Auction 1270 - Asian Art on 13th June

Exciting collections as well as outstanding porcelain and exquisite furniture from the Qing period characterise the selection of Asian art up for auction at Lempertz this season.

Chinese porcelain art reached its peak during the Kangxi era between 1662 and 1722, and several highlights of the auction on 13th June come from this golden age. They include a pair of vases with iron-red and gold decoration from the collection of Eugen Albert (1934 – 2024) in Rhineland-Palatinate. An identical pair is housed in the Royal Dresden Porcelain Collection, which was started by Augustus the Strong.

The pair on offer in Cologne has an estimated price of €40,000 to €60,000. The auction also features a large famille verte vase with a gilt bronze mount dating from the Kangxi era. This vase was also part of the Eugen Albert Collection, previously the Edward R. Bacon Collection in New York. The estimate for this piece, which is listed in specialist literature, is €25,000 to €35,000. Another piece in the auction, also from the Eugen Albert Collection, was kept in Fonthill House in Wiltshire in the 19th century. The ruby-ground famille rose vase and cover can be dated to the Yongzheng era (1723-1735) and has an estimate of €15,000 to €20,000.

An imperial yellow-ground ‘nine-peach’ plate from the sale can be dated to the same period by the Yongzheng mark. The decoration of this plate tells the legend of a fabulous peach tree that only bears fruit every 3000 years. The fruit transforms the person who eats it into an immortal fairy. With an estimate of €40,000 to €60,000, this plate is one of the top lots in this auction. 

The sale also includes precious furniture from the Qing period. This pair of chairs was purchased from Marchant in London in the 1960s and has been consigned from a Bavarian private collection. The two pieces will be auctioned with an estimated price of €20,000 to €25,000. A desk with 16 drawers is estimated at €18,000 to €20,000 and a somewhat smaller desk at €10,000 to €15,000. All of these pieces are made of palisander.

The works of Katsushika Hokusai are among the most famous examples of Japanese art on paper. They are represented in this auction with a depiction of the ferry at Onmayagashi (estimated price €7,000 to €12,000) and cranes in a field at Umezawa (estimated price €10,000 to €12,000), among others. 

The artform of inrō, small, richly decorated containers, can be seen in a set of twelve examples depicting the signs of the zodiac. Estimated price for the entire set, which was on loan to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York from 1998 to 2017, is €25,000 to €35,000. The matching box is estimated at €2,000 to €4,000.

There is also a fine selection of the ever-popular netsuke on offer. One depiction of a tiger grooming itself stands out in particular. The four-centimetre-high ivory carving will go under the hammer at an estimated price of €12,000 to €15,000.

Jan Bykowski
Press and Public Relations
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