18th Century
See also : 18th century painting Ancient French painting China Early Qing Qianlong Chinese porcelain Qing porcelain Louis XIV to XVI UK II George I to III Venice Italy II Birth of USA US painting before 1940 Bird Horse Dragon Cities Autograph Furniture 18th century furniture Sport in art
> 1711 The Workshop of the Jesuits
2018 SOLD for HK$ 240M including premium
The Kangxi Emperor and King Louis XIV had similar ambitions. They decided in 1684 to share their scientific and cultural knowledge through Jesuits who accepted the customs of imperial China. The French were interested in brocades and chopsticks and the Chinese in using enamels to cover copper and glass.
The activity is developed in a workshop of the Forbidden City under the direct control of the emperor. A new glassmaker arrived in 1695 brings with him the enamels invented by Glauber to create splendid colors with colloidal gold. The glass pieces colored with the enamel of the foreigners (in Chinese: falangcai) serve as diplomatic gifts.
The potters of Jingdezhen were working with the limited color range of the wucai for a purpose of productivity. It was tempting to apply the new colors to the porcelain for bringing more luxury to the pieces for the personal use (yuzhi) of the emperor. Chinese craftsmen joined the Jesuits of the imperial workshop around 1711 to develop a mixed technology.
Chinese porcelain was unknown in Europe and the Jesuits considered it impossible to affix the enamel over the glaze. They were supplied from Jingdezhen with incompletely glazed pieces to paint the outside wall and the base with the colors unavailable at Jingdezhen. A second heating completed the process.
One of the rarest ground colors of the falangcai is a pink with colloidal gold. Two 14.7 cm diameter bowls, each one decorated with four lobed cartridges showing flowers in front of a blue sky, were probably made side by side. They carry the yuzhi mark of Kangxi. The floral themes are however different, attesting to a close cooperation between Chinese and European artists. The bowl kept at the National Palace Museum in Taipei follows the traditional Chinese auspices of the four seasons.
The other bowl is of European decoration, displaying flowers without symbolic meaning and a perspective effect that is not usual in traditional Chinese art. It will be sold by Sotheby's on April 3 in Hong Kong, lot 1. Please watch the short video shared by the auction house.
The yangcai will be the complete mastery of the falangcai process at Jingdezhen around the sixth year of the Yongzheng emperor, 1729 CE. The participation of foreigners will no longer be necessary.
The activity is developed in a workshop of the Forbidden City under the direct control of the emperor. A new glassmaker arrived in 1695 brings with him the enamels invented by Glauber to create splendid colors with colloidal gold. The glass pieces colored with the enamel of the foreigners (in Chinese: falangcai) serve as diplomatic gifts.
The potters of Jingdezhen were working with the limited color range of the wucai for a purpose of productivity. It was tempting to apply the new colors to the porcelain for bringing more luxury to the pieces for the personal use (yuzhi) of the emperor. Chinese craftsmen joined the Jesuits of the imperial workshop around 1711 to develop a mixed technology.
Chinese porcelain was unknown in Europe and the Jesuits considered it impossible to affix the enamel over the glaze. They were supplied from Jingdezhen with incompletely glazed pieces to paint the outside wall and the base with the colors unavailable at Jingdezhen. A second heating completed the process.
One of the rarest ground colors of the falangcai is a pink with colloidal gold. Two 14.7 cm diameter bowls, each one decorated with four lobed cartridges showing flowers in front of a blue sky, were probably made side by side. They carry the yuzhi mark of Kangxi. The floral themes are however different, attesting to a close cooperation between Chinese and European artists. The bowl kept at the National Palace Museum in Taipei follows the traditional Chinese auspices of the four seasons.
The other bowl is of European decoration, displaying flowers without symbolic meaning and a perspective effect that is not usual in traditional Chinese art. It will be sold by Sotheby's on April 3 in Hong Kong, lot 1. Please watch the short video shared by the auction house.
The yangcai will be the complete mastery of the falangcai process at Jingdezhen around the sixth year of the Yongzheng emperor, 1729 CE. The participation of foreigners will no longer be necessary.
1720-1732 Florentine "Badminton" cabinet
2004 SOLD 19 M£ including premium by Christie's
Purchased in that sale for the Liechtenstein museum.
Link to Liechtenstein collections.
Link to Liechtenstein collections.
1733 The Grand Canal in Venice by Canaletto
2005 SOLD 18.6 M£ including premium by Sotheby's
Link to catalogue.
early Qianlong - A Pair of Double Gourds
2017 SOLD for £ 14.7M including premium
The porcelains of double gourd type are developed under the reign of the Yongzheng emperor. They reach a great elegance with his successor Qianlong : the much smaller upper bulb is often linked by two handles to the globular lower part. When the technique used for the decoration is among the most refined, these pieces are kept in high esteem by the connoisseurs. The remainder of this essay is limited to vases from the Qianlong period.
The vase without handles that sold for HK $ 252M including premium at Sotheby's on October 7, 2010 over a lower estimate of HK $ 30M was an exceptional piece with its pale yellow background, its height of 40 cm, its long cylindrical neck above the upper bulb and its sgraffiato incisions.
Among the vases with handles let us consider a blue and white 23 cm high with a pattern of lotus leaves, sold for HK $ 24M including premium by Christie's on December 1, 2010.
Pairs are extremely rare. One of them recently discovered in an English country house will be sold by Christie's in London on May 9, lot 99. Each vase has the same shape and size as the blue and white example described above.
In the same style of decoration, the details of both vases in that pair are different. They are painted with flowers and butterflies in yangcai enamels in an accumulation of auspices and symbols of seasons that was probably prepared for the birthday of some prestigious people. For the rebus so enjoyed at the imperial court the butterfly means 'repetition' by homophony, doubling the message of the auspice and the prediction of longevity.
The ground porcelain of this pair is pure white according to a usual practice during the Yongzheng period. Considering that a pink ground has been appreciated under Qianlong for pieces of the same theme, it is possible that this pair bearing his imperial mark was made early in his reign.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's :
The vase without handles that sold for HK $ 252M including premium at Sotheby's on October 7, 2010 over a lower estimate of HK $ 30M was an exceptional piece with its pale yellow background, its height of 40 cm, its long cylindrical neck above the upper bulb and its sgraffiato incisions.
Among the vases with handles let us consider a blue and white 23 cm high with a pattern of lotus leaves, sold for HK $ 24M including premium by Christie's on December 1, 2010.
Pairs are extremely rare. One of them recently discovered in an English country house will be sold by Christie's in London on May 9, lot 99. Each vase has the same shape and size as the blue and white example described above.
In the same style of decoration, the details of both vases in that pair are different. They are painted with flowers and butterflies in yangcai enamels in an accumulation of auspices and symbols of seasons that was probably prepared for the birthday of some prestigious people. For the rebus so enjoyed at the imperial court the butterfly means 'repetition' by homophony, doubling the message of the auspice and the prediction of longevity.
The ground porcelain of this pair is pure white according to a usual practice during the Yongzheng period. Considering that a pink ground has been appreciated under Qianlong for pieces of the same theme, it is possible that this pair bearing his imperial mark was made early in his reign.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's :
£2 Million Qianlong Emperor vases found by an expert during routine eval., will be sold at #Christies May 9thhttps://t.co/1vTNRboDsG pic.twitter.com/OcZxtHkx91
— ePaiLive (@ePaiLive) May 2, 2017
1743 Qianlong reticulated vase
2010 UNPAID at £ 43M plus a buyer's premium of £ 8.6M, at Bainbridges
Link to 2012 report by The Telegraph before the sale was cancelled.
1747 The Grand Parade of Qianlong
2011 SOLD 22 M€ including premium
Qianlong was only 24 when he became emperor of China. For establishing his authority, he has prepared a huge military parade in the best tradition of the Qing Dynasty. It will be held early in the fourth year of his reign.
The objective is achieved: the power of the young emperor is not disputed. To the delight of current enthusiasts and historians, Qianlong was to become the most important art collector and patron of all time.
At the tenth year of his reign, Qianlong wants to fix the memory of this great revue. He orders the artist Jin Kun to realize four huge scrolls on silk with the help of the official court painters. Fifteen months later (1747 in our calendar), the four works are ready to be assembled in their presentation boxes.
These paintings show the festivities in a chronological order. The second, 68 x 1757 cm, is kept at the Palace Museum in Beijing. The third, 68 cm x 1550, was sold HK $ 68M including premium by Sotheby's on October 8, 2008. The catalog of that sale indicated that the other two were lost.
A miracle happened. No. I do not believe in miracles.
The market for ancient Chinese art has been so boosted for two years (indeed from after the scandal of the bronzes of the Saint-Laurent - Bergé collection) that the treasures come out of the attics: the fourth scroll is retrieved!
With the same height as the others, it is the longest: the incredible multitude of troops occupies 18 m of image. A primer including testimonials and seals increases this length to 24 m, on a diameter of 12 cm when rolled.
This treasure is estimated € 2M, for sale by Marc Labarbe in Toulouse on March 26.
POST SALE COMMENT
The scroll was sold € 17.8 million before fees, 22 million including premium.
The significant difference in price with the auction of 2008 is mainly due to the cultural awakening of China for the most outstanding treasures of its history.
This new price is perfectly understandable and deserved.
The objective is achieved: the power of the young emperor is not disputed. To the delight of current enthusiasts and historians, Qianlong was to become the most important art collector and patron of all time.
At the tenth year of his reign, Qianlong wants to fix the memory of this great revue. He orders the artist Jin Kun to realize four huge scrolls on silk with the help of the official court painters. Fifteen months later (1747 in our calendar), the four works are ready to be assembled in their presentation boxes.
These paintings show the festivities in a chronological order. The second, 68 x 1757 cm, is kept at the Palace Museum in Beijing. The third, 68 cm x 1550, was sold HK $ 68M including premium by Sotheby's on October 8, 2008. The catalog of that sale indicated that the other two were lost.
A miracle happened. No. I do not believe in miracles.
The market for ancient Chinese art has been so boosted for two years (indeed from after the scandal of the bronzes of the Saint-Laurent - Bergé collection) that the treasures come out of the attics: the fourth scroll is retrieved!
With the same height as the others, it is the longest: the incredible multitude of troops occupies 18 m of image. A primer including testimonials and seals increases this length to 24 m, on a diameter of 12 cm when rolled.
This treasure is estimated € 2M, for sale by Marc Labarbe in Toulouse on March 26.
POST SALE COMMENT
The scroll was sold € 17.8 million before fees, 22 million including premium.
The significant difference in price with the auction of 2008 is mainly due to the cultural awakening of China for the most outstanding treasures of its history.
This new price is perfectly understandable and deserved.
> 1762 & 1774 A Mandarin in the Mountains
2018 SOLD for HK$ 147M including premium
The very important inspection trips of the Kangxi emperor had a major role in consolidating the Southern provinces. Isolated regions therein must also join the civilization.
The coastal province of Zhejiang is the subject of a freeing campaign in 1727 CE during the reign of Yongzheng. The Qianlong emperor remains vigilant. During his 27th year, 1762 CE, he appoints as Education Commissioner of Zhejiang for a three-year mission one of his most brilliant mandarins named Qian Weicheng.
Qian's career is a very good example of the extreme and multidisciplinary skills required to the mandarins. Received at the examinations at the age of 23 in the tenth year of Qianlong, he had become as a jurist an important member of the imperial bureaucracy. Poet, calligrapher and artist, he knows how to imitate the ancients. His poetry is pleasant and original.
In the tradition of the Qing imperial travels, Qian executes landscape drawings of the Zhejiang in handscrolls of great length. His view of the Yandang Mountains has been preserved.
On April 3 in Hong Kong, Sotheby's sells a 34 cm high scroll of ten landscapes of Mount Tiantai, for a total length of 4.60 m. It is estimated HK $ 50M, lot 3301.
The drawing without washes is of a topographical accuracy and includes the Buddhist monasteries and some human presence. Yet Qian, who had visited Yandang, did not walk Tiantai personally as his tour plans were each time abandoned due to bad weather. He was probably relying upon pre-existing images to avoid confessing this failure.
Each of the ten views is accompanied by a long descriptive commentary by Qian and by an autograph poem written by Qianlong and dated by him in 1774 CE, two years after the death of the artist. The artwork was removed from the Palace in the early 1920s by the last deposed Qing emperor in an effort to protect the imperial patrimony from looters.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's including the vision of moving grounds often practiced by this auction house.
The coastal province of Zhejiang is the subject of a freeing campaign in 1727 CE during the reign of Yongzheng. The Qianlong emperor remains vigilant. During his 27th year, 1762 CE, he appoints as Education Commissioner of Zhejiang for a three-year mission one of his most brilliant mandarins named Qian Weicheng.
Qian's career is a very good example of the extreme and multidisciplinary skills required to the mandarins. Received at the examinations at the age of 23 in the tenth year of Qianlong, he had become as a jurist an important member of the imperial bureaucracy. Poet, calligrapher and artist, he knows how to imitate the ancients. His poetry is pleasant and original.
In the tradition of the Qing imperial travels, Qian executes landscape drawings of the Zhejiang in handscrolls of great length. His view of the Yandang Mountains has been preserved.
On April 3 in Hong Kong, Sotheby's sells a 34 cm high scroll of ten landscapes of Mount Tiantai, for a total length of 4.60 m. It is estimated HK $ 50M, lot 3301.
The drawing without washes is of a topographical accuracy and includes the Buddhist monasteries and some human presence. Yet Qian, who had visited Yandang, did not walk Tiantai personally as his tour plans were each time abandoned due to bad weather. He was probably relying upon pre-existing images to avoid confessing this failure.
Each of the ten views is accompanied by a long descriptive commentary by Qian and by an autograph poem written by Qianlong and dated by him in 1774 CE, two years after the death of the artist. The artwork was removed from the Palace in the early 1920s by the last deposed Qing emperor in an effort to protect the imperial patrimony from looters.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's including the vision of moving grounds often practiced by this auction house.
1765 Portrait of a Champion by Stubbs
2011 SOLD 22.4 M£ including premium
Serving wealthy English aristocrats, George Stubbs specialized in the topic of race horses. On December 8, 2010, Sotheby's sold £ 10.1 million including premium a very elegant study of mares and foals in a meadow, painted in 1767.
Made around 1765, the oil on canvas for sale by Christie's in London on July 5 is certainly more outstanding. It is estimated £ 20M. This is the portrait of a horse named Gimcrack, who was winning most of the races where he was engaged.
This broad composition, 102 x 196 cm, simple and effective, is divided into two parts, as seen on the audio shared by Christie's. On the left, Gimcrack shows his beautiful profile, surrounded by a coach, a stable boy and a jockey.
A race is held on the horizon, on the right. A horse is far ahead of his three followers. He is also Gimcrack, of course. He is therefore shown twice on that image that had everything to flatter the sponsor of the work, Lord Bolingbroke, owner of the champion.
Stubbs is very accurate in anatomical detail, but still shows horses galloping with their four legs flying above the ground. This feature, which can be excused one century before the studies of Muybridge, applies here only in the background and provides this work with an undeniable poetic dimension.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sold £ 22.4 million including premium, Gimcrack has once again won his race.
Made around 1765, the oil on canvas for sale by Christie's in London on July 5 is certainly more outstanding. It is estimated £ 20M. This is the portrait of a horse named Gimcrack, who was winning most of the races where he was engaged.
This broad composition, 102 x 196 cm, simple and effective, is divided into two parts, as seen on the audio shared by Christie's. On the left, Gimcrack shows his beautiful profile, surrounded by a coach, a stable boy and a jockey.
A race is held on the horizon, on the right. A horse is far ahead of his three followers. He is also Gimcrack, of course. He is therefore shown twice on that image that had everything to flatter the sponsor of the work, Lord Bolingbroke, owner of the champion.
Stubbs is very accurate in anatomical detail, but still shows horses galloping with their four legs flying above the ground. This feature, which can be excused one century before the studies of Muybridge, applies here only in the background and provides this work with an undeniable poetic dimension.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sold £ 22.4 million including premium, Gimcrack has once again won his race.
#GeorgeStubbs was born #OTD in 1724. We sold Gimcrack on Newmarket Heath in 2011 for £22,441,250 #WorldAuctionRecord #artistbirthday pic.twitter.com/B7fCB2eivD
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) August 25, 2017
1768 A Venitian Masterpiece by Francesco Guardi
2011 SOLD 26.7 M£ including premium
The wealthy English tourists enabled the development of vedute, these realistic paintings of urban scenes of Rome and Venice.
In Venice indeed, in the late 1760s, the uncontested master of the genre, Canaletto, is aging. He died in 1768.
It is certainly no coincidence that the most achieved works of Francesco Guardi date from the same period: Canaletto's position on the market was to be taken.
In this time of greater maturity, Guardi executed very few large paintings. The view from the Rialto Bridge, an oil on canvas 120 x 204 cm, for sale by Sotheby's in London on July 6, is exceptional. It is estimated £ 15M.
As ever, the architectures are much detailed. The dense and gentle animation is typical of Guardi, but the cloudy atmosphere and contrasting sunlight are worthy of Canaletto. This work was sold in 1768 : to an Englishman, of course.
It is shown in the press release shared by Artdaily.
POST SALE COMMENT
This exceptional painting was sold £ 26.7 million including premium, in the upper range of the estimates that had been ambitious yet.
In Venice indeed, in the late 1760s, the uncontested master of the genre, Canaletto, is aging. He died in 1768.
It is certainly no coincidence that the most achieved works of Francesco Guardi date from the same period: Canaletto's position on the market was to be taken.
In this time of greater maturity, Guardi executed very few large paintings. The view from the Rialto Bridge, an oil on canvas 120 x 204 cm, for sale by Sotheby's in London on July 6, is exceptional. It is estimated £ 15M.
As ever, the architectures are much detailed. The dense and gentle animation is typical of Guardi, but the cloudy atmosphere and contrasting sunlight are worthy of Canaletto. This work was sold in 1768 : to an Englishman, of course.
It is shown in the press release shared by Artdaily.
POST SALE COMMENT
This exceptional painting was sold £ 26.7 million including premium, in the upper range of the estimates that had been ambitious yet.
1768 From Both Sides of the Rialto
2017 SOLD for £ 26M including premium
A pair of oils on canvases is unique in the history of the vedutas by the conjunction of their monumental dimension, 120 x 204 cm each, with the maturity of one of the greatest artists of Venice, Francesco Guardi. The canvases are wider than the looms in use at that time and a nearly invisible join had been needed in the lower part of the image.
They show the commercial district of Venice, the Rialto, on the Grand Canal on both sides of its spectacular single arched covered bridge which housed shops. Through his picturesque animation and his luminosity, Guardi appears as a worthy continuator of Canaletto.
The sequence of monuments is correct but these panoramas are too wide to respect a unique perspective. The large format brings an abundance of details and an exceptional vision of the Venetian atmosphere.
Guardi worked from the collection of his autograph drawings and the modifications made to the monuments do not allow to date his paintings with accuracy. We will consider 1768 for this pair for two reasons. The death of Canaletto in April certainly generate great ambitions to Guardi suddenly becoming the best supplier of the tourists. The first owner was a young British aristocrat who had his tour in 1768, arriving in August in Venice.
The pair was separated in 2011. The view taken northward was sold by Sotheby's for £ 26.7M including premium on July 6, 2011. The view in the reverse direction is for sale on July 6, 2017 in London by Christie's, lot 25. The press release of 5 April announces that it is expected to exceed £ 25M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
They show the commercial district of Venice, the Rialto, on the Grand Canal on both sides of its spectacular single arched covered bridge which housed shops. Through his picturesque animation and his luminosity, Guardi appears as a worthy continuator of Canaletto.
The sequence of monuments is correct but these panoramas are too wide to respect a unique perspective. The large format brings an abundance of details and an exceptional vision of the Venetian atmosphere.
Guardi worked from the collection of his autograph drawings and the modifications made to the monuments do not allow to date his paintings with accuracy. We will consider 1768 for this pair for two reasons. The death of Canaletto in April certainly generate great ambitions to Guardi suddenly becoming the best supplier of the tourists. The first owner was a young British aristocrat who had his tour in 1768, arriving in August in Venice.
The pair was separated in 2011. The view taken northward was sold by Sotheby's for £ 26.7M including premium on July 6, 2011. The view in the reverse direction is for sale on July 6, 2017 in London by Christie's, lot 25. The press release of 5 April announces that it is expected to exceed £ 25M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Une toile monumentale (122x200cm) de Francesco Guardi fait partie de la vente Old Master à Londres le 6/07 https://t.co/99ODYfvEzn pic.twitter.com/hHqqm8dzHo
— Christie's Paris (@christiesparis) June 12, 2017
1769 Fragonard out of his Time
2013 SOLD 17 M£ including premium
Like all painters of his time excepted Chardin, Fragonard varied his styles to find customers. Influenced by Boucher, he early found fame in the theme of very young frivolous women with their games and passions.
Fragonard made a small series of oils on canvas known under the generic title of Portraits de fantaisie. Only one of these artworks is dated : 1769, the year of his marriage. It is not by chance.
Close to the aristocracy, Fragonard endeavours at that time to demonstrate that he may revolutionize the art of portrait. These paintings are comparable to the tronies made by Rembrandt. The likeness to the sitter is not the most important.
The movement of shoulders and head brings energy and even violence. Strong colors evoke passion. Fancy costumes "à l'Espagnole" provide a theatrical dimension that also positions the work out of its time.
Influenced by Chardin, Fragonard understood the importance of color. This series of fantasy portraits is an essential link in the history of art between Rembrandt and Manet. He will be the great-granduncle of Berthe Morisot.
Few models have been identified with certainty. Brilliant intellectual, François-Henri d' Harcourt enjoyed his portrait to the point that his family kept it until 1971.
This oil on canvas 81 x 65 cm was then purchased at auction by Dr. Rau. Coming now from this prestigious collection, it is for sale to the benefit of UNICEF by Bonhams in London on December 5.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting has some exceptional qualities reinforced by the fact that it was one of the top masterpieces of the Rau collection and was sold for the benefit of UNICEF. It was sold for £ 17M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Bonhams on YouTube. The image is shared on Wikimedia.
Fragonard made a small series of oils on canvas known under the generic title of Portraits de fantaisie. Only one of these artworks is dated : 1769, the year of his marriage. It is not by chance.
Close to the aristocracy, Fragonard endeavours at that time to demonstrate that he may revolutionize the art of portrait. These paintings are comparable to the tronies made by Rembrandt. The likeness to the sitter is not the most important.
The movement of shoulders and head brings energy and even violence. Strong colors evoke passion. Fancy costumes "à l'Espagnole" provide a theatrical dimension that also positions the work out of its time.
Influenced by Chardin, Fragonard understood the importance of color. This series of fantasy portraits is an essential link in the history of art between Rembrandt and Manet. He will be the great-granduncle of Berthe Morisot.
Few models have been identified with certainty. Brilliant intellectual, François-Henri d' Harcourt enjoyed his portrait to the point that his family kept it until 1971.
This oil on canvas 81 x 65 cm was then purchased at auction by Dr. Rau. Coming now from this prestigious collection, it is for sale to the benefit of UNICEF by Bonhams in London on December 5.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting has some exceptional qualities reinforced by the fact that it was one of the top masterpieces of the Rau collection and was sold for the benefit of UNICEF. It was sold for £ 17M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Bonhams on YouTube. The image is shared on Wikimedia.
1769 Hundred Deer and Several Cranes
2018 SOLD for € 16.2M including premium
The theme of the hundred deer is a rebus bringing auspices, as often in Chinese art. One hundred does not express a real quantity but a multitude. One hundred deer evokes by homophony the success of a long career. The hair is of varied color except for one beast that is white for a homophony between one and one hundred.
Two hu shaped globular vases with the hundred deer, bearing the imperial mark of the Qianlong emperor, were sold by Christie's : € 2M including premium on December 14, 2011 over a lower estimate of € 350K, and € 4.15M including premium on December 13, 2017 over a lower estimate of € 500K.
On these two vases 45 cm high, fallow deer are distributed with quiet occupations in a landscape. The two pieces are in yangcai, the technology transferred to Jingdezhen from the falangcai of the foreigners that brought to Chinese porcelain its most sublime colors.
The too lush decor does not seem in the taste of the beginning of the reign but the production is certainly not too late. Jingdezhen was not motivated to maintain for long the difficult and expensive technology of the yangcai, reserved for rare special orders from the imperial court.
A 28 cm high pear shaped vase with a long neck surmounted by a bulb was brought by a customer to the Parisian office of Sotheby's, cleanly stored in a shoebox. It bears the imperial mark of Qianlong and offers beside the deers other auspices such as a double frieze of ruyi and a few cranes, birds whose white feathers are a symbol of old age and longevity.
This theme in this shape is extremely rare. The vase kept at the Musée Guimet also has ruyi but no crane. Such a rarity is not surprising within the extreme variety of the Qianlong porcelains. What makes the specimen brought to Sotheby's so exceptional is the splendid conservation of the yangcai enamels.
The imperial archives twice recorded this mixed theme in yangcai with ruyi, fallow deer and cranes, during the 30th and 34th years of the reign, 1765 and 1769 CE. In the video shared by Sotheby's their expert Nicolas Chow indicates the 34th year as its preferred date. This vase is estimated € 500K for sale by Sotheby's in Paris on June 12, lot 1.
Two hu shaped globular vases with the hundred deer, bearing the imperial mark of the Qianlong emperor, were sold by Christie's : € 2M including premium on December 14, 2011 over a lower estimate of € 350K, and € 4.15M including premium on December 13, 2017 over a lower estimate of € 500K.
On these two vases 45 cm high, fallow deer are distributed with quiet occupations in a landscape. The two pieces are in yangcai, the technology transferred to Jingdezhen from the falangcai of the foreigners that brought to Chinese porcelain its most sublime colors.
The too lush decor does not seem in the taste of the beginning of the reign but the production is certainly not too late. Jingdezhen was not motivated to maintain for long the difficult and expensive technology of the yangcai, reserved for rare special orders from the imperial court.
A 28 cm high pear shaped vase with a long neck surmounted by a bulb was brought by a customer to the Parisian office of Sotheby's, cleanly stored in a shoebox. It bears the imperial mark of Qianlong and offers beside the deers other auspices such as a double frieze of ruyi and a few cranes, birds whose white feathers are a symbol of old age and longevity.
This theme in this shape is extremely rare. The vase kept at the Musée Guimet also has ruyi but no crane. Such a rarity is not surprising within the extreme variety of the Qianlong porcelains. What makes the specimen brought to Sotheby's so exceptional is the splendid conservation of the yangcai enamels.
The imperial archives twice recorded this mixed theme in yangcai with ruyi, fallow deer and cranes, during the 30th and 34th years of the reign, 1765 and 1769 CE. In the video shared by Sotheby's their expert Nicolas Chow indicates the 34th year as its preferred date. This vase is estimated € 500K for sale by Sotheby's in Paris on June 12, lot 1.
Qianlong - The Vase with Pheasants
2011 SOLD 200 MHK$
When the Chinese emperor was powerful, he allowed foreign influences to mingle with the Imperial tradition. In the case of Qianlong, watchmaking, for example, has been a real transfer of technology from England and Chinese imports greatly contributed to the success of Swiss production.
The vases, snuff bottles and brushpots made during his reign reach a high degree of perfection. Shapes are Eastern but the subjects and compositions, sometimes, are European.
The enamels with European themes are named Falangcai ("foreign color"). A beautiful porcelain vase of this type is estimated HK $ 180M, for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 7, lot 15. On a white background, its exquisite painting shows a couple of pheasants on a nest. The balance ot the curves between the bottle and its neck is perfect.
It is 20 cm high, bears the Imperial mark and is illustrated in the press release shared by Artdaily.
POST SALE COMMENTS
1
Too expensive. Unsold.
2
Yes it was expensive, but a buyer was tempted. The press release from Sotheby's told that this vase has been sold HK $ 200M privately after the sale.
Traditionally, such announcement includes fees.
The vases, snuff bottles and brushpots made during his reign reach a high degree of perfection. Shapes are Eastern but the subjects and compositions, sometimes, are European.
The enamels with European themes are named Falangcai ("foreign color"). A beautiful porcelain vase of this type is estimated HK $ 180M, for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 7, lot 15. On a white background, its exquisite painting shows a couple of pheasants on a nest. The balance ot the curves between the bottle and its neck is perfect.
It is 20 cm high, bears the Imperial mark and is illustrated in the press release shared by Artdaily.
POST SALE COMMENTS
1
Too expensive. Unsold.
2
Yes it was expensive, but a buyer was tempted. The press release from Sotheby's told that this vase has been sold HK $ 200M privately after the sale.
Traditionally, such announcement includes fees.
Qianlong - Steatite Seal with Dragons
2016 SOLD for € 21M including premium by Pierre Bergé et Associés
Adjugé ! Record de l'année à Drouot : 21 000 000 € pour ce cachet impérial chez Pierre Bergé & Associés https://t.co/X9Gk94ox38 pic.twitter.com/SMnUW6pUKN
— Drouot (@Drouot) December 14, 2016
1779 George Washington at Princeton by Charles Willson Peale
2006 SOLD 21.3 M$ including premium by Christie's
Link to catalogue.
Please watch the 2015 'Game changer' featured post by Christie's, including video.
Please watch the 2015 'Game changer' featured post by Christie's, including video.
