Exceptional jade objects from a collection formed in the 1940s in Beijing brought bidders from around the world to Skinner’s Asian art works sale where the top lot was an imperial jade bowl. The piece, with exquisite carved dragons and clouds, and swirling water on the bottom, sold for $303,000 at the October 17‱8 sale. The pale green bowl had areas of russet, with white and dark inclusions, and the interior was incised with script indicating the year 1774 and a poem by the Qianlong emperor.
The bowl sold below the estimated $400/600,000 to a prominent American collector, who scooped up several other notable pieces. James Callahan, head of Skinner’s Asian works of art department, said after the sale that many bidders were deterred by the strong estimates on the pieces, although they were well worth every penny †and some †of those estimates. He also observed what he termed an “odd silence” on the part of London dealers in Chinese arts who are usually very active bidders. It is a silence seen in other quarters.
Some potential buyers noted that while the carving on the jades was simply extraordinary, the Chinese trade prefers white jade these days.
The same collector bought an Eighteenth Century translucent pale green jade bowl with darker green markings and Mughal-style carving for $22,515, an Eighteenth Century pale celadon green jade pricket candlestand in the form of a single horned dragon with a white jade wax drip in the form of a lotus leaf for $5,925 and a Sixteenth Century Ming jade mythical animal for $4,740. That collector was one of the few US collectors and dealers who won objects; most pieces went to the Chinese trade, which was present in good numbers in the gallery and on the phone as well.
The sale total totaled $2,678,935, nearly a third of which came from a collection gathered in the 1940s by a US Army colonel serving as a liaison in China. That officer, Col. John G. Taylor, was fluent in Chinese and gifted with a fine eye. He established a relationship with antiques dealer Liang whose shop was in “Jade Alley,” a few blocks from the Forbidden City and bought only the best. His collection descended in his family and came to light when his daughter brought several pieces to the taping of the Antiques Roadshow last June where Callahan appraised them in the neighborhood of a total of $7‹ million. Sometime afterward, the family decided to sell 11 jades and turned to Skinner. Interest in the jades accounted for some 5,000 requests for condition reports that stretched the energies of Callahan and his new assistant, Tianyue Jiang.
Also from Col. Taylor’s collection, a Ch’ien Lung period (1735‱796) bamboo root carving in the form of an Immortal in a mugwort cape and seated on a rocky outcrop sold to a Chinese dealer in the room for $154,050. A Ch’ien Lung period pale green jade figure in the form of a Pi Hsieh, the mythological animal believed to ward off evil, and two playful cubs was estimated at $200/300,000 and was bought in. Minutes later, however, it sold for $98,000 to a Hong Kong dealer in the room. A Ch’ien Lung period celadon green jade carving of an Immortal that measured 4½ by 3¼ inches sold on the phone for $90,060.
A Ch’ien Lung imperial workshop jade ewer with Mughal-style foliate carving, the top inset with a ruby, realized $71,100 from a young Chinese dealer in the room.
An Eighteenth Century white jade ink screen carved with a bamboo, a rock formation and chrysanthemums fetched $41,475 from a Chinese dealer in the gallery, who was also pleased to acquire a jade garment hook with a dragon finial for $652. An Eighteenth Century white jade ink screen carved with a prunus tree, rock and an orchid plant realized $30,810 from another Chinese dealer in the gallery.
Jades from other sources were equally well received and resulted in a flurry of bid jumping on the part of eager bidders active in the room, on the phone and on the Internet. A 3½-inch Eighteenth Century incense box in pale yellow jade carved in the form of a plump quail was desirable and drew $18,960 on the phone. An Eighteenth Century white jade carving of double gourds, foliage and a bat brought $4,859, 16 times the estimate. A Nineteenth Century gray jade carved on one side with a scholar in a pavilion and with a poem on the other was a powerful $16,590 against the estimated $200/300.
An Eighteenth or Nineteenth Century pale translucent green bowl in Mughal style and carved as a delicate chrysanthemum on a base carved in leaf form was $11,850.
Among the jade jewelry across the block, a Twentieth Century pair of brilliant emerald green jade drop earrings with two sections joined by a carved ring, all three carved from one piece of jade, shot out of the gate when the pair sold for $11,258.
A Seventeenth or Eighteenth Century rhinoceros horn cup carved in the form of an archaic ritual bronze chueh on three legs brought $270,000 against the estimated $10/15,000 from the Hong Kong trade. It came from a longtime California collection, the source of many previous Asian sale catalog cover lots at Skinner and went to the Hong Kong trade.
A pair of Seventeenth or Eighteenth Century yoke back huanghuali chairs with ju-i carving on the splats had some old repairs and had been slightly trimmed, yet they elicited $38,513 against the estimated $800․1,200. They sold on the phone. An Eighteenth Century lacquered table with a red lacquer surface with painted bird and flower reserves brought $22,515 against the estimated $1,5/2,000 and despite overall craquelure, cracked corners and paint loss. Traces of an old label were evident in an upper corner.
An octagonal rosewood tea box bore the Ch’ien Lung mark and was set on the top and sides with yellow and brown jade panels framed in white jade and realized $26,070 from a phone bidder. The jade panels were inscribed with a poem and two seals.
A Hu shaped porcelain vase from the 35th year of the republic of China (1946) was unusual because no other was made and it brought $34,365. A note accompanying the piece testifies to its provenance: it was made in the Kiang Shi porcelain works to commemorate the 60th birthday of Chiang Kai Shek in 1946. Madame Chiang Kai Shek presented it to Admiral Alfred Melville Pride in 1955 in honor of his command of the Seventh Fleet. Pride, a Massachusetts native, was the first person to land a helicopter on the deck of an aircraft carrier, which he accomplished in 1931.
A Ch’ien Lung ivory vase carved with imperial dragons, lotus scrolls and lion masks estimated at $2/3,000 elicited $30,810 from a Chinese dealer. The 8¼-inch vase came from a Michigan collector/dealer. A Nineteenth Century 47-inch ivory carving of the figure of Shao Lao with a child and a deer and holding a peach branch brought $23,700. A 31-inch ivory carving of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, went for $11,258. Bidding on a 2¾-inch Eighteenth Century ivory stand carved with ling chih and bamboo only ended at $7,703.
A Ch’ia Ch’ing (1796‱820) porcelain censer with a famille rose decoration of the Eight Precious Emblems on a lime green ground, and the cover set with amber cabochons, sold on the phone for $24,885.
A 27-inch lapis lazuli carving of the Immortal Lan Tsai Ho was estimated at $800․1,200 and opened at $1,000 before shooting to $7,703.
A 59-by-96-inch Nineteenth Century palace rug woven with five dragons with auspicious emblems and Lishui borders with a palace inscription brought a rousing $21,330 against the estimated $600/800. Another textile of note was the Eighteenth or Nineteenth Taoist gold brocade priest’s robe embroidered with mythical animals, the island of the Immortals, phoenixes and emblems of the sun and the moon that went for $11,258.
Of a group of snuff bottles, a Ch’ia Ch’ing porcelain example with famille rose decoration of figures in interiors and underglaze blue borders with a gilt, coral and pearl stopper sold on the phone for $8,295.
Although it seemed so, it was not all Chinese all the time; choice Korean objects attracted strong interest.
An Eighteenth Century Korean porcelain peach-form box with underglaze blue and measuring 3 by 2¾ inches was the highlight of a good selection of Korean objects when it sold for $23,700 against the estimated $600/800. An Eighteenth Century Yi period porcelain wine ewer with underglaze blue decorations of landscapes with flowers and bats brought $18,960, and a 12-inch late Thirteenth Century Korean celadon storage jar decorated with black and white slip sangam inlay sold for $16,590.
Also, a Twelfth or Thirteenth Century Koryo period celadon porcelain wine bottle with sangam inlay in a pattern of lotus reserves and floral scrolling fetched $11,258. A 7-inch Eighteenth Century Yi dynasty octagonal porcelain jar with underglaze blue decoration of flowering plants fetched $10,665, while an Eighteenth Century octagonal porcelain wine bottle with an underglaze blue decoration of peaches, pomegranates and Buddha’s hand citrons attracted $8,888.
A Nineteenth or early Twentieth Century Persian Qajar period pen case of lacquered papier mache with a design of a Qajar shah and historic and religious vignettes was $8,888.
All prices reported include the buyer’s premium. For information, www.skinnerinc.com or 508-970-3000.
