Catalog: Antiques: Regional Art: Asian: Chinese (196)

Extremely rare dish decorated in blue white, china late 18th century for export to Japan. The design is of high quality and the cobalt blue is perfectly fired. Deep blue color. The quality of the design is far superior to what we usually see on Chinese export porcelains and equals that of some imperial pieces. The decoration of the marli is particularly complex. The presence of 2 Japanese Mon allows us to think that it is a Japanese order. Probably a service for a wedding? Excellent condition. Diameter 28,5cm.

Lost wax cast bronze incense burner. It is formed by a large peach opening by a lid, the fruit is represented with its branch, its leaves and other smaller peaches. In total there are 8 peaches but on closer examination, it appears that in one place a little surface of the bronze was not well scraped and finished like everywhere else, which would indicate that there was an additional peach, today now broken and disappeared and that the presence of this one had prevented the tool of the craftsman to maneuver under this fruit.There are also 2 bats All the fruits rest on a very old base which seems to be from the same period as the bronze and which is carved in a pretty hard wood with a fine grain which seems to me to be from Huang-Huali. It is very rare that this type of object still has its base. Beautiful patinas of bronze and wood. Good condition except that a small peach and a piece of the wood base are missing. All this is visible in the photos. Chine 18th century or earlier. Length: 23cm Height: 16cm

Pewter and bronze tea box imitating a drum. Decor incised with a chisel representing peony flowers on the sides, a symbol of longevity. Two handle in lion head.Bronze nails are arranged all around imitating a drum.The excellent quality of the workmanship, unusual for pewter, as well as the style suggests that this is an object dating from the very beginning of the Qing period. Good condition, no restoration or welding. One bronze nail is missing. No shock. Normal wear and tear for a centuries-old object, but the decor remains clean and precise. Inside we can see a mark of 4 Chinese characters. Very rare object. Height about 18cm.

Painting on woven paper. An unusual and surprising technique. The paper is cut out then this woven paper is painted. However there is a subtlety because in some places only the vertical strips are painted and not the horizontal ones which shows us colored squares alternating with unpainted squares which gives a blurred effect anticipating our "pixels" and which, I think, gave the illusion of a woven fabric. Most certainly from the Qing period but perhaps before.It's a very rare technique. Moving condition.Stained,worn,faded,torn. 185cm x 50cm

Porcelain dish, decoration in underglaze cobalt blue. Although this dish is made for export, its exceptional quality is identical to the finest creations made for the chinese imperial court. The mastery of the brush is total. The painter who executed this work was one of the best hands of King-to-chen. The very high cost of a service of this quality allows us to affirm that this was the order of an important character. . China end 18°. Diameter: 232mm Good condition but multiple chips all around the edge and the heel. This type of accident is found on certain porcelains from this period and seems to be due to firing defects.

A cast bronze vase. Finely executed. The finish is nice, made with a lathe and a scraper. Very elegant decoration of chains and tassels inlaid in gold and silver. At the neck a frieze of stylized dragons. Beautiful old patina, good condition, no restoration. No mark. High: 30cm.

Jade pendant (Talisman) representing a tigress and her cub. (Or devouring a prey?) Usual wear for this period. No lack or restoration. Drilled with a hole between the front legs. Ming or earlier. 40x26x18mm Exceptional note: This jade was part of a collection of hundreds of Chinese jades from all eras from Neolithic to Ts'ing (Qing) purchased in the auction room in the 1970s in France, as for other objects on offer on our site, for each one we will specify.

Two characters with bird beaks serving as incense holders. They are in sandstone covered with lead glassures of three colors (sancai), yellow, green and manganese, these models also have a part enamelled in white. Models with animal masks are much rarer than those with human faces and probably represent the animals of the zodiac. Good condition, almost not worn, a broken and glued head visible on photos. The glassure is finely cracked. Height: 325mm. Chinese work probably 17°, but maybe before.

The base is made up of several small wooden parts finely cut with flowers, scrolls and Greek motifs. The majority of the wood is dark brown, almost black, small inserted panels are made of boxwood, the barriers are made of bone. These barriers were tinted green, a color today almost completely erased by light and time, however more pronounced shades of green remain in the most sheltered places. This barrier is carved with plum blossoms, bamboo stems and pine needles. These 3 plants, represented together, are called the 3 friends in China and are symbols of the essential qualities of the scholar. This precious base must therefore have been the property of a scholar and must have supported a jade Bi disc or an archaic bronze mirror. Chinese work from the Qing period late 18th century around 1800. Good condition, however there are small losses visible in photos. A bone barrier is missing. 26x24x10cm. This base is designed for a disc with a diameter of 255mm.

It is an astonishing vase which does not resemble anything known.The shape is very elegant and the decor simple but powerful. But I have absolutely no idea what it is. It is probably buffed sandstone rather than terracotta. The decoration presents a dragon in slight relief pursuing the sacred pearl. The decoration seems to me molded rather than sculpted. A cream glaze covers the whole, stained with brown iron oxide. On the shoulder there are 4 heads of bearded old men which can be used as rings to suspend the vase. The dragon's head bears a tiny mane and large bat-like ears. The jaw is closed and small. The legs have only 3 claws. The heads of old men are mustachioed and bearded. Seems very old.To this day no one knows what it is. Broken and reglued. Height: 25cm

Thick cast bronze censer depicting a goose spreading its wings. I believe it is cast in two parts separately, the goose and the vessel then brazed together. Interesting subject, very nice finish and chasing. Old patina. No gilding, no restoration. Width the largest 14,5cm.

Cast bronze censer in 3 parts. The casting is perfect and the metal meticulously scraped. The combustion hearth part fits on a 6-foot base inspired by wooden furniture. The decor is simple but of high quality, the greek borders and the discreet scrolls are very finely incised with the best precision. The lid is not of the same quality, it was created to replace the old lost lid. It is an excellent ancient Chinese work from the 18th century or earlier. Hight: 222mm Without cover: 158mm

Carved bamboo statuette representing Shou Lao, Chinese god of longevity. The god is represented standing, holding a peach in one hand and a stick ending in a mushroom Ling-zhi in the other, all the attributes of long life. The carving is precise, as can be judged by the regular parallelism of the hairs of the beard. The sculpture is elegant, the movements of the dress are harmonious and the finishes are of good quality. The bamboo has a nice old patina. Chinese work from the 19th century or before. No mark. Good condition. No restaure. Height: 15cm.

Portrait of ancestor. Painting on paper representing a noble lady. The style of the furniture and its quality suggest that it is an important wealthy family of the 18th century, without however being of the imperial family because the dragons represented on the dress have only 4 claws. The face is admirably painted, the artist played with the light to give us this living-dead head and yet it is beautiful without anything macabre. China circa 1800. The painting alone measures 58x124cm Good condition, no repaints. There are paper cutouts at the bottom, I think part of the painting has been diminished, I will study on request.

Shell mounted on a silver base. Chinese work made for export? From memory I seem to recall that a pair of identical cups were presented at the V&A in the 90s. The shell is held by silver nuts in the shape of a butterfly, it rests on a grove of 3 silver bamboos. The whole rests on a finely worked wooden base. The other nuts are in the shape of clover. The whole is finely worked and chiselled. Beautiful finish. Extremely rare object. Very certainly end of the 18th century. Good condition, 1 of the 6 bamboo branches is missing as can be seen on the pictures. The bamboo branches are removable. Height about 22cm. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Rare small table hairdressing table in black and gold lacquered wood. Chinese furniture made for export at the end of 18°. Charming model in a moving condition . A copy of identical shape is kept at the Metropolitan Museum. 2 others with same decoration were sold in the 80s. Inside a drawer there is still a whole set of 6 original boxes which are perfectly preserved and have kept their colors. 77x39cm. Very damaged mainly on the top and the pediment is missing but technically restorable perfectly with true Urushi and time. Watanabe in Kyoto provided a natural lacquer (Urushi) of excellent quality and all the gold powders imaginable.

Small cast bronze vase. Creature mask decoration in relief, probably a tiger. The metal is very thick and this small vase is very heavy. Although very simple, it is venerable and powerful. It is very old for several centuries. The patina of the bronze is sublime. Certainly a Chinese work. I don't think it's from the Ming period, the drawing is too simple. It could be Song or before... Only a specialist could determine a precise dating. Very nice respectable object. Height: 123mm. Good condition. Wear and tear from centuries of use

Small bird cage in split and carved bamboo, it is supported by a bronze hook made up of several riveted elements. Inside different elements for the comfort of the bird, porcelain drinkers, side perch and feeder in copper and center a pretty perch in green hard stone. This circular perch is carved in relief of 2 chilong (dragons) in the archaic Chinese style. The stone is very hard and appears to be jade, green stained and veined with black. We think it is a "Bi" disc, older than the cage, which was adapted to it. The "bars" part of the cage separates from the base for cleaning, the 2 parts are held together securely by 4 turned bone nails, which once in place are discreetly decorative. The base rests on 4 small pearl-shaped stone feet, held by a central bronze axis. The cage is entirely made of bamboo, a layer of lacquer partially covers it. This layer being not uniform, and partly concealing the beautiful veins of the bamboo, we think that it was deposited late. This type of cage was produced in China for centuries, but their fragility means that very few of these cages have reached us. It is difficult to date them precisely, however if we refer to the interior elements of it we can advance the date to the second part of the 19th century, in fact the two small porcelain decorated in iron red with Lions Buddhist are typically from the end of the Qing dynasty, reign of Emperor Tongzhi, around 1860. However the cage is perhaps earlier. There is a small artificial bird certainly original, wearing real feathers. Dimensions 31x26cm Total height with hook 38cm. Good condition.