Lot 201. A pair of painted pottery horses, Tang dynasty. Height 13 3/4  in., 34.9 cm. Estimate 15,000 — 20,000 USD. Lot sold 81,250 USD. © Sotheby's.

each horse rearing onto the bent back legs while vigorously raising one front leg and planting the other firmly on the base, the suspended hoof poised at a deliberate angle in preparation to plunge forward, the drama heightened by the arched neck, wide eyes, flared nostrils, and exposed teeth behind upcurled lips, the saddle blanket and tassels of the strapwork trappings flying outward in motion, traces of pigment (2).

Provenance: Yamanaka & Company, Osaka, 1936.
Collection of Brigadier General William Cary (1891-1978) and Lois (1896-1988) Crane, and thence by descent.

Brigadier General Crane was a decorated veteran who, among other distinguished positions, served as the military attaché to the U.S. Ambassador in Japan in the 1930s, and became the Chief of Staff of the Southern Defense Command in 1942. 

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, New York, 12 sept. 2018, 10:30 AM