Chinese Works of Art

SPECTACULAR sums were paid for Chinese ceramics devoted to tea drinking during last week’s Asian works of art sales in New York.

A rare handscroll fragment recording the Qing dynasty's ambitious rule is a key lot at one of Sotheby’s upcoming sales.

With summer holidays upon us and no Antiques Trade Gazette being published this week, we take our regular look here at some of the highest selling items and top selling lots on thesaleroom.com

Roseberys' latest fine art auction produced particularly sound results from the Asian art collection of Sir Anthony Hastings George, proving that a good provenance is still key.

Auctioneers Hansons of Etwall, Derbyshire have announced they will be offering a fine Chinese blue and white vase with a Qianlong seal mark at their sale on July 1.

A pair of Daoguang (1821-50) mark and period vases sold for £85,000 at a recent sale held at Halls of Shrewsbury.

A porcelain vase thought to be from a Chinese Imperial palace over two centuries ago sells at Bonhams for £110,500

Christie’s are to sell another major slice of deaccessioned material from the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, just under a year after they held a dedicated auction devoted to a dispersal from the Met’s holdings of English furniture and works of art.

Made under the watchful eye of the third Qing emperor, a Chinese porcelain vase valued at just £12 in the 1950s sold for £750,000 at the latest sale held by Mallams in Cheltenham.

This rare early 19th century Chinese gilt decorated export lacquer model of a paddle steamer sold for £7000 at Duke’s of Dorchester.

The centrepiece of Sotheby’s April auction series in Hong Kong will be the collection of around 100 lots of Chinese porcelain spanning the Tang to Qing dynasties that was formed by the British collector Roger Pilkington.

Hansons of Etwall in Derbyshire posted a new house record in the closing days of 2015 with the sale of a 13in (32cm) high Qianlong (1736-95) mark and period famille rose vase for £300,000.

A growing market for silver from the sub-continent culminated in a bid of £11,500 for this 9in (23cm) early 20th century Burmese bowl by Maung Yin Maung of Rangoon.

The primary draw to the regions – rather than London – during last week’s glut of Asian works of art sales was the auction titled ‘In Pursuit of the Scholar’s Spirit’ conducted by Duke’s of Dorchester.

Welsh auctioneers Peter Francis set a new house record when this 8in (19cm) celadon glazed vase sold via the-saleroom.com to a bidder from mainland China for £114,500.

A group of 32 ancient gold ornaments have been returned to China following claims they had been illegally removed.

Asian Art has blossomed in Paris this month. Items that combined quality, rarity and provenance generated fierce bidding at sales at Drouot and the various salerooms around the French capital.

The highlight of the latest Woolley & Wallis sale of Asian art held in Salisbury was this 4in (10cm) Yongzheng (1723-35) mark and period doucai lingzhi bowl.

This exceptionally rare Sancai ‘phoenix-head’ ewer from the early Tang dynasty was among the highlights of the week-long Asian art series of sales held in London.