Lot 494. An amber-glazed pottery figure of a lady, Tang dynasty (618-907); 39cm (15 2/8in) high. Est: £2,000 - £3,000. Sold for £ 2,805 (€ 3,268). © Bonhams

Gracefully modelled standing with the hands held together at her waist under a long scarf flowing down from her shoulder, the hem of her high-waisted robe folded naturally revealing the tips of her upturned shoes, the waistband tied in a long trailing bow on the back, her hair in an elaborate coiffure above the full round face.

Provenance: James (1914-1990) and Marilynn Alsdorf (1925-2019), New York
Sotheby's New York, 22 March 1999, lot 362.

Published, Illustrated and Exhibited: Roger Keverne Ltd., Summer Exhibition, London, 2000, no.29.

Note: The Alsdorfs operated an export and investment business based in Chicago, and James served as president of the Cory Corp., the largest manufacturer of glass coffee equipment that was later sold to Hershey Food Corporation. The couple were renowned art patrons, having built a wide-ranging collection across categories including Old Master Drawings, 19th-century Impressionism, mid-20th century Surrealism, Post War and Contemporary American art, Asian works of art, and more. Moreover, they were instrumental in founding and expanding the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the University of Chicago's Smart Museum of Art.

See a related figure, Tang dynasty, illustrated by S.G.Valenstein, The Herzman Collection of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1992, no.16; see another example illustrated by J.Ayers, The Seligman Collection of Oriental Art, Volume 2, Chinese and Korean Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1964, no.D44, pl. XVIII.

Bonhams. Roger Keverne Ltd Moving On (Part II), London, New Bond Street, 7 Jun 2021