HONG KONG.- Sotheby’s Hong Kong Chinese Works of Art Spring Sale Series 2019 on 3 April will be highlighted by a themed sale dedicated to the renowned Tianminlou Collection. Other sales include Scholarly and Imperial Works of Art from a Distinguished Collection, an outstanding collection of scholarly and imperial works of art, predominantly from the late Ming to Qianlong period, carefully assembled by an erudite individual with a truly discerning eye; The Robert Youngman Collection of Chinese Jade II, featuring jades from the Neolithic Period to Qing dynasty; Fine Imperial Porcelain from a Distinguished Private Collection, which consists of twelve Ming and Qing imperial porcelains assembled by a discerning private collector since the 1980s; Important Chinese Art, a tightly curated assemblage of fine and rare porcelain and works of art with a particular focus on the Ming and Qing dynasties; and Six Treasures from an Important Private Collection which includes masterpieces of Chinese porcelain from the 13th to the 15th century. Noteworthy are two Guan wares formerly in the celebrated collection of Mrs Alfred Clark, as well as an extremely rare blue and white stand dating to the early 15th century.

Nicolas Chow, Chairman, Sotheby’s Asia, International Head and Chairman, Chinese Works of Art, comments, “We are honoured to be entrusted with a fine selection of the Hong Kong-based Tianminlou collection, which boasts one of the best private blue and white porcelain assemblages in the world. The dedicated sale consists of a carefully selected group of eighteen pieces of Ming and Qing porcelains and is the first time treasures from the collection are offered in the market.”

SALE HIGHLIGHTS

Selected Imperial Ceramics from the Tianminlou Collection
The Tianminlou Collection of Chinese porcelain assembled by Ko Shih Chao since the 1950s is of unparalleled quality, and includes the greatest assemblage of imperial blue and white-porcelain in private hands. Ko Shih Chao was not only a discerning collector, but above all had himself an excellent understanding of the subject. He was chairman of the honourable Min Chiu Society of collectors and actively involved in the affairs of all the relevant Hong Kong museums, the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the Art Gallery of the Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Fung Ping Shan Museum of Hong Kong University. He was known as a generous lender to exhibitions and made his pieces readily available for educational aspect.

The Tianminlou Collection – part of which is offered in this sale – offers a very rare, astutely chosen overview of the technical and stylistic developments of the kilns’ production during this time. Highlights of this sale include two rare early Ming blue and white porcelains of exceptional quality, both brilliantly painted with a classic design of Indian lotus: a basin from the Yongle period with an elegant form derived from Middle Eastern metalwork and a sumptuous Xuande reign-marked fruit bowl. The sale also includes an extremely rare blue and white dish with a vivid dragon design from the Xuande period, and an outstanding blue and white jarlet from the early Ming dynasty, boldly painted with winged dragons above cresting waves, encapsulating the power of the Emperor.

AN EXCEPTIONAL AND EXTREMELY RARE BLUE AND WHITE 'WINGED DRAGON' JARLET
MING DYNASTY, YONGLE – EARLY XUANDE PERIOD, 11.4 cm, 4 1/2 in. Estimate: HK$8,000,000 - 12,000,000/ US$ 1,020,000 - 1,530,000

AN EXTREMELY RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL BLUE AND WHITE 'LOTUS' BASIN
MING DYNASTY, YONGLE PERIOD, 25.6 cm, 10 1/8 in. Estimate: HK$8,000,000 - 12,000,000/ US$ 1,020,000 - 1,530,000

AN OUTSTANDING AND LARGE BLUE AND WHITE 'INDIAN LOTUS' FRUIT BOWL
MARK AND PERIOD OF XUANDE, 29.8 cm, 11 3/4 in. Estimate: HK$8,000,000 - 12,000,000/ US$ 1,020,000 - 1,530,000

AN EXTREMELY RARE BLUE AND WHITE 'DRAGON' DISH, MARK AND PERIOD OF XUANDE, 19.5 cm, 7 5/8 in. Estimate: HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000/ US$ 383,000 - 640,000

AN EXCEPTIONAL AND LARGE YELLOW JADE ANIMAL-SHAPED PLAQUE
EASTERN ZHOU DYNASTY, 22 cm, 8 5/8 in. Estimate: HK$25,000,000 - 30,000,000/ US$ 3,190,000 - 3,830,000

The magnificent and unusually large yellow jade zoomorphic plaque formerly in the distinguished collection of the writer and aesthete Charles Vignier, represents the peak of jade art of the late Eastern Zhou period in the 4th-3rd century BC, the finest archaic jade ever to come to the market.

This large, masterfully designed, dazzlingly cut and superbly polished jade carving belongs to an extremely small, fascinating group of animal plaques of the Warring States period (475-221 BC). The imaginatively rendered beast impresses at first glance through the powerful, yet elegant rhythm of its undulating silhouette, and at closer inspection through the exquisite ornamentation and subtle relief on both its sides. It is a prime example of the peak period of Chinese jade carving in the late Eastern Zhou (770-256 BC), when jade craftsmen were unsurpassed at making optimal use of the stone at their disposal, had developed a complex and distinctive style of their own, and finished their works to perfection.

A SUPERB AND EXCEEDINGLY RARE BLUE AND WHITE STAND, MING DYNASTY, YONGLE PERIOD, 17.3 cm, 6 3/4 in. Estimate: HK$20,000,000 - 30,000,000/ US$ 2,550,000 - 3,830,000
This extremely rare stand, derived from Middle Eastern metalwork and brilliantly painted in blue and white, is among the most treasured of all Chinese porcelains. It is one of only seven recorded examples in the world, and the only example in private hands.

It is a legacy of the dynamism of the Yongle court, when China was at its most open. After massive fleets were sent off to distant shores under the leadership of Zheng He, treasures from the Middle East were received as gifts and brought back to China. A sumptuous metal stand created under Mamluk rule in Egypt or Syria would have been the inspiration for this magnificent stand, which was then superbly created in porcelain at the Imperial kilns of Jingdezhen. Apart from one in the British Museum, originally acquired in Damascus, Syria, the rest are all in museum collections in China. The stand from the Qing court collection, now preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, was treasured by the Qianlong Emperor, who ranked it alongside Ru and guan wares, composed two poems for it and commissioned a zitan stand and cloisonné liner to be made for it in the Palace Workshops.