NEW YORK, 15 September 2016 – Seven days of exhibition, three days of sales and four auctions of Chinese Art, with Saturday at Sotheby’s: Asian Art still to come, drove Sotheby’s Asia Week total to $60,368,975 (estimate $24,662,300/36,341,300). The strong results began with early Chinese art from the collection of legendary dealer Sakamoto Gorō – with 100% of lots selling – and continued into the various-owners sale of Chinese works of art. Led by a Rare Turquoise-Ground Famille-Rose ‘Hui Mountain Retreat’ Teapot and Cover from the Qianlong Period, which surpassed its high estimate six times over, the auction of Important Chinese Art totaled $12.2 million. Sotheby’s sales continued on Wednesday evening with the four-and-a-half hour session of The Roy and Marilyn Papp Collection of Chinese Paintings. In front of a packed salesroom, 94.3% of the lots sold, with The Kangxi Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Section of Scroll IV fetching $9.5 million. Sotheby’s Classical Chinese Paintings department remained in the spotlight today with their various-owner sale totaling $13,375,250, again, above the high estimate.

CHINESE ART THROUGH THE EYE OF SAKAMOTO GORŌ: EARLY CHINESE ART
Collectors continued to be drawn to the tastes of Sakamoto Gorō, the renowned Asian Art dealer from Japan. Sixteen works of art, with particularly strong representation from the Shang and Tang Dynasty, were sought by bidders all over the world. Leading the selection of early Chinese art was a Magnificent Sancai-Glazed Ewer, which sold for $874,000 against an estimate of $500/700,000, and a Rare Bronze Double-Owl Form Ritual Vessel (You) that achieved $730,000 (estimate $400/600,000).

IMPORTANT CHINESE ART
Ceramics, sculptures and devotional works of art are only a sampling of the Chinese works of art offered in Sotheby’s seasonal auction. Competed for by clients in the room and on telephones, a Qianlong Seal Mark and Period Rare Turquoise-Ground Famille-Rose ‘Hui Mountain Retreat’ Teapot and Cover, beautifully painted with a garden scene on one side and inscribed with an imperial poem on the other, soared above its high estimate of $500,000 to fetch $3,490,000. Noteworthy prices were also obtained for a Tibeto-Chinese Gilt-Bronze Figure Depicting Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, Dalai Lama V, which fetched $1,510,000 (estimate $80/100,000) and a Pair of Rare Wucai and Doucai ‘Dragon and Phoenix’ Bowls, Yongzheng Marks and Period, selling for $874,000, over ten times its high estimate.

The Roy and Marilyn Papp Collection of Chinese Paintings
The inaugural evening sale of Chinese paintings in New York was a momentous occasion, with 115 lots sold over four-and-a-half hours. This amazing private American collection, with many of the works fresh to the market, was pursued by bidders around the world. The top lot of the sale was The Kangxi Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Section of Scroll IV. Following a fifteen-minute bidding war, this stunning depiction of the Kangxi Emperor’s visit to the southern regions of China realized $9,546,000 (estimate $4/6 million). Interest was sustained throughout the sale, with as many as seven bidders competing for Wang Yuanqi’s Landscape of Yushan, which finally sold for $2,110,000 (estimate $350/550,000).

Fine Classical Chinese Paintings & Calligraphy
Sotheby’s New York’s autumnal offerings of classical Chinese paintings continued on Thursday over two sessions. The sale was led by Zhang Ruitu’s Eighteen Luohan, an album of twenty leaves. Chased by four determined collectors, in the room and on the telephone, these paintings of ink and color on paper sold for $2,230,000 (estimate $500/700,000). Zhu Xiaochun’s Mount Liu also made a remarkable price; estimated at $20/30,000, this handscroll from the 18th Century soared to $910,000.