The Gerard Hawthorn Collection of Yixing Stoneware is an impressive, personal collection of a connoisseur dealer.  Photo Bonhams

HONG KONG.- Bonhams is set to mark another auction milestone as it offers The Gerard Hawthorn Collection of Yixing Stoneware' for sale, on November 28, 2011 at the Island Shangri-la Hotel, Hong Kong.

Part of the Bonhams Autumn Auctions Series in Hong Kong, The Gerard Hawthorn Collection of Yixing Stoneware is an impressive, personal collection of a connoisseur dealer, who has passionately collected the finest quality Yixing ceramics, comparable to the rarest pieces in the Palace Museum, Beijing. It is regarded as one of the world’s greatest and most distinguished collection of Yixing Stoneware by a single owner. The only
other comparable private collection is the K.S. Lo collection, donated to Hong Kong Museum and now housed in the Flagstaff Tea Museum in Hong Kong Park. The collection consists of 100 lots and is expected to sell for over HK$20,000,000.


The celebrated Yixing stoneware collection is from Mr. and Mrs. Gerard Hawthorn. In 1963, Gerard Hawthorn joined leading London Chinese art dealer Sydney L. Moss Ltd. and later became independent, assisting the world’s leading art collectors and museums in acquiring rare Chinese antiques. Additionally, he formed his own personal collection of bamboo and Yixing stoneware in his own time. In view of the strength of the market, Gerard Hawthorn has taken the decision to offer the Yixing collection for sale this autumn.

From a historical and investment perspective, Yixing stoneware is one of the most valuable collections among all kinds of Chinese antiques. Its uniqueness is not only due to the characteristic of the mud material, but also the artists’ marvelous calligraphy creativities and their life experiences, which enrich the design of Yixing stoneware. For centuries, its natural, variable shapes and ancient elegant colors have been the prized possession many collectors craved for.

Notably, some of the highlighted lots of Yixing stoneware from the Gerard Hawthorn Collection were made by Shi Dabin, Yang Luqian, Hui Mengchen, Chen Mingyuan among others, who were all renowned Yixing stoneware artists of their respective eras. Shi Dabin’s artistry has been regarded by others as incomparable in history while Hui Mengchen was a famous artist during Chongzhen’s period and a well-known figure after Shi. Hui’s artistry has been diverse; his big pieces are more simple and natural, while his small pieces are more delicate and elaborate. Meanwhile, Chen Mingyuan’s work has been highly regarded for its incredible engraving details; he infused Chinese traditional painting and calligraphy skills into the art of ceramic-making, which distinguished his pieces from his generation.

Hong Kong has been a centre for Yixing pottery since the donation of the K.S. Lo Collection to the Flagstaff Museum, established in 1984 in Hong Kong Park as a museum of tea ware. With the auction at the Island Shangri-La, just minutes walk-away, it will be an unprecedented attraction for Yixing collectors.

Other details of highlighted lots from The Gerard Hawthorn Collection as below:

Lot 223: An Yixing inscribed and rare 'hu' vase Mid Qing dynasty, inscribed mark of Shi Dabin. Estimate: HK$300,000 – 500,000. Photo Bonhams

Finely potted of archaistic hu form, applied at the shoulder with two well modelled ruyi handles and decorated with a key-fret collar above a rope-twist border, the main body incised on one side with an eleven-character inscription, the stoneware of a rich reddish-brown colour with scattered paler specks.6cm high.

Provenance 來源  Sir Percival Victor David, 2nd Baronet (1892-1964)
英國大衛德舊藏
Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London, 1964

Illustrated 出版: Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society, London, 1936-37, Vol. 14, pl. 35c.

The inscription reads:

'Wanli jiachen nian bingyutang zhi, Dabin' literally translates as:

'Made in the Ice Jade Hall during the jiachen year of the Wanli period (1604), by Shi Dabin'.

It is worth noting that the miniature vase was also witnessed and mentioned in a letter from Professor Fu Zhenlun when he was sent by the government to represent China in the International Exhibition of Chinese Art at the Royal Academy of Arts, London in 1935. The letter was written to Mr Mian Zhi and Mr He Panfa along with a list showing pieces of Yixing stoneware that were exhibited in the exhibition. He noted at the end of the list that a Yixing pot that belonged to the Sir David Percival, where identical inscriptions and signature of Shi Dabin were incised was seen in the storeroom without being exhibited in the exhibition venue. (He Panfa, 'memoir of the Xiangshan conference', in Jiangxi Taoyi, Ceramic Art of Jiangxi, vol.1, part 2, 2007.)

The collection formed by Sir Percival David in the earliest 20th century is undoubtedly the greatest collection of Chinese porcelain ever formed outside of the Imperial Court. Many of the rarest masterpieces, which range from Southern Song dynasty ruyao, through to Chenghua doucai and Yongzheng falangcai, are equal or superior to those now preserved in the principle depositaries of the former Qing court collection in Beijing and Taipei. A substantial part of his collection, possibly including lots 223 and 224, was purchased by Sir Percival David in 1927 from the Yuin Yeh Bank, where they had been taken from the Imperial collection and deposited as collateral for a substantial loan granted to the Dowager Empress Cixi on her departure from the Forbidden City in 1901

The date of Shi Dabin's birth and death appears to be unrecorded in historical records. However, according to Li Jingkang and Zhanghong (Li Jingkang, Zhang Hong , 1937:7), his family can be traced back to the Song dynasty, during which his grandfather was Shi Yan, a high court office. His superb craftsmanship was taught by his father, Shi Peng. As a master potter, Shi Dabin is known to have taken special care in the preparation of his clay material. Sometimes he would pound old shards into a fine powder, then sieve and mix it with quarts, to give the clay an archaic yet elegant and even texture. His early works are in the style Gong Chun, for whom he had the highest admiration. However, after travelling to Loudong in South China and being introduced to the literary circle led by Chen Meigong, whose members were all tea connoisseurs, he learned their preferences of using small teapots and shifted his style in order to follow the trend. In addition to his excellent craftsmanship in teapot making, the elegant style of his incised signature was often used to distinguish other copies of inferior quality.

清中期
紫泥仿古如意耳小方壺

「萬曆甲辰年冰玉堂製，大彬。」

器仿青銅方壺，方口，垂腹，圈足微撇，器形工整。口沿弦紋與迴紋一周，下凸雕繩索紋，壺身兩側如意頭環耳水平對稱，壺身一面刻「萬曆甲辰年冰玉堂製，大彬。」，紫泥略摻黃色細沙，器形樸拙雅緻，足可寶玩。

時大彬，明萬曆、崇禎間（1573
–
1644年）宜興製壺名家。號少山，生卒不詳。時大彬為宋代尚書時彥裔孫，時鵬之子，其製壺技藝傳至其父。大彬所製紫砂器與他本人一樣，敦雅古穆，製壺時對泥料配製、成形技法、造型設計和銘刻都十分講究。製壺時善用各色陶土，或在陶土中摻雜砂缸土和碎瓦片，有「沙粗質古肌理勻」之美贊。大彬製壺及其認真，稍有不滿意便敲碎棄之。大彬作品初仿供春，喜作大壺，但遊婁東後，聽聞陳繼儒以及太原諸公包括王錫爵、隨後的王衡、王時敏、王原祁等文人「茶壺以小為貴」的議論之後，便開始做小壺。《陽羨砂壺圖考》記載，大彬製壺銘款起初清書家落墨，再用竹刀刻出，隨後自己運刀成書，其書法嫻雅並在黃庭與樂毅之間，因他人難仿而被作為當時藏家賞鑑的依據。

該件拍品曾為傅振倫老先生1977年所寫書信中提及。傅先生1935年被作為中國政府派出的工作人員赴英國倫敦參加中國藝術品國際展覽會，會後傅先生即將展會所展出之宜興陶瓷陳列材料以書信方式寄給勉之與賀盤發先生。書信中，除提及七件於展會展覽的宜興紫砂器以外，傅先生還提到一件於展覽會庫房所見的「萬曆甲辰冰玉堂製『大彬』款」砂壺。信中指明該器物為大衛德收藏，但並為在展覽陳列。（見《江蘇陶藝》2007年，第一期下）





Lot 268: A remarkable, rare 'prunus trunk' brush pot, signed Yang Luqian (1736-1820), Qianlong. Estimate: HK$2,000,000 – 3,000,000. Photo Bonhams

The finely potted brushpot superbly formed as a section of prunus trunk, naturalistically potted and carved in high relief with gnarled branches and luxuriant flower buds and blossom, the natural grain and crevices in the trunk vividly depicted, the body of a rich chocolate-brown colour, the base impressed with a three-character zhuanshu Yang Luqian seal mark.10.5cm high.

Provenance 來源: Lt. Colonel and Mrs W.B.R. Neave-Hill, England
Douglas J. K. Wright, Grosvenor House Fair, mid 1970s

Exhibited 展覽: Oriental Ceramics Society Exhibition, London, 1964, no.311
Oriental Ceramics Society Exhibition, The Ceramic Art of China, London, 1971, no. 188.

Lt. Colonel Ben Neave-Hill (1912-2000) was injured at Dunkirk in 1940, and served as a military historian after the war. He and his wife Daphne, who had inherited a collection of Chinese porcelain from her grandfather, joined the Oriental Ceramic Society in 1950. His book Chinese ceramics, with a foreward by Sir Harry Garner, was published in New York in 1976.

It is extremely rare to find an Yixing stoneware brushpot of such superlative quality. The only comparable example appears to be the famous brushpot in the Palace Museum, Beijing, attributed to the Qianlong period and illustrated in Yixing Zisha Wares in the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2009, pg.190, pl.108 (fig.1). It is slightly larger at 13.1cm, but in terms of form, body material and distinct naturalistic carving is very closely related to the current example, suggesting that they emanate from the same workshop and were possibly commissioned by the Imperial court at the same time.

The name of Yang Luqian appears to be unrecorded in traditional Yixing connoisseurship, but a teapot with slip painting decoration bearing an identical seal mark, is in the Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware, illustrated by K.S.Lo, The Stonewares of Yixing. From the Ming period to the Present Day, London, 1986, p.186, pl.115.

清乾隆
紫泥梅樁式筆筒

筆筒成梅樹樁形，上有大大小小的樹洞，加上深淺肌理的描寫，強調其老態。樹樁兩側長出新枝，在其扭動的姿態上，梅花盛放，成老幹新枝的形態，寓意衰而不老。筆筒底刻有陽文「楊履乾」篆文方印，楊履乾仍清乾隆、嘉慶間宜興紫砂名工，生卒不詳。其傳世品稀少，所見作品，形態自然，如若天工，圓潤細膩，做工精到。

唯一一件可與此筆筒相比的傳世作品，有故宮博物院藏宜興窯梅樁式筆筒(圖一)，見故宮博物院編，《故宮博物院藏宜興紫砂》，頁190，圖版108。兩者題材一致，本筆筒在刻劃肌理上更為細緻，寫實能力更甚。

本筆筒曾為美國中校本·尼夫-修（Lt.
Colonel Ben
Neave-Hill)（1912-2000）收藏，尼夫中校在二戰期間於法國敦克爾克受傷，隨後便供職為軍事史學家。他與妻子達芬（Daphne）繼承了祖父的中國陶瓷收藏並於1950年加入了倫敦東方陶瓷協會，尼夫中校於1976年著錄Chinese
ceramics一書，並由英國二十世紀初著名空氣動力學家及中國瓷器收藏家Harry Garner撰寫前言。



Lot 230: A rare Yixing stoneware brush washer. Early Qing dynasty, signed Hui Mengchen. Estimate: HK$400,000 – 600,000. Photo Bonhams

Of archaistic bronze form, the elegant body with three steps tapering from the foot, applied with a pair of taotie masks issuing forth a ring handle, the attractive rich reddish clay skilfully with yellow sand to give a 'pear-peel' effect, the base with four-character zhuanshu seal mark reads mengchen shouzhi, handmade by Mengchen, wood stand. 8.7cm long. (2).

Provenance 來源: Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London

Illustrated 出版: Paul Moss, I-Hsing-Tea-Taste, Journal of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, vol.10, no.3, September 1978, pg.7, fig.7.

The four-character seal mark reads 'mengchen shouzhi', or 'Handmade by Mengchen'.

Early Qing dynasty Yixing stoneware water vessels of archaistic bronze form are extremely rare, with few extant examples recorded in museum and private collections. For other bronze-form water vessels sold at auction, see Sotheby's Hong Kong, 24 May 1978, lot 337, 346 and 347.

Hui Mengchen was a native of Yixing, who appears to have flourished from the Tianqi/Chongzhen period until the last quarter of the seventeenth century, but his precise date of birth is unrecorded. He is best known for his small pear-shaped teapots which deeply influenced his descendants and later potters up to the nineteenth century. During his early period of production, his artistic name, hao, such as Jun de or Si Ting would have been incised on the teapots. This brushwasher, which is impressed with his seal mark, and inscribed as being handmade by him, is an extremely rare example.

In the Republican treatise (Li Jingkang and Zhang Hong, 1934:39), it is stated that Yixing stoneware vessels confirmed as by Hui Mengchen are extremely rare. There are eight surviving pieces by Hui Mengchen, of which three have a 'pear-peel' effect. The current brushwasher clearly demonstrates this effect, suggesting it may be one of the ones referred to in 1934.

清早期
紫泥掺沙梨皮小水盂

「孟臣手製」篆文方印

水盂仿古式，斂口，圈足微斂，器身上窄下寬，自上從下成階梯形重疊，器身兩端飾鋪首耳水平對稱，整個器形古樸公正，線條厚實敦穆，製作工藝細緻精湛，實為紫砂博古陳設佳器。紫色拼沙，沙顆粒摻燒均勻，紫泥中呈現金黃色斑點，而手撫則似有梨皮質感。

惠孟臣，傳為名天啟、崇禎間（1621-1644年）宜興製壺名手（一說孟臣為清康熙、雍正間人）。江蘇宜興人，身卒不詳。早年常用名號如「君德」、「思亭」等，孟臣為晚年名號。所製紫砂，大器渾樸，小器精妙絕倫，其傳器較多，仿者亦眾。在現存已知孟臣所製傳視品中，此類仿古水盂並不多見。李景康、張虹1934年編著《陽羨砂壺圖考》（香港中文大學文物館，1998年重印，頁39-40）著錄孟臣傳器八件，其中三件均以摻沙梨皮而作，屬罕觀之品。

Lot 226: An Yixing stoneware model of a toad. Early Qing dynasty, signed Chen Mingyuan. Estimate: HK$300,000 – 500,000. Photo Bonhams

Provenance 來源: Hugh M. Moss Ltd., London, 1977

Illustrated 出版: Paul Moss, I-Hsing-Tea-Taste, Journal of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, vol.10, no.3, September 1978, pg.6, fig.5.

For a small Yixing stoneware model of a turtle by Chen Mingyuan in the Shanghai Museum, with matching 'Chen' seal, see Themes and Variations. The Zisha Pottery of Chen Mingyuan, Hong Kong, 1997, pg. 196, pl. 94.

See also a figure of a toad on a pine log, signed by Chen Zhongmei, sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 24 May 1978, lot 344.

清早期
紫泥雕蟾蜍

「陳」篆文圓印
「嗚遠」篆文方印

蟾蜍頭尖、圓眼、嘴巴緊閉，腹大、四支往下按，成伏地狀，其後右腳往後伸，有準備躍起之態。全身皮上多痱磊，腹下鈐「陳」篆文圓印及「嗚遠」篆文方印。工者妙用紫泥色相，塑造出蟾蜍凹凸粗糙皮，惟肖惟妙。

Lot 242: An Yixing stoneware ‘ear’ water vessel Early Qing dynasty, with signature of Xiang Zijin. Estimate: HK$100,000 – 150,000. Photo Bonhams

Provenance 來源: Collection of Alan Roger (1909-1997)
The Roger Collection, Sotheby's London, 28-30 January, 1998

Alan Roger and his brother Neil 'Bunny' Roger (1911-1997), the celebrated neo-Edwardian dandy and designer, were both decorated war heroes who built up extraordinary art collections. The extensive Chinese art collection was formed by Alan Roger, who worked for MI5 in Tehran and Hong Kong during the 2nd World War, and was then posted to Hong Kong to deal with resettlement problems.

The two-characters 'er' and 'yu' can literally be translated as ear and water vessel

The other inscriptions:
'zhi shui ming jing', 'shou shi yuan ting', 'ting yun' and 'zhuo er xianjue', and be paraphrased as:

'The brilliant one is to be awakened first, followed  by the signature 'zijing zhenwan', 'rare curio of zijin'.

Compare a tree stump water container signed by Chen Mingyuan, collected in the Chinese University of Hong Kong Art Museum(95.290), illustrated in Themes and Variations. The Zisha Pottery of Chen Mingyuan, Hong Kong, 1997, pg. 106, pl.22.

Xiang Zijin(1525-1590), also known as Xiang Yuanbian, is the descendant of a prominent clan of great wealth in Jiaxing during the Ming dynasty. Xiang was predominant in both scholarly refinements and antiquarian studies, making him not only a skillful artist in painting and calligraphy but also the foremost collector of antiquities and art of his time. His collection is often referred to as 'tianlai ge', (The Hall of Heavenly Sounds), which is said to be derived from an ancient zither he had treasured that was incised with the scripts 'tianlai'. It is recorded that Xiang commissioned the Ming teapot master, Jiang Bokua to make teapots for his collection.

清早期
段泥耳盂

「耳盂」、「包山真賞」
「止水明鏡，收視遠聽。停雲。」
「卓尔先覺。子京珍玩。」

水盂仿樹樁而塑，以鏤空及高浮雕法將樹樁外表紋理、疤痕、空洞及形狀表現得淋漓盡致，極具自然韻味。而其整體形制又如人耳，捏塑曲線如盤曲耳蝸，故刻款「耳盂」隸書二字，一物二喻，奇思妙想，亦栩栩如生。水盂正面刻款「包山真賞」草書，背面刻楷書文「止水明鏡，收視遠聽。停雲。」，足具文人氣息。底刻「卓尔先覺。子京珍玩。」，乃為紫砂文房珍品。

此件水盂為艾倫•羅傑舊藏。艾倫•羅傑（Alan
Roger）與其兄尼爾•羅傑(Neil
Roger)，也就是眾所周知的新愛德華時尚名流及設計師「兔子」羅傑（1911-1997）都被眾人描述為二戰中的兩位英雄。二戰期間，艾倫曾供職與英國軍情無處，戰後又被派赴香港處理再安置問題。

香港中文大學文物館藏一件樹樁水洗，鈐「鳴遠」方印，壁側刻款「卓爾先覺」，與本件耳盂類似，見《紫泥清韻－陳鳴遠陶藝研究》，1997，頁106，圖版22。

項子京，即項元汴（1525-1590年）明嘉慶、隆慶、萬曆間人。收藏家、畫家、壺藝愛好者。浙江嘉興人。字子京，號墨林居士。愛好壺藝，清人張燕昌《陽羨陶說》記載，宜興紫砂名工蔣伯夸所製茗壺，其壺式為元汴所定，稱「天籟閣壺」。此耳盂雖鐫「子京珍玩」款識，但從器物風格及工藝上看，應屬後人模仿所鐫刻。