Lot 250. An extremely rare inscribed gold-inlaid iron mirror, Eastern Han dynasty (AD 25-220). Diameter 10.8 cm. Estimate 40,000 - 60,000 USD. © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Collection of Patricia Bauman and John Landrum Bryant, acquired in the 1990s.

Literature: Michael C. Teller, A Selection of Chinese Masterpieces from the Bauman-Bryant Collection, New York, 2006.

Note: It is rare to find a Han dynasty iron mirror, and even rarer to find one with such well-preserved gold inlay. The intricate gold inlay depicts mythical beasts and stylized scrolls. This decoration is divided into four sections, each with a single indistinct character. Three are decipherable as sun (‘descendant’), chang (‘long’) and xuan (‘proclaim’).

A gold-inlaid mirror decorated with figures on thrones from the Carl Kempe Collection, included in the exhibition Chinese Gold, Silver and Porcelain: the Kempe Collection, Asia House Gallery, New York, 1971, cat. no. 13, was sold in our London rooms, 14th May 2008, lot 34. A more closely related mirror to the present example, similarly oxidized and decorated with five animals design is in the National Museum of China, illustrated on the Museum's website.

Lot 252. A pair of gilt-bronze bear-form weights, Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). Length 5.3 cm. Estimate 10,000 - 15,000 USD. © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Susan Chen, Hong Kong, 1997 (by repute).

Lot 254. A rare set of four gold and silver-inlaid bronze tortoise-form weights, Han dynasty (AD 25-220). Diameter 6.4 cm. Estimate 40,000 - 50,000 USD. © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Susan Chen, Hong Kong, 1997 (by repute).

Lot 257. A group of eight bronze plaques, Northern China​​​​​​​, Han dynasty (AD 25-220), together with a bronze 'chilong' plaque, Eastern Zhou dynasty (9)​​​​​​​. Length of longest 12.3 cm​​​​​​​​​​​​​​. Estimate 20,000 - 30,000 USD. © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong, 1998.

Sotheby's. Chinese Art, New York, 19 March 2024