Ming & Earlier

Two Chinese standing unglazed pottery figures, one of a warrior with an open jacket holding a shield, the other of a civil officer wearing an official hat with his hand clasped beneath his long flowing robes, tied in a bow at the collar, each with finely detailed facial features, the robes with original terracotta colour, white and black pigment, with wood stand.

A pair of Chinese pottery large unglazed models of equestrian archers, one with his right arm raised to hold the bow and his left arm pulled towards his chest to hold the arrow, the other with his left arm raised to hold the bow and his right arm pulled towards his chest to hold the arrow, each seated on a painted animal skin saddlecloth, one with black dots on a white ground, the other with white dots on a black ground, the horses with open mouths, pricked ears and trimmed manes, each archer with expressive and concentrated facial details with a long beard and moustache, all with original pigmentation in terracotta colour, white, black, pink, all on a rectangular base.

A very fine Chinese unglazed pottery, fully caparisoned standing horse with splayed saddle cloth and material folded over, with tassels suspended from his neck, wearing bells on his chest and twelve packs on his hind, all with finely painted original pigment in red, terracotta colour and black, the eyes and bridle particularly well detailed, standing four square on a rectangular base, with wood stand.

Chinese porcelain blue and white kosometsuke deep plate with everted rim, painted in the centre in vivid blue tones with a fisherman standing at the stern with the rectangular sail open, with rock work in the foreground and a two-tiered pagoda in the distance beneath the moon, with an unusual lappet border in the form of a flower, the underside with sprays of branches.

Chinese pottery sancai and blue glazed pillow or wrist rest, carved on the curved top with two ducks facing each other and resting on large lotus flower heads between ruyi and amongst other plants, on a rich lapis blue ground, the four sides with chestnut and white splashes extending on three sides to the foot, the base unglazed, revealing the biscuit body.

Chinese porcelain underglaze blue and white fishbowl painted in a continuous cloud-covered scene, with sixteen boys in groups of four, at various playful pursuits such as; flying kites, playing weiqi, gathering lotus flowers and playing with puppets, in a fenced garden, divided by banana plant, pine and fruiting and flowering trees, most issuing from taihu rocks.

Chinese junyao glazed tea bowl, thinly potted with upright sides, covered overall on the interior and exterior in a bright lavender glaze, thinning at the rim and extending to the foot revealing the fine biscuit body.

A Chinese white jade peach-shaped openwork pierced belt plaque, intricately carved with an open mouth dragon in a lozenge shape frame amongst scrolls and branches, the scales of the dragon minutely incised, all within a peach-shaped flat edge border.

A Chinese gold splash bronze circular vase of hu form, with two loose ring and mythical animal mask handles, all on a gently splayed ribbed foot and upright gallery rim, the body covered with rich gold splashes, continuing on to the base. The underside with a six character relief mark of Xuande impressed in a rectangle. Ming dynasty, 16th/17th century. 6 3/4 inches, 17.2 cm high.

Chinese porcelain ko-akai small saucer dish painted with a bird perched on a flowering camellia branch with green leaves beneath a sun and swirling iron-red clouds, encircled by an iron-red line, the underside with stylised precious objects.

Chinese porcelain blue and white kosometsuke trefoil stem bowl, painted on the bowl with four large leaf sprays above a flange and stylised grass, the lobed overturned rim with a geometric ground and six circular mons with flower heads, cash, three commas, lozenge and three stripes.

Chinese porcelain blue and white kosometsuke octagonal lobed dish with indented corners, painted with three deer gambling and one reclining on grass beneath an overhanging pine tree issuing from rock work with flowers and shrubs, encircled by a scrolling lotus flowerhead border with ruyi-form branches.

Chinese porcelain blue and white kosometsuke deep plate, painted with two ladies standing beneath a parasol beside a pine tree with roc kwork and pine, the irregular border with ten circular mons on two different diaper grounds and approximately a third on a white ground, the underside plain with underglaze blue lines encircling the foot and rim.

A Chinese large gold-splashed bronze vase and cover of archaic zun form, the four-sided body cast on each facet with a wide relief-band of taotie masks on a key-fret ground, between handles cast with mythical animal heads and set with a mask handle on one facet, above eight stylised masks on the splayed foot repeated on the neck and cover, all between flanges, the cover surmounted by a curved knop, the underside with a four-character mark of ‘dan er bu yan’ (distant yet courteous).

A Chinese imperial porcelain blue and white small saucer dish, painted in the centre in luminous vivid tones, with three scaled mythical animals including a qilin, a monkey headed qilin and an elephant headed animal, together with a tiger and a dragon emerging from rockwork beneath ruyi clouds, with a pine branch, other plants, rockwork and flowerheads, encircled with a continuous border of a lotus pound with pairs of geese, ducks, cranes and other birds amongst lotus flowers, leaves, arrow heads and aquatic leaves, the underside with six branches of pomegranate, hibiscus, persimmon, morning glory, peach and another flowering branch. Japanese wood box.

A Chinese porcelain blue and white kendi of elephant form with upright handle beneath the wide flanged blue glaze rim, painted with a saddle cloth with wan characters and central cash tied around the neck and hind quarters with hanging ornaments, the handle painted with prunus branches and rockwork, with a slightly raised flower-head band on its back, the upright head with detailed ears and eyes, with trunk form spouts, the detailed tail also in relief, the base unglazed.

A set of three Chinese porcelain ko-akae, wucai, polychrome lozenge shape dishes with foliate flutted rims, each painted with a seated figure of Budai, resting against his long staff holding a necklace in his right hand and the edge of his treasure sack, beside the edge of rocky promontory with an overhanging pine tree beneath iron-red cloud within an iron-red border, the rim dressed brown. The base with a two characters mark of Taiping within a double rectangle,

A Chinese porcelain ko-akai, wucai, square dish, painted in the centre with a crosshatch design of different polychrome grounds including key-fret, cash, tile, scale and chainmail dispersed between iron red flower heads of lotus, prunus and camellia, encircled by a band of butterfly and insects beneath a flat everted rim, painted with crested swirling waves, the chamfered corners with pendent flowers.