Chinese Works of Art

Auction specialists in Australia have found a rare Ming Dynasty banknote hidden within a Chinese wooden sculpture. The discovery came at Mossgreen as they were cataloguing the extensive collection of Raphy Star – one of the most important collections of Asian art ever to be offered in the country.

A musket made in the Chinese Imperial workshops, complete with marks, will become the first of its kind to be offered at auction next month.

A family row over a large collection of 17th century Chinese porcelain escalated this week after Art Fund trustee Caroline Butler hired Christie’s to value the collection.

A large collection of 17th century Chinese porcelain could be broken up and sold after a family feud among the heirs of Sir Michael Butler, a former aide to Margaret Thatcher.

SPECTACULAR sums were paid for Chinese ceramics devoted to tea drinking during last week’s Asian works of art sales in New York.

A rare handscroll fragment recording the Qing dynasty's ambitious rule is a key lot at one of Sotheby’s upcoming sales.

With summer holidays upon us and no Antiques Trade Gazette being published this week, we take our regular look here at some of the highest selling items and top selling lots on thesaleroom.com

Roseberys' latest fine art auction produced particularly sound results from the Asian art collection of Sir Anthony Hastings George, proving that a good provenance is still key.

Auctioneers Hansons of Etwall, Derbyshire have announced they will be offering a fine Chinese blue and white vase with a Qianlong seal mark at their sale on July 1.

A pair of Daoguang (1821-50) mark and period vases sold for £85,000 at a recent sale held at Halls of Shrewsbury.

A porcelain vase thought to be from a Chinese Imperial palace over two centuries ago sells at Bonhams for £110,500

Christie’s are to sell another major slice of deaccessioned material from the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, just under a year after they held a dedicated auction devoted to a dispersal from the Met’s holdings of English furniture and works of art.

Made under the watchful eye of the third Qing emperor, a Chinese porcelain vase valued at just £12 in the 1950s sold for £750,000 at the latest sale held by Mallams in Cheltenham.

This rare early 19th century Chinese gilt decorated export lacquer model of a paddle steamer sold for £7000 at Duke’s of Dorchester.

The centrepiece of Sotheby’s April auction series in Hong Kong will be the collection of around 100 lots of Chinese porcelain spanning the Tang to Qing dynasties that was formed by the British collector Roger Pilkington.

Hansons of Etwall in Derbyshire posted a new house record in the closing days of 2015 with the sale of a 13in (32cm) high Qianlong (1736-95) mark and period famille rose vase for £300,000.

A growing market for silver from the sub-continent culminated in a bid of £11,500 for this 9in (23cm) early 20th century Burmese bowl by Maung Yin Maung of Rangoon.

The primary draw to the regions – rather than London – during last week’s glut of Asian works of art sales was the auction titled ‘In Pursuit of the Scholar’s Spirit’ conducted by Duke’s of Dorchester.

Welsh auctioneers Peter Francis set a new house record when this 8in (19cm) celadon glazed vase sold via the-saleroom.com to a bidder from mainland China for £114,500.