NEW YORK, NY.- The four Asian art auctions at Bonhams during Asia Week New York achieved impressive results totaling U.S. $8.7 million. Bonhams’ three distinguished Asian art departments presented tightly-curated sales of distinct items from important private collections, and saw a community of international collectors vying for choice pieces throughout the week.

“The Asia Week auction results at Bonhams are proof that the Chinese market is vibrant and thriving, demonstrating a stability and sophistication in the market,” said Dessa Goddard, head of Asian art, Bonhams North America. “We are pleased to see the market remain robust and responsive at all price levels.”

CHINESE WORKS OF ART
The two Chinese art auctions realized close to $3.6 million with a 15% increase in buyer registrations from last year. The auction saw a steady demand for jades. The top sale was a beautifully intricate and fine jade archaistic vase and cover from the Qianlong period that soared past its estimate and claimed $1,025,000, including premium, more than eight times its high estimate. The exceptionally pale green vase is a splendid example of the finest Qing jade production, and attracted competitive bidding from seven collectors.

While a number of similarly impressive archaistic jade vases are known in private and museum collections, this vase demonstrates the infinite variety within a strict tradition achieved by Qing craftsmen. Other top jade lots that performed well above their estimates include an 18th/19th century pale green jade ruyi scepter ($125,000, including premium) and a green jade “peach and bat” brushwasher from the 18th century ($46,250, including premium).

A rare archaic bronze ritual food vessel from the Shang dynasty did exceptionally well, achieving $329,000. Vessels like this one, with high quality casting and a pictogram, were extremely prized and reflect the importance of ancestral worship.

Bonhams continues to be an industry leader in selling private collections of snuff bottles. Snuff bottles by one of China's leading artists of interior bottle-painting, Wang Xisan, were popular and brought in remarkable results. A rare inside-painted self-portrait crystal snuff bottle (1983) by Wang Xisan hammered down at $40,000 with premium, eight times its high estimate. The auction saw six snuff bottles painted by Wang Xisan in its top selling lots, accompanied by superb porcelain and fine jade ones — all achieving two to three times their high sale estimates.

Other significant lots include:

· Sold U.S. $305,000, including premium, A RARE MONUMENTAL BRONZE FIGURE OF MAHAKASYAPA, Ming dynasty

· Sold U.S. $93,750, including premium, A LARGE AND RARE LONGQUAN CELADON-GLAZED DISH WITH LOBED RIM, Yuan/early Ming dynasty, 14th/15th century

· Sold U.S. $62,500, including premium, A LARGE BLANC DE CHINE FIGURE OF GUANYIN, 19th/early 20th century, two Xu Yunlin seal marks and one Dehua seal mark

INDIAN, HIMALAYAN & SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART
Notable among the top lots sold were one of the main highlights – a thangka of Shakyamuni’s Parinirvana School of Choying Dorje from late-17th century, which brought $389,000, including premium, as well as a magnificent gilt copper repoussé figure of a bodhisattva from 16th century Nepal, achieving $365,000 with premium.

The thangka depicts Buddha’s final transition into blissful freedom from rebirth, surrounded by a crowd of mourners from all walks of life. It is painted with a studied naiveté distinguishing the Tenth Karmapa’s style from the rest of Tibetan painting, which is a fresh approach to the subject matter. Parallels can be drawn with other trends in 17th-century Chinese painting that exhibit feelings of loss and displacement following the disintegration of the Ming dynasty. This enigmatic work gives Tibetan art history a rare opportunity to explore how an artist’s life influenced his oeuvre.

The auction offered a strong section of Indian and Southeast Asian sculpture accompanied by choice Tibetan thangkas, Himalayan sculpture and Indian paintings – all of which achieved strong results bringing the sale total to more than $3.8 million.

“By building a selective sale with discriminating taste and carefully considered estimates, we secured an excellent sell-through rate and a superior average lot value for our consignors,” said Edward Wilkinson, the newly appointed executive director of Bonhams Asia. “We increased our market share significantly and established a number of records, including the highest price achieved at auction for a Tibetan ritual implement at $179,000 and a Nepalese repoussé sculpture at $365,000.”

“As we turn now to our inaugural Buddhist Art sale in Hong Kong this November, with masterpieces already consigned, will offer a truly global perspective for our clients, with high caliber sales both sides of the year,” Wilkinson said.

Other significant lots include:

· Sold U.S. $293,000, including premium, A COPPER FIGURE OF DEVI, Nepal, circa 9th century

· Sold U.S. $245,000, including premium, A GROUP OF EIGHT EXCEPTIONAL THANGKAS FROM AN AVADANAKALPALATA SET, Central Tibet, 18th century

· Sold U.S. $179,000, including premium, A LARGE COPPER ALLOY AND IRON BON PURBHA, Tibet, 12th/13th century

FINE JAPANESE WORKS OF ART
Fine Japanese Works of Art on March 16 is the only dedicated sale of Japanese works during Asia Week New York.

Polychrome wood figures from the 14th and 15th/16th centuries led Fine Japanese Works of Art – the only dedicated sale of Japanese works during Asia Week New York. The figure of Fudo Myo-o (Achala) from the Kamakura-Nanbokucho period fetched $75,000 with premium, which was matched at the same sale price by a pair of guardian figures from Muromachi period.

“Our offerings of Buddhist sculpture – coinciding with the Asia Society’s Kamakura: Realism and Spirituality in the Sculpture of Japan – bolstered great interest among collectors and scholars alike. We were again pleased with the response to our print offerings, which have continued to demonstrate strong demand for fresh material in this area,” said Director of Japanese Art Jeff Olson.

The sale saw a solid demand for woodblock prints from masters such as Utagawa Hiroshige and Katsushika Hokusai. A set of 55 woodblock prints by Hiroshige sold for $68,750 with premium, far above its estimate. A long bidding match for an inlaid-iron tetsubin (kettle) from the Meiji era ensued, finally going for seven times its high estimate at $68,750 with premium. This lot was followed by another inlaid-iron tetsubin with an en-suite inlaid cover from the same period which realized $52,500, including premium.

Other significant lots include:

· Sold U.S. $37,500, including premium, A FINE AND LARGE CLOISONNÉ-ENAMEL VASE BY THE SHIBATA WORKSHOP OF KYOTO, Meiji era, late 19th century

· Sold U.S. $32,500, including premium, A GILT-BRONZE MODEL OF TANJOBUTSU, Hakuho or Nara period, 7th-8th century

· Sold U.S. $31,250, including premium, A FINE GOLD LACQUER TABAKO-BON (SMOKING SET) AND PIPE, Edo period, 19th century

The next Asian art sale at Bonhams is the Asian Decorative Arts on March 22 in San Francisco.