Lot 824. A blue, amber and cream-glazed pottery figure of a court lady, Tang dynasty (618-907); 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm.) high, cloth box. Estimate USD 20,000 – USD 30,000. Price realised USD 25,200. © Christie's 2023

The lady is shown standing with a small cloth bundle held at her chest and wearing chestnut-amber robes draped with a long blue shawl. The plump face is modeled with delicate features and her hair is drawn up into a soft loop that falls onto her forehead.

Provenance: J. J. Lally & Co., New York, 1990, no. RE 1064.

Literature: J. J. Lally & Co., Arts of Ancient China, New York, 1990, no. 20.

Exhibited: New York, J. J. Lally & Co., Arts of Ancient China, 31 May-23 June 1990.

Note: The presence of cobalt-blue glaze on this figure would have made it expensive to produce, and comparable examples are rare. A related example, with amber dress and the hands held under blue sleeves, was sold at Christie's Los Angeles, Treasures of the Tang, 4 December, 1998, lot 7, and subsequently at Christie's New York, 26 March 2003, lot 193.

A well-known figure of this type, also with blue-glazed cloak and tiered ribbon, but with her hand lowered to the waist, is illustrated in several publications, including Seiichi Mizuno, Tousansai (Tang sancai), Japan, 1977, vol. 35, fig. 110; in Masterworks of Eastern Ceramics, Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum, Japan, 1994, Inaugural Exhibition Catalogue, p. 107, no. 20; and by Yuzo Sugimara and W. Watson, Chinese Sculpture, Bronzes and Jades in Japanese Collections, Japan, 1966, no. 40.

See, also, the similar figure of a court lady with similar hair arrangement and hands folded in front and concealed by her sleeves, with blue glaze, illustrated in Kaogu, 1983, No. 5, pl. 8, no. 5 (M6:28), excavated in 1972 in Luoyang, Henan Province.

Lot 825. A painted pottery figure of a court lady, Tang dynasty (618-907); 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm.) high, cloth box. Estimate USD 3,000 – USD 4,000. Price realised USD 3,780. © Christie's 2023

The tall elegant figure wears a short tunic over a floor-length gown, with the tips of her shoes protruding from beneath the hem. The round face is modeled with delicate features and the hair is worn in an asymmetrical coiffure pulled into a coiled loop at one side. The base is pierced with the character wan (king).

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong, 1995.
J. J. Lally & Co., New York, no. 2209I. 

Lot 826. A green and amber-glazed pottery tripod offering dish, Tang dynasty (618-907); 11 3/8 in. (28.9 cm.) diam., cloth box. Estimate USD 15,000 – USD 25,000. Price realised USD 88,200. © Christie's 2023

The dish has a lipped rim and is covered with a rich leaf-green glaze pooling darker in some areas, with three spur marks evenly spaced on the interior. The glaze on the underside stops short of the base to show the pale buff-colored pottery and the three short paw supports are splashed with an amber-yellow glaze.

Provenance: Lord Cunliffe (1899-1963) Collection, United Kingdom, no. PT18.
J. J. Lally & Co., New York, no. 3341.

Literature: Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society 1948-1949, "Catalogue of the Exhibition of Wares of the T'ang Dynasty," London, 1951, p. 76, no. 168.

Exhibited: London, Oriental Ceramic Society, Wares of the T'ang Dynasty, 27 April-8 June 1949.

Note: A similar Tang green-glazed pottery tripod dish is illustrated by R. Krahl in Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 3 (1), London, 2006, p. 244, no. 1265.

Christie's. J. J. Lally & Co., New York, 23.03.2023