Lot 26. A rare fine carved Qingbai vase, meiping, Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279); 29 cm high. Estimate €12,000 - €15,000. Unsold © Bonhams 

The elongated ovoid body rising to broad, rounded shoulders surmounted by a waisted neck and lipped rim, boldly and freely carved around the exterior with a lush floral meander of lotus blooms borne on leafy stems, covered overall in a lustrous translucent pale blue glaze pooling to darker tones in the carved recesses, falling short of the unglazed foot revealing the off-white coloured body, the base unglazed.

Note: Fine white-bodied porcelains covered with a luminous glaze of icy blue tinge, were made in kilns at Jingdezhen in the early Northern Song and continued to be made throughout the Yuan dynasty. Named qingbai ('blue white'), or yingqing ('shadow blue') after the icy blue undertone of the glaze, Qingbai porcelains were highly appreciated, the pure white body was also known as the 'jade of Rao' referring to the region in which the Jingdezhen kilns were located.

Several shapes and designs of Qingbai wares were inspired by the shapes and designs of contemporaneous silverware, imitating the precious material with its high-fired and extremely delicate porcelain body and luminous glaze. Several vases of this type made in silver, have been discovered in tombs, hoards and relic deposits dated to the Song dynasty. Among them a silver meiping found in a tomb in Wushan, Luoyang, Henan, illustrated in The Colors and Forms of Song and Yuan China. Featuring Lacquerwares, Ceramics, and Metalwares, Tokyo, 2004, pp. 180-181, fig. 37d, and a silver meiping discovered in a tomb of the Southern Song dynasty, dated 1195 or 1199, ibid., p. 182, fig. 41c. Similar Qingbai vases are in museum collections, see, for instance, two Qingbai meiping in the Qing Court collection and now in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 33: Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (II), Hong Kong, 1996, pls. 166 and 167. 南宋 青白釉刻花梅瓶

Fine white-bodied porcelains covered with a luminous glaze of icy blue tinge, were made in kilns at Jingdezhen in the early Northern Song and continued to be made throughout the Yuan dynasty. Named qingbai ('blue white'), or yingqing ('shadow blue') after the icy blue undertone of the glaze, Qingbai porcelains were highly appreciated, the pure white body was also known as the 'jade of Rao' referring to the region in which the Jingdezhen kilns were located.

Several shapes and designs of Qingbai wares were inspired by the shapes and designs of contemporaneous silverware, imitating the precious material with its high-fired and extremely delicate porcelain body and luminous glaze. Several vases of this type made in silver, have been discovered in tombs, hoards and relic deposits dated to the Song dynasty. Among them a silver meiping found in a tomb in Wushan, Luoyang, Henan, illustrated in The Colors and Forms of Song and Yuan China. Featuring Lacquerwares, Ceramics, and Metalwares, Tokyo, 2004, pp. 180-181, fig. 37d, and a silver meiping discovered in a tomb of the Southern Song dynasty, dated 1195 or 1199, ibid., p. 182, fig. 41c. Similar Qingbai vases are in museum collections, see, for instance, two Qingbai meiping in the Qing Court collection and now in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 33: Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (II), Hong Kong, 1996, pls. 166 and 167.

Bonhams. Arts d'Asie, 11 December 2025, 11:00 CET, Paris, Avenue Hoche

Lot 49. Six metal funerary face masks, Liao Dynasty (907-1125). The largest 27 cm high (6). Estimate €8,000 - €12,000.  Sold for €20,480 © Bonhams 2025

Comprising two gilt-metal masks, two silver masks and two bronze masks, each naturalistically rendered in sheet metal with finely detailed eyes, nose, mouth and ears.

Provenance: Acquired in Hong Kong between 1995 and 2000.

Note: Metal masks such the examples in this group were found in tombs of the Liao dynasty that ruled Northern China. They were part of a custom that saw the face covered with masks made of thin metal sheet. Depending on the social status of the deceased, these masks were made in different materials. While copper was used for those of lower status, higher ranking officials were allowed to use a more precious metal such as silver and gilt-silver¬. Gold was reserved for members of the imperial family. Such masks were also made with attention to detail, with smooth features and intricately incised facial hair, and are said to depict some of the deceased's features as two gold face masks discovered in the tomb of Princess of Chen (d. 1018) and her partner Xiao Shaoju at Qinglongshan in Naiman Banner, demonstrate, see Gilded Splendor. Treasures of China's Liao Empire (907-1125), New York, 2006, cat.nos 2 and 6.

Compare the masks in this group to masks made in similar materials such as a gold-plated silver mask of a noblewoman discovered in a Liao tomb in Xiaolamagou, Balibao village, Liaoning province, and illustrated in Complete Collection of Chinese Gold, Silver, Glass and Enamel Utensils, vol. II, Shijiazhuang, 2004, pl. 352, and a related mask made in gilt-bronze, excavated from a Liao tomb at Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, published in The Silk Road in Inner Mongolia, Hong Kong, 2007, cat.no. 18. See also a silver funerary mask formerly in the collection of Carl Kempe, sold in Sotheby's London, 14 May 2008, lot 92

Bonhams. An Important Belgian Collection: A Life of Collecting Ancient Worlds, 12 December 2025. Paris, Avenue Hoche

Lot 199. A Korean celadon-glazed fluted vase, Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) or later; 32.5 cm high (2). Estimate €6,000 - €8,000. Sold for €14,080 © Bonhams 

Provenance: Property from a French family collection.

Bonhams. Arts d'Asie online. Ending from 12 December 2025, 12:00 CET