Catalog (37)

A small double handled pottery bowl. It dates to the Machang phase of the Majiayao culture from present day Gansu province, 2300-2000 BCE. The buff-coloured body is thin and delicate, decorated in geometric patterns in fired-on black, brown and purple mineral-based pigments. Height: 8 cm;Diameter: 12.8 cm. Condition: Fine and intact with no repairs. Minor wear to the pigments and along the rim. Price: USD $450; CAD $585 (13% HST will be applied on all sales in Canada)

The ram is depicted at rest with its legs folded under its body. These animal figurines played an important part in Chinese burial practices. Very similar ram figurines, frequently with an early celadon yueyao glaze, are quite common in the Jin dynasties, a century or so later (there are nice examples in the New York Metropolitan Museum and the Shanghai Museum). This one appears to have been cold painted with a white slip, traces of which still remain. Length: 13.2 cm; width: 6.4 cm. Condi...

These Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) pottery figure groups were roughly moulded, but are full of vitality. This example has been cold painted with a white pigment over the grey low-fired pottery. Length: 14.6 cm; width: 7.9cm. Price: $400 USD; $530 CAD (HST of 13% will be applied to all sales in Canada). Condition: Intact and good with no repairs; typical wear to the pigment.

A Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) moulded pottery figure of a sleeping duck. It is roughly made but the immediacy of the potter’s observation catches the life of the bird. Price: $260 USD; $340 CAD (HST of 13% will be applied on all sales in Canada). Height: 5 cm; width:5 cm. Condition: Intact and good with no repairs.

A Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) moulded pottery figure of a boar, which, as with all these figures, captures the immediacy of the animal’s presence. Height: 6cm; length: 13cm. Condition: Intact and good with no repairs. Price: $400 USD; $530 CAD (HST of 13% will be applied on all sales in Canada).

A good example of the kinds of porcelaneous ware that were produced in large quantities at the ChangSha kilns at Tongguan in the eighth century. These have increased in value over the years and this is a very affordable piece. It is quite robustly potted and intended for the scholar’s table. The dark olive glaze is embellished with ten brown stripes. Diameter: 5.5 cm. Condition: good and intact; the glaze, though rough, retains much of its brightness. Price: $600 USD; $795 CAD (HST of ...

These ear cups - erbei - originally coated with a green lead glaze, have developed a very attractive iridescence over many years of burial. This form, used for drinking wine, was made in a variety of different materials in the eastern Han Dynasty (25-220CE), bronze, jade, glass, lacquer, and, of course, ceramics. These two cups are moulded on the exterior with a wave pattern and a saw tooth band below the rim, imitating the decoration on a bronze model. Length: 11 and 11.5 cm. Condition: One ...

This is a very nice example of a small Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) sancai pot for the scholar’s table at an affordable price. The glaze is finely crackled and has a slight iridescence. Diameter: 5cm. Condition: Intact and good with no repairs; normal wear for its age.

A small hu-form jar with green and amber lead glaze. It dates to the Han dynasty, probably the Western Han (206BCE-9CE). These small jars are actually much less common than the larger ones, and it is rare to find them with two colours. Height: 12.4 cm; diameter: 9.4 cm. Condition: good and intact; normal wear and with the usual small chips to the glaze. Ex Anthony J. Allen. Price: USD $550; CAD $715 (13% HST will be applied on all sales in Canada)

A rare green-glazed dragon-handled porcelaneous tripod vessel (Jiaodou) from the Yueyao kilns, eastern Jin dynasty. The head of the dragon is carved very expressively This is an extremely rare censer form that probably derives originally from a bronze shape; more examples have been found in bronze than in ceramics. The Yueyao kilns were the first in China to develop a porcellaneous body and glaze. The glaze on this example is typical of Yue production in the Jin period, a beautifully soft greyi...

A rare composite eye bead made during the Warring States Period, circa 481 to 221 BC. The composite type of Warring States bead is made with a thin layer of glass overlaid on a clay or ceramic material core. There are five small white glass eyes around each of the larger eyes which are made of stratified layers of blue on top of white glass. This elaborate style of bead was only made during a narrow window of time in Henan province and apparently never made again. Dimensions: width, 21mm; hei...

A rare composite eye bead made during the Warring States Period, circa 481 to 221 BC. The composite type of Warring States bead is made with a thin layer of glass overlaid on a clay or ceramic material core. This one is in especially good condition. From every aspect the frame of rich brown intersecting lines creates an almost mask-like structure for the blue and white, or yellow, raised eyes. This elaborate style of bead was only made during a narrow window of time in Henan province. Dimensi...

Han dynasty potters were perhaps the most original and creative in the whole history of Chinese ceramics, and their work is still neglected and undervalued - a marvellous opportunity for the collector. This jar, which was made in the late Western-early Eastern Han period (1st century BCE-1st century CE) in the Jiangsu or Zhejiang area, has a full rounded body and a low cut neck which gives prominence to the mask handles. It is very “potterly” and surprisingly modern in appearance. The ash ...

The Northern and Southern Dynasties (420 AD- 589 AD) are often considered the most chaotic period of time in Chinese history. However, the cultural diversification of Chinese and Non-Chinese (mainly Nomadic minorities from the north and the west) inspired the arts and cultural creations which influenced the whole of China (Zhongyuan), including the funeral industry. This tomb figure is of a typical foreigner servant or groom, standing with a distinguishing hat that only the non-Han people (Hu...

A rare and unusual “Ordos” bronze pin from one of the nomadic cultures located on China’s north-western borders in the first millennium BCE. It represents a ferocious animal, possibly a wolf, standing on two orbs. The decorations on its flanks and neck indicate the animal’s hair. It may have been intended as a decorative ornament, or it may have been a tool used for leather-work. Length: 8.7 cm. Condition: Excellent, with a deep patina, and a small patch of verdigris. Purchased in...

This is a small Ding porcelain saucer dish with an elegant, incised floral decoration covered inside and out with a cream glaze. As with almost all Dingyao bowls and plates, the rim has been kept clear of glaze because it was stacked on its rim in the kiln. The Dingyao glazes are generally thin, and must have been quite difficult to control; in this case, some dust seems to have intruded, which makes it slightly rough to the touch. Price: $2100 USD, $2800 CAD (13% HST is applied to all sales in ...

This bowl with its slightly inturned rim, its controlled crackle and its greyish blue tone has characteristics of a late Song or Jin period product. But styles don’t end and begin conveniently with big political shifts and it may equally date from the Yuan dynasty, when there was a desire in the market for more Junyao bowls of a larger size. Whatever the exact time of its manufacture, it exhibits a fine balance of strength and good taste. Diameter: 18cm; Height: 8.3 cm. Condition: excelle...

This bowl exhibits all of the exuberance of taste that was characteristic of the Yuan dynasty. The Junyao potters who made this bowl have mastered the techniques of applying thick layers of glaze and allowing them to run with a daring freedom. Its a gorgeous thing to look at and to hold. Diameter: 19.2 cm Condition: Excellent with only minor wear. Ex IM Chait Auction Price: $2100 USD; $2700 CAD (HST of 13% will be applied on all sales in Canada).