LONDON.- November sales for two different departments at Bonhams produced astonishing prices for two exquisite teapots.

A very rare Meissen teapot and cover, circa 1725-30, once in the famed von Klemperer Collection of Meissen porcelain, was sold in the Fine European Ceramics and Glass sale on 26 November. Carrying a pre-sale estimate of £30,000-50,000, it achieved £128,500 including premium, more than double the top estimate.

Nette Megens, European Ceramics Specialist at Bonhams, said, “This is a truly magnificent piece. Its well known shape is eclipsed by its extraordinary decoration. Together with its solid provenance, it is a very desirable piece. It just goes to show, great things can come in all sizes and shapes!”.

The rarity of this teapot surely helped contribute to its success, as opportunities to purchase fully intact items from the von Klemperer Collection - most of which was destroyed or damaged as a result of bombing during World War II - are few and far between.

And in the Fine Japanese Art sale on 6 November, a gold-inlaid iron tetsubin (kettle) and cover by Asai of Kyoto, from the Meiji Period, produced another staggering result. Originally estimated at just £1,200-1,800, the tetsubin sold for an incredible £92,500 after a flurry of competitive bids.

Suzannah Yip, Head of Japanese Art at Bonhams, commented, “Japanese art is one of the few areas of the market where conventional valuation often fails to reflect intrinsic merit and collector appeal. In this case it looks as though some well informed buyers at our sale were bowled over by the unusually high quality of the teapot and were determined to have it, driving the price up and giving us this amazing result”.