The bowl was produced during the reign of the Yongzheng Emperor, who ruled China from 1722 to 1735, although the enamel was probably painted shortly after his death. It is part of a tradition known as “falangcai” or “foreign colors,” a name given to porcelain from the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen, but enameled by artisans in Beijing’s Forbidden City.
In the auction catalog, ceramics expert Regina Krahl stated that bird and flower motifs were popular during the Yongzheng period. She also described the bowl as part of a small group of objects that represent “the pinnacle of porcelain painting, a mastery that has never been surpassed.”
“The painted pieces with such rare and exquisite natural motifs, as seen here, ‘wrapped’ around the vessel like a hand-rolled scroll, were only made in Beijing for a very short time“, she wrote, adding that most of the remaining specimens are currently in the Palace Museum in Taiwan.
Once part of a pair, the object was first recorded in a collection amassed by Captain Charles Oswald Liddell, a merchant seaman from Shanghai, in the late 19th century. The two bowls were separated in 1929, when they were sold for £150 each (which is just over £7,600 or $9,400 in today’s money). The bowl’s “twin” is currently at the British Museum in London, Sotheby’s said.
Meanwhile, the one sold on Saturday has passed through several hands over the decades, with former owners including American socialite Barbara Hutton. It was most recently acquired by businesswoman and collector Alice Cheng, who bought it for the record sum of 19.3 million euros in 2006.
The piece was among the standout lots in Sotheby’s Hong Kong spring series, a succession of high-profile sales marking 50 years since the auction house began operations in Asia. Other auctions included watches, handbags and vintage wines, while various Chinese art sales reached a total of $208.5 million.
Among the historic items up for sale were vessels, statues and imperial treasures, from a jade seal to a set of archers’ rings.
For the most important news of the day, transmitted in real time and presented equidistantly, LIKE our Facebook page!
Follow Mediafax on Instagram to see spectacular images and stories from around the world!
Answer on the websites of Aleph News, Mediafax, Ziarul Financiar and on our social media pages – ȘTIU and Aleph News. See the answer to I know, from 19.55, Aleph News.
The content of the www.mediafax.ro website is intended exclusively for your information and personal use. It is forbidden republication of the content of this site without the consent of MEDIAFAX. To obtain this agreement, please contact us at [email protected].
