Lot 2517. Property from a Japanese private collection. An inscribed mother-of-pearl inlaid lacquer 'phoenix' box and cover, Ming dynasty, Hongzhi xinyou year, corresponding to 1501; 7.8 cm. Lot Sold 444,500 HKD (Estimate 180,000 - 250,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

inscribed to the florets on the base with seven characters reading Hongzhi xinyou Zhu Pei xi ('Seal of Zhu Pei of Hongzhi xinyou year'), Japanese double wood box, the outer box is inscribed by Kobori Sokei 小堀宗慶 (1923-2011), the 12th head master of the Enshu School of Tea, the inner box signed Kansuitei-shujin 閑邃亭主人.

Sotheby's. Karamono: Heirlooms of Chinese Art from Medieval Japan, Hong Kong, 9 October 2023