LONDON.- Christie’s Asian Art sales in London this autumn will take place between 10 and 13 November, presenting a wide array of beautiful and rare works of exceptional quality and with important provenance, many offered to the market for the first time in decades. The five auctions feature important works of art from a number of collections, including Chinese Archaic Bronzes from an Important Private European Collection, the Adrian Joseph Collection, the Late Francis Golding Collection, the collection of a Private European Family, property from a European lady of title, and a collection of snuff bottles from an important private Asian collector. Spanning centuries of Chinese and Japanese craftsmanship and creativity, Christie’s Asian Art week offers something to appeal to every collector. 

The five sales are: Status and Ritual: Chinese Archaic Bronzes from an Important Private European Collection and Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, both on 10 November at King Street; The Joseph Collection of Japanese Art and Aesthetic Intuition: Collecting Japanese Art in Postwar London both on 11 November at King Street; and at South Kensington: Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles on 11 and 13 November. The public viewings all open at Christie’s King Street on Friday 6 November, and at Christie’s South Kensington on Saturday 7 November. Additionally, Christie’s will hold an online-only sale of Precious Cargo: Chinese Export Porcelain and Works of Art , which be on view at South Kensington from 7 to 10 November and opens for bidding from 3 to 17 November.  

Status and Ritual: Chinese Archaic Bronzes from an Important Private European Collection 10 November Christie’s King Street 
On 10 November Christie’s King Street will offer a group of 24 Archaic bronzes in the sale Status and Ritual: Chinese Archaic Bronzes from an Important Private European Collection. The collection was amassed during the 1960s and 1970s and it is rare for a group of this size and quality to come to auction. Intended for use in ritual ceremonies, these vessels are remarkable for their inventive shapes, bold decoration, and precise casting. The group is led by a magnificent Zun ritual wine vessel dating to the late Shang- early western Zhou dynasty (estimate: £400,000-600,000). 

A magnificent and important bronze ritual wine vessel, Zun, late Shang- early western Zhou dynasty. Estimate: £400,000-600,000. © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The bulbous mid-section and the spreading lower body of the vase are boldly cast with taotie masks interspersed with thick vertical flanges. Upright blades decorate the wide flaring cylindrical neck, also separated by flanges which protrude beyond the edge of the mouth rim. The interior of the base bears a four-character inscription. The smooth dark green patina is almost black in tone, with some areas of encrustation. 12 5/16 in. (31.2 cm.) high

Provenance; S. Kawai Collection, Kyoto.
Property of the Late Dr. A. F. Philips (1874-1951).
Sotheby's, London, 30 March 1978, lot 21.
From an important private European collection. 

Literature: Sueji Umehara, Nihon Shucho Shina Kodo Seikwa, Selected Relics of Ancient Chinese Bronzes from Collections in Japan, Osaka, 1960, vol. II, pl. CXXXV.
Ba Na and Zhang Guangyu, Zhong Ri Ou Mei Ao Niu Suo Jian Suo Ta Suo Mo Jinwen Huibian, 1978, Taipei, vol. 9, no. 1408.
Zhou Fagao, San Dai JiJinwen cun bu, 1980, Taipei, no. 645.
Minao Hayashi, Studies on Yin and Zhou Bronze Decoration: A Conspectus of Yin and Zhou Bronze Vessels, 1986, Tokyo, p. 223, no.20.

Notes: The inside of the foot of the vessel bears an inscription consisting of four characters, Wei Fu Fu Xin. A dedication to Fu Xin (Father Xin) is accompanied by two graphs. Above is cast an emblem showing four footprints encircling a rectangular ring, likely equivalent to a simpler character of oracle script, transcribed as wei. This may be read as a clan insignia, and commonly accompanies ancestral dedications, as it does here with Fu Xin, along with another pictograph depicting a quiver of arrows. 

Compare the present vessel to a zun of similar style, dated to the Late Shang period, in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated by Chen Peifen in Ancient Chinese Bronzes in the Shanghai Museum, London, 1995, p. 41. Another example of a zun of this unusual form can be found in the Pillsbury Collection, which is slightly smaller in size but almost identical in form and decoration. (See B. Karlgren, A Catalogue of the Chinese Bronzes in the Alfred F. Pillsbury Collection, Minneapolis, 1951, pp. 78-79, no. 26).

A similar flared bronze zun was sold at Christie's New York, 13-14 September 2012, lot 1226, fig. 1.

(fig. 1)

A comparable zun, similar in form but without flanges on the upper part, is illustrated by R. Bagley in Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Washington DC and Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1987, pp. 310-311. Another example of a vessel with prominent flanges, flared base and bulbous mid-section is the Boge zun of the Baoji City Museum Collection, illustrated by Li Xixing, The Shaanxi Bronzes, Xi'an, 1994, p. 170..

Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art 10 November Christie’s King Street 
On 10 November the sale Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art at Christie’s King Street will present an exceptional array of over 300 works spanning centuries of artistic practice, and includes porcelain, jade, bronzes, furniture and paintings. This auction features a number of important European collections, presenting a great selection of artworks fresh to the market. One collection is that of the Late Francis Golding (1944-2013), one of the country’s leading architectural, planning and conservation consultants, who greatly influenced the contemporary architectural landscape of London, advising on iconic buildings such as the “The Cheese Grater”, “The Walkie-Talkie” and the “Gherkin”. Golding was also a great collector of Chinese works of art, developing a deep affinity with Chinese art after being introduced to the beauty of Tang and Song dynasty ceramics in Singapore in the 1970s by the Chinese curator and scholar William Willetts. Golding assembled this exceptional collection over the last forty years, buying from reputable London dealers and international auction houses. His collection of 70 lots comprises works that span over two thousand years of Chinese art and will be offered both in the King Street Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art sale, and at Christie’s South Kensington. 

Amongst the sale highlights is a rare and finely carved white jade marriage bowl dating to the Qianlong period (1736-1795) (estimate: £100,000-150,000), from the collection of an English lady of title; a magnificent, extremely rare and finely enamelled yellow-ground famille rose floral Yuhuchunping vase, also from the Qianlong period (estimate: £300,000500,000), previously in the collection of Alfred Hunter Ballard D.S.C., R.N.R. (1896-1950); a very rare and finely painted Ming blue and white basin from the Yongle period (1403-1424) (estimate: £50,000-80,000); a rare and magnificent flambé-glazed ewer from the Yongzheng period (1723-1735), previously in the collection of Herman Baer (1898-1977) (estimate: £100,000-150,000); a large and rare polychrome decorated carved wood figure of a seated luohan from the early Ming period (circa 1400) (estimate: £200,000-300,000), from the collection of a noble English gentleman; and a landscape painting by Li Keran (1907-1989) (estimate: £200,000-300,000), from a private English collection.

Lot 88. A rare and finely carved white jade marriage bowl and a carved zitan stand, Qianlong period (1736-1795). Estimate: £100,000-150,000 ($154,200 - $231,300). Price realised GBP 782,500. © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The marriage bowl is superbly hollowed with tall, thick walls supported on four flared ruyi-form feet. The centre of the interior is exquisitely carved in high relief to depict a large open chrysanthemum flower, surrounded by six smaller chrysanthemum blooms with leafy branches. The pair of handles to the sides are finely modelled as stylised, archaistic, winged dragons with loose rings. The centre of the base is detailed with a further flower, enclosed within a network of interlocking ropes terminating in eight kui-dragon heads. The foliate zitan stand is finely carved and reticulated with archaistic scrolls, supported on six short ruyi-shaped feet. The top is covered with what appears to be imperial yellow silk. 11 in. (28 cm.) wide across the handles; the stand 9 ¼ in. (23.5 cm.) wide

Provenance: Acquired in the 1930s in China, and thence by descent within the family.

Property of an English lady of title

Notes: Marriage bowls were often presented to couples as wedding gifts, symbolising the joyful union of husband and wife. The finely carved decoration on this marriage bowl incorporates a multitude of auspicious meanings. The archaistic winged dragons convey a sense of strength and power, while the chrysanthemum blooms symbolise health and longevity. As a popular motif in Chinese art, it is believed that drinking wine or tea made with chrysanthemums can extend one's life. The Eastern Jin poet Tao Yuanming (372-427) is famous for eulogising the beauty of chrysanthemums in his poetry. 
Apart from its magnificent decoration, the present bowl is also impressive for the sheer size and quality of its natural stone. The interior and exterior of the walls were deliberately left uncarved, skilfully highlighting the beauty of the jade. 

A similar large white jade marriage bowl with winged dragon handles and ruyi-form feet was sold in Christies Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3959.
Also see another similar marriage bowl in, Li Jiufang (Palace Museum),  Zhongguo Yuqi Quanji-6 Qing, Hebei, 1991, p. 215, no. 314.

Lot 305. A magnificent, extremely rare and finely enamelled yellow-ground famille rose floral Yuhuchunping vase, Qianlong four-character seal mark in iron red and of the period (1736-1795). Estimate: £300,000-500,000 ($462,600 - $771,000). Price realised GBP 338,500. © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The yuhuchun vase is skilfully potted with a bulbous body rising to a waisted neck and a flared mouth, supported on a short foot. The exterior of the body is exquisitely decorated with clusters of colourful floral sprays with stylised scrolling leaves, including lotus, peach blossom, rose, morning glory, pomegranate, lily, honeysuckle, narcissus, iris, anemone, aster and passiflora. The floral arrangements are reserved on a bright lemon-yellow ground detailed with intricate arabesques in sgraffiato, set between a striking blue-ground floral band above and a border of lotus petals encircling the foot. The neck is similarly enamelled with a yellow-ground floral design, below a red foliate border and a gilt band around the mouth rim. 12 in. (30.4 cm.) high

Provenance: The collection of Alfred Hunter Ballard D.S.C., R.N.R. (1896-1950), thence by descent within the family.
The collection of James Adams Ballard (1855-1908), acquired in China in the late 19th century. 

Notes: This superb Qianlong-period famille rose vase which was acquired in China by the vendor’s great grandfather, James Adams Ballard (1855-1908), who lived in Shanghai in the late 19th century. Born in Sandhurst, Kent, Ballard moved to Shanghai working at Russell & Company, Qichang Yanghang, which was most prominent American trading house in Qing Dynasty China. After the trading company’s closure in 1891, Ballard entered the insurance business, eventually entering into partnership with Alfred Carroll Hunter, forming the firm Messrs Ballard and Hunter. During Ballard’s time in Shanghai, he joined the directorate of the Shanghai Mercury and Evening Post, Da Mei Wanbao, and he was one of the founders of the Shanghai Free Christian Church, Xin En Tang, remaining a prominent member of the community until his death in 1908 at the age of fifty-three.

Alfred Hunter Ballard D.S.C., R.N.R. (1896-1950) with pet lemur.

The vase was inherited by Ballard’s second son, Alfred Hunter Ballard D.S.C., R.N.R. (1896-1950), who was born in Shanghai and named after his father’s good friend and business partner. The younger Ballard would eventually become a decorated soldier in the British Armed Forces. He fought in the First and Second World Wars, and eventually becoming a Temporary Lieutenant in the Royal Naval Reserve, earning the Distinguished Service Cross and bar for gallantry, skill, determination and devotion to duty in two events in the Second World War.

Alfred Hunter Ballard D.S.C., R.N.R. (1896-1950) behind another Royal Navy offcer on HMS Daneman.

The exceptional quality of the painting seen on this magnificent vase showcases the advanced technical innovations in porcelain production achieved by the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen during the Qianlong reign (1736-1795), under the supervision of the famous ceramicist Tang Ying (1682-1756). The bright lemon-yellow ground of this vase provides a great richness and clarity that highlights the other enamel colours, including shades of pink, purple, orange and green, to their best advantage. It appears that yellow-ground vessels found particular favour at the Qing court of the 18th century, which continued through to the 19th century. Compare the present vase to other imperial yellow-ground vessels produced at the time, such as a yellow-ground mallet-shaped yangcai vase painted with a ‘double-lotus’ design in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, included in the exhibition Stunning Decorative Porcelains from the Ch’ien-lung Reign, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 2008, no. 28; and a Qianlong mark and period Beijing enamel jarlet, also in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, illustrated in Enamel Ware in the Ming and Ch’ing Dynasties, Taipei, 1999, pl. 109. Furthermore, see a similarly finely enamelled double-gourd vase from the collections of Lord Loch of Drylaw, Alfred Morrison, John Morrison, Lord Margadale of Islay and J.T. Tai was sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 7 October 2010, lot 2126.
According to the porcelain inventory of the Qing imperial court archives dated to the 8th day of the 2nd month of the 16th year of the Qianlong reign, corresponding to 1751, a pair of yangcai yuhuchun vases decorated with the jin shang tian hua design were produced and delivered to the imperial court. The auspicious idiom jin shang tian hua, ????, which may be literally translated as ‘adding flowers to the brocade’, refers to the act of further perfecting something which is already beautiful. The sgraffiato design used on porcelain vessels is called the jin ground in Chinese, ??, hence the design of flowers set against a sgraffiato ground are aptly named as jin shang tian hua. The current yuhuhun vase, with its jin shang tian hua design, fits the description of the pair of vases documented in the palace record. One yellow-ground yuhuchun vase previously in a private American collection has an identical shape and design to the present lot, and was sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 8 October 2014, lot 3639. It is possible that the current vase and the one sold at Sotheby’s are the pair of recorded yangcai jin shang tian hua vases, as no other extant examples appear to have been published.

Porcelain inventory of the Qing imperial court archives, dated to the 8th day of the 2nd month of the 16th year of the Qianlong reign, corresponding to 1751, published in Qing gong ciqi dang’an quanji – The complete collection of Qing dynasty imperial palace records for porcelain, vol. 3, Beijing, 2008, p. 388.

Offcial record of the delivery of a pair of yangcai sgraffato yuhuchun vases to the imperial palace, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period, dated to 1751 (illustrated in Qing gong ciqi dang’an quanji, vol. 3, Beijing, 2008, p. 388)

Lot 321. A very rare and finely painted Ming blue and white basin, Yongle period (1403-1424); 12 ¾ in. (32.4 cm.) diam. Estimate: £50,000-80,000 ($77,100 - $123,360). Price realised GBP 86,500. © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The interior of the vessel is finely painted in vibrant shades of cobalt blue to depict a large open-form flower, with each petal containing an auspicious emblem. The flower is encircled by a key-fret border, with the interior of the walls decorated with seven stylised lotus blooms supported on leafy scrolls, below a narrow band of floral sprays to the splayed mouth. The exterior is further decorated with seven various flower blooms with leafy scrolls. The base is left unglazed. 

A Rare Large Yongle Basin

Rosemary Scott, International Academic Director Asian Art

This exceptional Yongle basin belongs to a small group of porcelain vessels decorated in underglaze cobalt blue, which are of a shape inspired by vessels from the Islamic West. In the Yongle reign the porcelain vessels of this form were made in a variety of sizes from those with a mouth diameter of 16.5 cm., to those with a mouth diameter of 34.9 cm. The current basin is one of the larger vessels. Both the form and some aspects of the decoration on these basins reflect the interest evinced by the Chinese elite of the early 15th century in certain wares entering China from the West. 



The distinctive form of the basin has its origins in both metal and glass vessels produced in the Near East. A 14th century Syrian enamelled glass example in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum, New York, is illustrated by John A. Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, London, 1981, plate 135, B, while a Syrian/Egyptian brass basin with silver inlay dated to the 14th century in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is illustrated by Feng Xianming in 'Yongle and Xuande Blue-and-White Porcelain in the Palace Museum', Chinese Ceramics Selected articles from Orientations 1982-1998, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 177, fig. 10, where it is shown together with a Yongle blue and white basin in the Palace Museum, Beijing. A further silver-inlaid metalwork example dated to 13th-14th century Egyptian Mamluk period is now in the collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and was exhibited at the Hayward Gallery and published in The Arts of Islam, Arts Council of Great Britain, London, 1976, p. 189, no. 213. The authors of this exhibition catalogue point out that these basins follow a form that was already known in Syria and Egypt in Ayyubid times (AD 1238-40) and refer to one in the same volume (illustrated ibid., p. 181, no. 198). This earlier version, however, lacks the very slightly waisted, straight sides and the sharp angle to a flattened rim that is characteristic of the later form that inspired the Chinese porcelain basins. A further example in the collection of Nasser Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah is illustrated in Islamic Art in the Kuwait National Museum, The al-Sabah Collection, Marilyn Jenkins (ed.), London, 1983, p. 94. 



Chinese early 15th century porcelain basins of this type are ornamented with a variety of decorative schemes on the interior, but the exterior is invariably painted with a floral scroll of some kind. Despite the fact that both the Syrian glass example and the Mamluk brass example, mentioned above, both bear decoration in which Arabic calligraphy plays a major role, the Chinese blue and white porcelain versions of this form adopt a very different decorative style. Although the arabesques on the interior base of some of the porcelain basins, and the dianthus on the rim of others, such as the current vessel, have Near Eastern origins, the rest of the decoration appears purely Chinese. Several of these basins, for example, have a band of turbulent waves around the rim, such as two basins – one with a mouth diameter of 16.5 cm. and another with a mouth diameter of 31.6 cm – are in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing (illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum – 34 – Blue and White Porcelain with underglaze Red (I), Hong Kong, 2000, p. 53, no. 50; and Gugong bowuyuan cang – Ming chu qinghua ci, Beijing, 2002, shang ce, pp. 62-3, no. 28, respectively). A similar basin bearing the wave band around the rim is in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Ming dai chunian ciqi tezhen mulu, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1982, p. 110, no. 45. A further example is published by R. Fujioka and G. Hasebe, Sekai toji zenshu - 14 Ming, Tokyo, 1976, p. 166, no. 151, and an example from the Brundage Collection was exhibited in Blue and White - Chinese Porcelain and its Impact on the Western World, Chicago, 1985, no. 28. 

This distinctive wave band is characteristic of fine imperial wares of the Yongle reign, and appears on a wide range of vessel shapes during this reign period. 



The inclusion of these Yongle porcelain basins in the Chinese imperial collections, and the fact that none appear in the Ardebil collection, and only one in the collection of the Topkapi Saray in Istanbul (illustrated by J. Ayers & R. Krahl,Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum Istanbul, vol. II, London, 1986, 516, no. 611, and colour plate on p. 421), suggests that these vessels, despite their foreign form, were in fact intended for elite patrons in China, and not as export wares. Further evidence for this basin form being appreciated by the Chinese court is that it also appears in the Xuande reign, and an example bearing a Xuande reign mark is published in Chinese Ceramics from the Museum Yamato Bunkakan, illustrated catalogue Series no. 7, Nara, 1977, no. 134. It is also significant that this was a form that was copied, with its original decorative schemes in the reigns of the great Qing emperors. A Yongzheng example, for example, is preserved in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing (illustrated in Gugong bowuyuan cang – Ming chu qinghua ci, Beijing, 2002, xia ce, pp. 364-5, no. 196). 



Judging from published extant examples, it appears that only the larger Yongle basins, like the current vessel, were decorated with a complex dianthus band on the rim. A basin of 30.9 cm. diameter in the collection of the Nanjing Museum, illustrated in Zhongguo Nanjing Bowuyuan suocang, TBS, Tokyo, 1998, p. 34, no. 6; and an even larger one with a diameter of 31.6 cm. in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 34 - Blue and White Porcelain with Underglaze Red (I), op. cit., p. 52, no. 49, are cases in point. Another large basin with a diameter of 30.8 cm. in the collection of the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco also has this dianthus band (illustrated by He Li in Chinese Ceramics, London, 1996, p. 219, no. 398). A medium-sized basin (diameter 25.6 cm.) in the Tianminlou Collection has a slightly different version of the dianthus band (illustrated in Chinese Porcelain – The S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Hong Kong, 1987, Part I, no. 13), as has another medium-sized (diameter 26.6 cm.) basin in the National Palace Museum, Taipei (illustrated in Porcelain of the National Palace Museum – Blue-and-White Ware of the Ming Dynasty, Book II (Part I), Hong Kong, 1963, pp. 64-5, no 22). 



The larger basins with dianthus bands, such as the current vessel, differ from the wave-band group in that they do not have arabesques on the interior, but instead have a ring of lotus petals containing auspicious emblems within an encircling key-fret band. The interior sides are embellished with a lotus scroll. The majority of these Yongle basins have a mixed floral scroll decorating their external sides. Such scrolls are well-painted and the flowers are carefully defined. It is notable that the number of flowers comprising these scrolls also appears to have been adjusted to take into account the size of the vessel, in order to obtain the most well-balanced effect. In the case of the current vessel the scroll includes seven different flowers – peony, yellow hibiscus ??, chrysanthemum, camellia, crab-apple, convolvulus (morning glory) and lotus. 



The current basin displays a particularly successful melding of Chinese design with elements of western inspiration. The form of the current basin does, in fact, provide an ideal shape to display the purity of the Yongle porcelain body, the clarity and painterly application of the cobalt blue, and the artistic ingenuity that combined the elements of its decoration to create a harmonious overall design.

Lot 347. A rare and magnificent flambé-glazed ewer, huajiao, Yongzheng impressed four-character seal mark and of the period (1723-1735). Estimate: £100,000-150,000 ($154,200 - $231,300). Price realised GBP 578,500. © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The ewer is elegantly potted with a wide bulbous body and moulded with a band of chrysanthemum petals to the shoulder. The tall neck is shaped with a knop to the mid-section, rising to a flared spout. There is an arched handle linking the neck to the shoulder. It is covered in a rich raspberry-red flambé glaze suffused with vibrant purple and milky white streaks, thinning to beige at the extremities of the mouth and handle. 10 in. (25.4 cm.) high

Provenance: The Collection of Herman Baer (1898-1977).

Property from the collection of Herman Baer (1898-1977) 

Herman Baer (1898-1977) was born in Bavaria but moved to Berlin where he worked with interior design and antiques. In 1936, Baer feared persecution in Germany and fled to London with his wife where he set up an antiques shop on Davies Street. He soon became one of London's most respected antiques dealers and was often seen in the city's auction houses acquiring works of art. Baer developed close relationships with international collectors, including Kenneth Thompson and various members of the Brenninkmeyer family. Many of the pieces from Thompson's collection are now on display at the Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada. Although Baer passed away in 1977, his shop remained open, run by his wife until 1988. 

Notes: he perfectly balanced form and rich flambé glaze of the present ewer exemplify the best elements of Yongzheng imperial porcelain. This elegant and rare form is likely to have been inspired by Middle Eastern metalwares. A Persian bronze ewer from the 12th century, illustrated by Eva Baer in Metalwork in Medieval Islamic Art, New York, 1983, p. 96, provides an example of the kind of vessel that may have stimulated the production of the current porcelain ewer. Due to trade between China and the Middle East during the Yuan (1279-1368) and early Ming (1368-1644) dynasties, many Chinese porcelain vessels began to take their form from Middle Eastern metal or glass wares. This practice was first established for Chinese porcelain wares made specifically for export to the west but soon became an integral factor in the porcelain wares made for use at the Chinese imperial court. The form of the current ewer is a particularly fine and graceful example of this tradition. 

There are several known examples of this form dating to the Yongzheng period, some with a handle and some without. However, only two examples with flambé glaze appear to be published; one in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Gugong Bowuyuan Cang: Qingdai Yuyao Ciqi (juan 1 xia), Beijing, 2005, pp. 314-315, no. 143. The other sold at Sotheby's, Hong Kong, 21 May 1979, lot 101.

A ewer of this form but with a teadust glaze is also in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated inMonochrome Porcelain, The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 244.

Also compare to a celadon-glazed ewer of this form but with no handle which sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 28 May 2014, lot 3305; and to a blue and white version sold at Christie's King Street, 7 November 2006, lot 196.

A large and rare polychrome decorated carved wood figure of a seated luohan, Early Ming dynasty, circa 1400. Estimate: £200,000-300,000 ($308,400 - $462,600). © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The impressive figure is finely carved seated in dyanasana with the arms in front of the body, wearing long flowing robes which are elaborately detailed with intricate chrysanthemum flower scrolls, stylised dragons and cloud scrolls, rendered in shades of white, blue, green and orange. He has a serene expression to the face, with pendulous earlobes and long drooping eyebrows framing the downcast eyes. 46 in. (117 cm.) high

Property of a noble English gentleman

A Recently Discovered Important Early Ming Sculpture

Rosemary Scott, International Academic Director Asian Art

The large figure of a seated luohan in the current sale appears to have been kept, unpublished, in a private collection in England prior to its discovery by the current owner in a general antiques sale in London in 2012. Its importance was not recognized until the current owner undertook further research. In order to aid the establishment of an accurate date for the sculpture, radiocarbon measurements of the wood from which the figure was carved were undertaken by two internationally respected research laboratories – the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, University of Oxford, and RCD RadioCarbon Dating in Wantage. Both laboratories produced similar dates – AD 1296 to 1403. The current owner also contacted the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, who were able to ascertain that the wood itself was of the genus Tilia – known as lime tree in Britain, and linden or basswood elsewhere.

As can be seen from figures 1, 2 & 3 (taken during conservation), when purchased in 2012, the figure was heavily encrusted with darkened layers of shellac and bituminous varnish, which all but obscured the details of decoration and the coloured pigments applied to the figure. After cleaning it could be seen that a significant proportion of these pigments had been preserved and the magnificence of the luohan’s original appearance could be appreciated. Not only details of the face and hair, but most especially the design and colours of the robes could be seen in their full splendor. 

 Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

The term luohan is the Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word, arhat, which was originally a term referring to those who had achieved a high degree of enlightenment. However, by the Tang dynasty in China (AD 618-907),luohans were considered the disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha, who maintain his teachings until the coming of the Future Buddha, Maitreya. The political strife of the 7th and 8th centuries left many devotees eagerly anticipating the arrival of Maitreya, and thus elevated the importance of the luohan. That popularity endured for centuries thereafter, even during times of relative peace and prosperity in China. Prior to the 7th century, luohans were generally represented by a pair of standing figures flanking an image of Buddha, usually identified as Kashyapa and Ananda, two of the ten principle disciples of Buddha and important figures in early Buddhism. Kashyapa generally stands on the Buddha’a left, while Ananda stands on the Buddha’s right. These figures can be seen on either side of the Buddha in the Northern Wei Central Binyang Cave at Longmen (see Angela Falco Howard, et al., Chinese Sculpture, New Haven, London & Beijing, 2006, p. 238, fig. 3.39) and in a niche at the Huangze Monastery in Sichuan Province, carved in the Northern Zhou period (ibid., p. 289, fig. 3.94). The introduction of the Nandimitra Sutra (Record of the Abiding Dharma Spoken by the Great Arhat Nandimitra) from India to China by the monk Xuanzang (AD 602-664), and its translation into Chinese, had a significant effect on the place of luohans within Chinese Buddhism. Rather than depicting only two luohans, these disciples began to appear in groups of 16, 18, 100 or 500 - with 18 being the most common. 



Despite the dignified upright posture of the current figure, there are several elements which suggest that the craftsman did not intend to depict a young man. Two features are particularly telling. Firstly the luohan is shown with long eyebrows, which is usually a sign of venerable old age on such images. Secondly the throat of the figure is depicted with prominent cords, also suggestive of considerable age. In addition, a pronounced protuberance can be seen in the centre of the luohan’s forehead. These features, combined with the style of the robe, suggest that the figure may be intended to represent Kashyapa, who, as mentioned above, was one of the favourite disciples of Shakyamuni. Indeed Kashyapa is perhaps the most famous of Shakyamuni's disciples. He is believed to emanate light, which could explain the glowing white colour of the skin, where it is exposed, on the current figure. In Chan Buddhism Kashyapa is often regarded as the first Indian patriarch, while Ananda is considered the second. In early depictions of Kashyapa he is shown with features appropriate to his Indian origins, however, by the Ming dynasty his features had become sinicised – as on the current figure – and he appears as a Chinese monk. Kashyapa and Ananda are regarded as the oldest and youngest of Shakyamini’s disciples. Hence Kashyapa is depicted as a venerable old man, while Ananda is depicted as a handsome youth. 



Large sculptural images of luohan groups were often created in glazed ceramic, and these were both cheaper to produce and often more durable than images made of organic materials. Among the best known group of ceramicluohans is that removed from caves northwest of Yixian (previously known as Yizhou), Hebei province, to the east of Longmen, Henan province, in 1912. These are now housed in various Western museums (discussed by D. Leidy and D. Strahan in Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2010, pp. 112-16, nos. 23a and 23b). The dating of the Yixian sculptures has been the subject of much scholarly debate over the years with dates ranging from the Tang dynasty to the Ming dynasty being proposed. In recent years the group has most often been dated to the Liao dynasty (AD 907-1125), however new research by Dr. Eileen Hsiang-ling Hsu, presented in a 2014 lecture at Wesleyan University Center for the Arts, ‘Monks in Glaze: Workshop, Patronage, and Iconography of Large Luohan Statues from North China’, has led her to suggest a Ming date for the Yixian group. This is of particular interest since the highly individualist faces of some of the Yixian luohans share elements with that of the current figure. It is also of interest to compare the current figure with another group of glazed ceramic sculptures of Ming date. This group bear inscriptions dating them to the 20th year of Chenghua (AD 1484). Particularly noteworthy are two almost identical seated luohan figures, one of which is in the Burrell Collection in Glasgow (illustrated in Richard Marks, Rosemary Scott, et al., The Burrell Collection, Glasgow, 1987, p. 40) while the other is in the Seattle Museum of Art. The bodies of these Chenghua figures have similar impressive substance to the current figure, and although the faces lack the greater detail seen on the current luohan, the treatment of the eyes is comparable. The detailing on the edges of the robes on both the Burrell and Seattle luohans also reflects a similar attention to the detailed reproduction of precious textiles to that seen on the current wooden figure.



Interesting comparisons may be made between the current luohan and some of the Ming dynasty painted clay figures in the Hall of Shakyamuni at the Shuanglin Temple (Double-grove Temple) in Pingyao County, Shanxi province. In particular, the face of a standing luohan in the Hall of Shakyamuni (fig. 4) shares with the current figure a similar shape of face, shape and size of nose, definition of cheek bones, age and expression lines, and throat details (illustrated by Li Song in Angela Falco Howard, et al., Chinese Sculpture, New Haven, London & Beijing, 2006, p. 439, pl. 4.78). The Shuanglin Temple was granted state protection by the Chinese government as a site of exceptional historical and cultural importance in 1988, and in 1997 UNESCO included the temple on its World Heritage List in recognition of the outstanding quality of the statues in the temple. The Shuanglin Temple is in the village of Xiaoqiao Tou, in the southwest of Pingyao, and was originally known as the Zhongdu Temple, but its name was changed during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127) in order to commemorate a saying associated with Shakyamuni: ‘to disappear into two groves’: that is to enter nirvana from between the two groves. This was a reference to the Bamboo Grove in Rajagaha, the first capital of the kingdom of Magadha, and the Jetavana Grove in Savatthi, the capital of Kosala – two of the most important Indian holy sites, associated with the preaching of Shakyamuni. The temple has a long history and was rebuilt in the Northern Qi period, but the majority of what remains in the present day dates to the extensive restoration which took place in the Ming dynasty. There are more than 1500 well-preserved statues in the temple complex, and some of those dating to the Ming dynasty are generally acknowledged to be masterpieces of Ming Buddhist sculpture. 

Fig. 4

Two aspects of the decoration on the current figures' robes are particularly rare and interesting. One of these is the painted chrysanthemum scroll which can be seen on the edge of the robe which falls over the figure’s right hand. The other is the chi dragon scroll with raised outlines which can be seen on the red and green edge of another robe. The chrysanthemum scroll is interesting because, although chrysanthemums are mentioned in early Chinese literature, including the Shijing (Book of Odes, which contains poetry dating from the 11th to the 7th century BC), and do occasionally appear on earlier works of art, their linear depiction is rare before the reign of the first Ming dynasty Emperor Hongwu (AD 1368-98). This is particularly noticeable when examining underglaze decorated porcelains, which can be accurately dated from stratification at the Imperial kilns at Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. The form of thechi dragons (or feline dragons), which form a scroll by holding in their jaws the tail of the creature in front, is also rare – being a linear depiction of an animal which is more usually carved in relief or in the round, particularly in jade, from the Han dynasty onwards. A low-relief dragon of this type can be seen on a Han dynasty (2nd-1st century BC) scabbard slide in the collection of Sir Joseph Hotung (illustrated by Jessica Rawson in Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, p. 301, no. 21:14). A similarly dated jade bi in the collection of the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, has a chi dragon providing pierced decoration (ibid., p. 310, fig. 3). Chi dragons with larger heads, like those on the current luohan’s robes – characteristic of the Ming dynasty – can be seen climbing up the sides of a Ming dynasty jade rhyton, published in the same volume, p. 396, no. 29:8. The dragons on the robe have retained the exaggerated articulation on their limbs that is typical of the archaistic treatment of these creatures. This feature, as well as the elaborate scrolling tails of the dragons on the luohan’s robe was carried into the depiction of kui dragons – with extended noses – on porcelains of the Xuande (AD 1426-35) and Chenghua (AD 1465-87) reigns. Another interesting feature of this dragon scroll, unrelated to its iconography, is that it has not simply been painted onto the robe. The outlines and details have been created in low relief lines and dots, prior to the application of colour, to provide added richness of texture. The use of this time-consuming technique, which in lacquer can be traced as far back as the Han dynasty, and is related both to Yuan and Ming cloisonné enamels and to Ming dynasty fahua decorated porcelains, emphasises the high quality of this figure, and the fact that no expense was spared in its creation. 

Li Keran (1907-1989), Mountains. Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper. Inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist, 18 x 27 in. (46 x 69 cm). Estimate: £200,000-300,000 ($308,400 - $462,600). © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

Provenance: From a private English collection, acquired in the late 1960s. 

The Joseph Collection of Japanese Art 11 November Christie’s King Street 
On 11 November Christie’s will present a fine group of mid-17th to early-18th century Japanese porcelain, including shoki-Imari, Kutani and Nabeshima, from the collection of Adrian Malcolm Joseph. This delightful collection, begun in the 1960s, shows the extraordinary designs of Edo period ceramics as well as the remarkable accomplishment of the Nabeshima kilns. The collection further comprises a group of carefully chosen lacquer works from the 17th-19th centuries, many from London exhibitions including those of Eskenazi. Included are a magnificent Shibata Zeshin panel (estimate £80,000-100,000) and an important Ko-Kutani Dish (estimate: £300,000-400,000). 

Adrian Malcolm Joseph started studying and collecting Chinese ceramics during the late 1950s. He published various important papers and books including Ming Porcelains: Their Origins and Development (1971) and Chinese and Annamese Ceramics found in the Philippines and Indonesia (1973). He and his wife Phyllis began collecting Japanese art in the late1960s, initially acquiring ceramics from the important dealers such as Shimojo in Tokyo. Joseph became a Director of Hugh Moss Ltd. in the 1970s. 

A Magnificent Shibata Zeshin Panel. Signed Zeshin and sealed Tairyukyo [Shibata Zeshin (1807-1891)]. Estimate £80,000-100,000 ($123,360 - $154,200). © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The circular wood panel polished to reveal the complex wood grain and lacquered in gold, silver, black and redhiramaki-e and takamaki-e, with insect mica eyes, depicting two fighting cockerels, with fitted inner and outer boxes  - 41.7cm. diam.

Provenance: Spink and Son Ltd., London

Literature: Spink and Son Ltd., The Arts of Japan, (London, 1990), p. 30, no. 19.

An Important Kokutani Dish, Yanbeta kiln, Edo period (mid-17th century). Estimate: £300,000-400,000 ($462,600 - $616,800). © Christie’s Images Limited 2015.

The shallow circular dish on a short foot, decorated in iron-red, blue, green, yellow, aubergine and black enamels with a pine tree overhanging grasses encircled by a broad band of flowers and scrolling foliage in red borders, the reverse decorated with flowers and scrolling foliage, a square Fuku mark inside the footring - 36.3cm. diam.

Provenance: Sotheby’s London, 10th May, 1972 
Hugh Moss

A Large Early Overglaze Polychrome Enamelled Dish Made in Arita in Kokutani Style
Ohashi Koji, Director emeritus, Kyushu Ceramic Museum

This large dish depicts a powerful design of pine tree and grasses. The dish was fired at the Yanbeta kiln in Arita where other large aode [green] style dishes were also produced. Not only its superb design, but also from an academic perspective it is a rare example that can be dated specifically to the 1650s. The earliest Japanese porcelain decorated with polychrome overglaze enamels were produced in Arita, present-day Saga prefecture. Overglaze enamel designs on porcelain began around 1647 after adopting the technique from China. Early overglaze enamel porcelain produced up to 1660s are known as Kokutani [old Kutani] style. In 2013, the excavation of the Yanbeta kiln site in Arita unearthed more than 500 sherds of overglaze enamel decorated dishes in both large and medium sizes.¹ It can therefore be reasoned that early overglaze enamel ware was produced in the Yanbeta kiln as so many large sherds dating from 1640s to 1650s and decorated with polychrome overglaze enamel and/or underglaze cobalt blue were excavated from this site.

The Yanbeta excavation also revealed distinctive characteristics of overglaze enamel decorated wares dating from 1647-1650s as opposed to those that date to or after the 1650s. From around 1647 to 1650, the beginning of the polychrome overglaze decoration techniques, the quality of the work was high and produced using the techniques based on those found at the Jingdezhen kilns, Jiangxi Province, China. The sharp porcelain bodies were decorated with underglaze cobalt blue designs. However, slightly later works dating from the early 1650s used, in general, coarser white porcelain bodies, many were immaturely fired and lacked decoration or bowstring lines in underglaze cobalt blue. Instead, Theaode style emerged, in which the porcelain body was decorated with black overglaze enamel outlines and the surface entirely covered with vibrant overglaze enamel colourants in green, yellow, aubergine and blue. Among the ceramics excavated from the Yanbeta kiln site, sherds decorated in gosaide [five colours] style were also present. These sherds were made from coarser white porcelain and were decorated in strong overglaze polychrome enamels. This type of early overglaze enamel on large dishes dating to the 1650s is known in Indonesia with examples housed in the National Museum of Indonesia’s collections.² Sherds from a large gosaide dish dating to the same period was also excavated from the Royal Palace of Banten Sultanate in west Java³ confirming that Japanese early overglaze enamel porcelains were exported overseas at that period.

The distinctive feature of the work offered in this sale (lot 50) is the use of the colour red in the decorative scheme. The red colour appears in the bowstring lines of the iron-red border the band around the rim that depicts a floral peony scroll with red flowers supported by a floral scroll in green and yellow enamels with black lining. The double bowstring red lines encircle the central medallion with its design of pine and grasses painted in green, aubergine, blue and red articulated with black outlining. The use of red in such way as well as the inclusion of aubergine overglaze enamel was found in mid-sized dishes excavated from the later period of the Yanbeta kiln. A similar reverse design of a peony floral scroll is seen on a large dish decorated with chrysanthemums dating to the 1650s also excavated from the Yanbeta kiln (this dish is in the gosaide style but does not make use of the colour red). Other known examples are in the Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art⁴, and excavated from the Banten Sultanate Palace discussed above and at the Utsuki site in Hachijojima Island, Tokyo⁵. Utsuki is the island where the Bizen daimyo Ukita Hideie (1573-1655), one of the council of five elders appointed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was exiled after having sided against Tokugawa Ieyasu in the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600. Until his death in 1655, his relative from the Maeda clan of Kaga domain supported Hideie and sent him supplies and goods including Chinese porcelains and quality shoki Imari porcelain ware, which have since been excavated. The large enamelled dish discussed above was discovered from a level that dates to the period around Hideie’s death. This suggests that the dish offered here was made by 1655 at the latest.

1. Ohashi Koji and Murakami Nobuyuki, Yanbeta iseki hakkutsu chosa gaiyo houkokusho [Research briefing report on excavations at the Yanbeta kiln site], (Saga, March 2014); Ohashi Koji, ‘Hizen no iroe jiki no hajimari [Beginning of enamelled porcelain in Hizen]’ in Kinsei toji kenkyukai, Edo zenki ni okeru nihon jiki no hajimari to iroe no hajimari[The beginning of Japanese porcelains and enamelled ware in the early Edo period], (Saga, 2015).
2. Kyushu Ceramic Museum ed., Umi o watatta Hizen no yakimono ten [Hizen wares abroad: The 10th anniversary special exhibition], (Saga, 1990), fig. 1.
3. Ohashi Koji and Sakai Takashi, ‘Ceramics from the Site of Banten in Indonesia’ in Bulletin of the National Museum of Japanese History, vol. 82, March 1999, fig. 7-8.
4. Kyushu Ceramic Museum and Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art, Imari and Kokutani meihin ten [Exhibition of Imari and old Kutani masterpieces], (Kanazawa, 1987), fig. 78.
5. Kokugakuin University, Tokyo-to Hachijo-mura Toriuchi iseki, Utsuki iseki chosa hokokusho [Research briefing report on excavations at Toriuchi and Utsuki, Hachijomachi, Tokyo], 1994, fig. 54.

This lot was published in Imaizumi Motosuke’s book, Shoki Arita to Kokutani [Early Arita and old Kutani], (Tokyo, 1974), no.76, in which he mentioned that this dish was in England. 

Literature: Imaizumi Motosuke, Shoki arita to kokutani, (Tokyo, 1974), no.76

(press report 1972)

Notes: In the 1630s, the Saga domain restructured the Arita area kilns in Kyushu. Domain officials were concerned with deforestation but also keen to reap profits from this new industry. Arita had come to the fore as a substitute production centre when the famed kilns in Jingdezhen, China, were unable to export ceramics abroad. Thirteen kilns were permitted to operate in the narrow valley containing the town of Arita, an area called the uchiyama (the area within, or the sanctioned inner kilns). Many of the potters were Korean and Chinese. Some of those kilns were soon shut down because they were still firing stoneware. The inner kilns produced small, elegant porcelains of the sort long favoured in Western collections. 

Standing apart and operating independently were the more entrepreneurial, but unprotected outer kilns (sotoyama), such as Yanbeta, where the dish offered here was produced. Yanbeta represents the creative fringe, where potters and painters felt free to try out innovative and striking designs. Even though they were not protected by the domain oficials, Yanbeta and other kilns on the periphery of Arita pursued markets throughout Japan and occasionally in Southeast Asia. These sotoyama porcelains, especially in the Kokutani style, created bold and sensuous designs, each distinctively unique, as in this example. 

Professor Ohashi Koji, Director emeritus of Kyushu Ceramic Museum, Arita, dates this dish to the first half of the 1650s and says that it is from the Yanbeta kiln site. It has not been bisque fired, which is typical of that period. The Yanbeta kiln area is now a National Historic Site, with the remains of nine climbing kilns. Large dishes with rich colour tones in aubergine, deep green, yellow, red and blue enamels are characteristic of this site and are now known as Kokutani, to distinguish these porcelains from later wares fired in Kutani, located in the Kaga region of Ishikawa Prefecture. Kokutani is a rather coarse porcelain but often looks very white because of the use of a white slip. It has been suggested that Chinese potters from Fujian Province travelled to Japan in the 1650s and served as advisers at the Yanbeta kiln. 

A link with China, intended to capture the new taste for Chinese works, is the “Good Luck” symbol that appears on the bases of many Japanese porcelains in imitation of inscriptions found on Chinese trade ceramics. One of the most common symbols is fuku (luck), rendered in black lines, as in the present example. The widespread use of this and related characters on Japanese porcelains ended for the most part in the early eighteenth century.

AESTHETIC INTUITION: Collecting Japanese Art in Postwar London 11 November Christie’s King Street 
London holds a special significance in the history of Japanese art collecting, with many important auctions held during the mid-late 20th century. This inspired generations of collectors, with many forming highly important collections including those of W.W. Winkworth, Sir Frank Bowden and Denys Eyre Bower. This special sale of AESTHETIC INTUITION: Collecting Japanese Art in Postwar London on 11 November will present a carefully selected group of historically significant Japanese works of art in the spirit of these collections. With works spanning over 1,000 years and celebrating different artistic traditions, the sale includes important early sculpture, porcelain, folding screens, woodblock prints and fine lacquer. Highlights include an important gold Tebako [cosmetic box], Edo period (17th century), exhibited in the Tokugawa Art Museum in an exhibition of Treasures of the Owari Tokugawa Family (estimate: £300,000-400,000); a pair of Edo Period six-fold Japanese screens depicting Cherry Blossoms at Mount Yoshino (estimate: £80,000-100,000); a portrait of sumo wrestler Yoshinoyama Yojiro by Foujita Tsuguharu (1886-1968) (estimate: £100,000150,000) and a 17th century Kakiemon Bowl with 18th century French Louis XVI ormolu mounts (estimate: £120,000-150,000). 

Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles 11 & 13 November Christie’s South Kensington 
Christie’s South Kensington two-day Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles sale on 11 and 13 November comprises over 700 lots spanning over two thousand years of Chinese history from the Shang Dynasty (1500 – 1028 BC) to the Republic period (1912-49) and includes ceramics, jade carvings, furniture, scholars’ objects, paintings, cloisonné enamel, lacquer ware, Buddhist gilt bronzes and textiles. The sale features many significant private collections including a 16-lot Private English Collection of jade and jadeite carvings, predominantly assembled in the 1950s and 1960s. This collection is highlighted by an unusually large ‘lotus and crab’ jadeite brush washer with carved wood stand (estimate: £30,000-50,000). The sale has a notable selection of snuff bottles with two private collections: the 22-lot Julia Shackelford Hunter (1919-2014) collection of snuff bottles acquired in 1948-49; and the 15-lot collection, Property from an Important Private Asian Collector. A highlight from the latter collection are two inside-painted glass snuff bottles, one decorated with a ‘Hundred Boys’ design and the other with a cowherd, both signed by the 20th century artist Liu Shouben (estimate: £3,000-5,000). Other notable collections include Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art from the Collection of the Late Francis Golding (1944-2013). At South Kensington, it is headlined by a pair of cloisonné enamel candlesticks, Qianlong period (1736-1795), estimated at £10,000-15,000. Amongst the Buddhist gilt bronzes in the sale is a striking 18th-19th century standing figure of Shakyamuni from a private Irish collection, acquired in the latter half of the 19th century (estimate: £15,000-25,000). 

PRECIOUS CARGO: Chinese Export Porcelain and Works of Art 3-17 November 
Christie’s presents PRECIOUS CARGO: Chinese Export Porcelain and Works of Art, an online-only sale that showcases the fusion of European taste with high quality Chinese craftsmanship. The sale offers over 125 artworks dating from the 16th through to the 19th centuries, representing art from the end of the Ming dynasty through to the height of the Qing Empire and flourishing Chinese-Europe trade relations. With estimates ranging from £600 up to £18,000, the sale presents both new and established collectors with an array of beautiful and novel porcelain and works of art, such as a ‘Mandarin’ pattern vase (estimate: £3,000-5,000) and a pair of enamelled spaniels (estimate: £6,000-8,000). The sale opens for bidding on 3 November and runs through to 17 November.