The 38th special auction of fine Asian art October 30″1 was one of the best ever held at Nagel Auction, grossing total sales of $10.2 million. In the main section, China, 70 percent of the lots on offer were auctioned.
The preview of the items, held in Beijing as well as Stuttgart, had the desired effect. Not only did Nagel gain new customers for the special auction of fine Asian art, but in the end also chalked up very good individual results.
Great interest was attracted by a rouleau vase showing a couple in the act of making love, which had to be displayed in a separate room owing to the censorship of erotic images in China. This extraordinarily rare and fine motif painted in blue tones from the transitional period between the Ming and Qing dynasties (circa 1630 to 1650) was knocked down to a Hong Kong collector for $748,300 †a record price for a vase of the transitional period.
On the whole, the excellent offering of porcelain at this special auction sold very well. A well-known dealer from Hong Kong had an extraordinary and rare monkcap ewer sold to a new customer for $638,590. What made it so special was the decoration technique consisting of a combination of doucai and famille rose, plus underglaze blue Qianlong seal mark and of the period.
A remarkable $517,525 was brought in by an imperial gilt-bronze figure of Buddha. This finely crafted sculpture of a sitting Buddha bears a Xuande six-character mark and is among the rarest bronzes of this period (1399‱435). Xuande was the first Ming emperor to systematically promote the arts. He founded the Art Academy in Beijing and brought a large number of artists to his court, which became the epitome of culture
Three items tied for top lot in the Japan section. The important Shibayama cabinet of the Meiji period found a buyer for $119,450, as did a lovely six-screen by Kishi Ganku and a lacquer screen with a peacock motif from the Edo period. Japanese swords, sword decorations and armor from a major private Berlin collection were also in demand.
All prices reported include the buyer’s premium and were converted from euros to dollars at a rate of $1 to ¬‱.496.
Nagel Auktionen is at Neckarstrasse 189-191. For information, www.auction.de or +49 11 649 690.
