Lot 1052. An inscribed gold bead, Qing dynasty; Height 1 7/8  in., 4.7 cm. Estimate 7,000 — 9,000 USD. Lot sold 312,500 USD. Courtesy Sotheby’s.

of oblong form and pierced through the center, decorated around the exterior with a prunus tree growing among bamboo and rockwork, the gnarled tree with extended branches bearing blossoms in full and bud, accompanied by an imperial poem in kaishu eulogizing prunus, followed by an apocryphal Qianlong yuzhi inscription, of 22K yellow gold.

Provenance: Collection of Marie Elise Patreaux (1880-1920), Paris.
Collection of Marie Isabelle London (1920-1960), Paris.

Sotheby's. Saturday at Sotheby's: Asian Art, New York, 16 Sep 2017