20.8 cm. Estimate 50,000 — 70,000 USD. Lot sold 100,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. of cylindrical section, painted with a continuous narrative depicting various scenes from Peach Blossom Spring; the fisherman alone in a sampan, encountering a sage in the mystical forest, and a boy sharing the news of the mysterious visitor, all within heavy scrolling... [Lire la suite]

Lot 748. A blue and white 'Figural' sleeve vase, Transitional period, circa 1640-1650. Height 17 3/8  in., 44.1 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 25,000 USD. Lot sold 52,500 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. the cylindrical body finely painted in varying tones of underglaze blue with a continuous highly animated scene depicting a group of armed men giving chase over rocky terrain to a soldier, fleeing over water on the back of mythical tortoise, observed from a distance by a pair of compatriots... [Lire la suite]

Lot 745. A 'Dehua' figure of Guanyin, Qing dynasty, 18th century. Height 7 1/8  in., 18 cm. Estimate 5,000 — 7,000 USD. Lot sold 18,750 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. seated, draped in long flowing robes falling in folds exposing the bare left foot, the shawl loosely tied at the front revealing a beaded pendant on the bare chest, the right hand resting on the raised right knee, the left holding a scroll and supported on a beast-mask fronted arm rest, the head slightly... [Lire la suite]

Lot 744. A 'Dehua' figure of Guanyin, Qing dynasty, 18th century. Height 13 1/2  in., 34.3 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 USD. Lot sold 75,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. standing barefoot on a pedestal of swirling clouds, the face modeled with a serene expression with downcast eyes, pendulous earlobes and an urna mark on the forehead, the hair gathered in a high chignon secured by a lingzhi-form tiara beneath a draped cowl extending over the rounded shoulders, the long billowing robes open... [Lire la suite]

Lot 739. A blue and white Ming-style 'Dragon' meiping, Qing dynasty, Yongzheng period (1723-1735). Height 10 3/4  in., 27.3 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 USD. Lot sold 75,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. sturdily potted, the sides rising at an angle to a broad, generous shoulder rounding upward before converging at the short waisted neck, painted in rich cobalt hues with a pair of confronting five-clawed sinuous dragons vigorously writhing amid flaming clouds above a turbulent sea, the... [Lire la suite]

Lot 738. A rare small Ming-style blue and white 'lotus' jar, Qianlong seal mark and period (1736-1795). Height 4 1/8  in., 10.4 cm. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 USD. Lot sold 7,500 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. of baluster form, well potted with the broad shoulders gently tapering to a recessed base, surmounted by a short, waisted neck with a lipped rim, painted around the body in deep shades of cobalt blue accented by contrived 'heaping and piling' with stylized lotus blossoms borne on... [Lire la suite]

Lot 737. A doucai 'floral' stem cup, Qing dynasty, Kangxi-Yongzheng period (1662-1735). Height 3 in., 7.7 cm. Estimate 10,000 — 15,000 USD. Lot sold 10,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's. of deep rounded sides rising to an everted rim, supported on a tall splayed foot encircled by a raised fillet, the exterior delicately enameled with four stylized lotus blooms in iron red, yellow and aubergine, wreathed by foliage and softy outlined in underglaze blue, a demi-begonia border at the rim and... [Lire la suite]

Lot 730. A rare engraved translucent amber glass 'floral' bowl, Qianlong mark and period (1735-1796). Diameter 4 7/8  in., 12.4 cm. Estimate 7,000 — 9,000 USD. Lot sold 10,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's with steep rounded sides rising to a flaring rim, the exterior delicately engraved with a leafy boughs of flowering camellia issuing blossoms and tender buds, with a pair of fluttering butterflies and an insect above, the base incised with a four-character mark within a double square. ... [Lire la suite]