LONDON.- Bonhams announces highlights for the Asian Art Week sales in London in October and November, as part of the 25th anniversary celebration of Asian Art in London.

3 November
Fine Chinese Art
Bonhams New Bond Street

The Fine Chinese Art sale will be held at London New Bond Street on 3 November, showcasing an exceptional private collection from Sir Michael and Lady Oppenheimer DD (3rd Baronet, 1924-2020) of Imperial cloisonné enamel, some formerly at Langley Park, Buckinghamshire, as well as many other rare ceramics and works of art. Leading the Oppenheimer collection is an Important and Very Rare Cloisonné Enamel and Gilt-Bronze Circular ‘Chun’ Box and Cover, Qianlong, estimated at £150,000 – 200,000.

The highlight of the Fine Chinese Art sale is an exceptionally rare and large blue and white reserve-decorated ‘peony’ dish, Xuande mark and of the period (1426-1435), estimated at £700,000 – 1,000,000. The dish dating back to the early Ming dynasty is extremely rare, with only three other published dishes of this type bearing the mark of Xuande and of the period, one in hem in the Palace Museum, Beijing, another in the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka, and a third, the pair to the present lot, which was sold at Sotheby’s.

3 November
The Marsh Collection: Art for the Literati
Bonhams New Bond Street

The Marsh Collection: Art for the Literati – an exceptional collection put together over decades of brushpots and other vessels and paraphernalia made for the scholar’s desk from the late Ming to the Qing dynasty – will be offered for sale in a Live Auction to be held at New Bond Street, London on 3 November, and an Online-Only sale, which will begin on 28 October and end on 7 November. All Lots offered in the Online-Only sale will be sold without reserve.

Leading the collection is An Exceptionally Rare Blue and White ‘384 Shou’ Brushpot, bitong, Kangxi six-character and of the period (1662-1722). The design, with continuous rows of Shou (‘longevity’) characters in different forms of seal script, is extremely rare and believed to have been made to mark an important Imperial birthday. Estimate: £80,000-120,000.

3 November
Imperial Painted Lacquer Furniture and Scholar’s Objects from China’s Ming and Early Qing Dynasties
Bonhams New Bond Street

For the first time at auction, painted lacquer furniture ad scholar’s objects made for the Imperial Court during the Ming and early Qing dynasties will be presented as a thematic sale. A highlight of the 3 November sale is an important and exceptionally rare painted and incised lacquer ‘dragons’ table, Chongzhen mark and of the period (1627-1644), estimated at £600,000 – 800,000. The Ming dynasty is regarded as the zenith of Chinese furniture making, but it is extremely rare to find lacquer pieces with a Chongzhen reign mark and of the period. The table was made for the Imperial Court and is a rare extant example of the late Ming dynasty.




31 October – 1 November
Asian Art
Bonhams Knightsbridge

Commencing the marquee sale week, the two-day sale of Asian Art presents around 500 lots spanning a broad spectrum of Chinese and Japanese ceramics and works of art, textiles and paintings. Also included are works from Korea, the Himalayas and South-East Asia. Highlights of the sale include:

• A fine and large wucai baluster jar and cover, Shunzhi period (1644-61), decorated with a lady and attendants in a pavilion garden. Estimate: £15,000-20,000.

• A collection of snuff bottles from an English Private Collection including fine examples of overlay glass, glass, hardstones and organic materials.

• A pair of ‘Yang Family’ vases, Yongzheng (1723-35). Estimate: £15,000-20,000.

3 November
Patient Detail, Perfect Design: Japanese Art across the Centuries
Bonhams New Bond Street

Bonhams November Japanese sale, Patient Detail, Perfect Design: Japanese Art across the Centuries, features more than 400 lots executed in a wide variety of media and styles. The largest works are two rare screen paintings that bring to life the bustling traditional Japanese urban scene and the country’s imaginative vision of the world beyond its shores. One of them is a pair of six-panel screens (estimate: £20,000-30,000) presenting a lively fantasy of mounted Tartar warriors hunting in the far-flung mountains of north-eastern Asia.

Further highlights include:

• A rare trio of prints by Kawase Hasui (1883-1957) depicting an iconic sightseeing view: the Azalea Garden at Hakone with Mount Fuji in the background. Also featured is a charming woodblock print by the enigmatic and sought-after master Sharaku (estimate: £80,000-100,000), active for only just over a year in 1794-5. It depicts Daidozan, an eight-year-old wrestler, parading at the opening ceremony for a sumo tournament

• The painstaking craft of maki-e, decoration with precious metal flakes and powders sprinkled onto lacquer, is represented by several dozen pieces dating from the 18th century to the pre-war period, including a miniature box and cover by Shibata Zeshin (1807-1891), widely considered the greatest lacquerer of all time. Estimate: £5,000-6,000.

• Masterpieces from the Meiji era include a splendid vase by Namikawa Sosuke (1847-1910) of Tokyo depicting a pair of egrets, a perfect example of his acute observation and exquisite technique. Estimate: £30,000-40,000. A tray with a cockerel by the same artist is in the current exhibition Japan: Courts and Culture at the Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace.