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Charlene's Picks
Charlene Wang | Acting Director, Asian Art | Business Development
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In July my colleagues and I came across an extraordinary discovery in the desert—an extremely rare dragon dish from the Yongzheng period (1723–1735). We had driven for over an hour in sweltering 110-degree heat to reach the estate of Robert Crowder. Crowder was a renowned artist celebrated for his Japanese paintings, which are highly sought after in interior design. He was also a collector whose wide-ranging interests included Asian works of art that often served as inspiration for his own practice. From his estate we are now offering a small selection of Asian works, including this imperial work.
This dish is glazed in imperial yellow enamel, a color reserved exclusively for the emperor, and decorated with five-clawed dragons, a motif strictly limited to the emperor and the empress consort. The Yongzheng emperor was deeply influenced by porcelains of the Xuande period of the Ming dynasty (1426–1435). This yellow enameled underglaze blue dragon dish pays homage to that earlier era, when this design was first created.
For the keen-eyed collector the dragon on this dish bears a striking resemblance to the vigorous, wrathful style of Yongzheng’s father, the Kangxi emperor (1662–1722). The dragon’s robust form radiates power and vitality, capturing the spirit of that earlier reign. On the underside, it bears a six-character mark that translates to "Made in the Yongzheng period of the Great Qing dynasty." Interestingly, all the characters are executed with natural confidence except for "Yongzheng." We believe this suggests the dish may be among the earliest porcelains produced for the new emperor, when artisans were still unfamiliar with inscribing his reign title.
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Huanghuali (Dalbergia odorifera) is without question one of the finest wood materials to collect, use, and invest in. Native to Hainan province in China, Huanghuali is prized for its beauty, durability, density, and natural resistance to insects. Among all the woods used in Chinese furniture, and perhaps in all furniture traditions, it stands out as the most admired. Large Huanghuali trees were already heavily harvested by the 18th century, leaving the material virtually extinct. While the species is still cultivated today, it grows at an exceptionally slow pace, often taking several hundred years or even up to a thousand years to mature into lumber suitable for furniture making.
Seventeenth- and eighteenth-century carpenters recognized the precious nature of Huanghuali and treated it with the utmost respect. Rather than relying on heavy ornamentation, they allowed the wood to speak for itself, crafting furniture with simple, refined lines that highlighted its natural beauty.
This table is a perfect example of that philosophy. The rectangular top rests on four gently tapered legs, joined by stretchers that curve elegantly at the ends for added strength. At the center of the tabletop, a pane of burl wood has been inset, introducing subtle decorative detail. The piece comes from an important Oregon estate, having been purchased from E & J Frankel in 1998, and its provenance can be traced back to 1780 in New England. For almost 250 years, it has remained in very good condition and will last for a long time to come.
It is a work of timeless elegance, suitable both as a functional piece for daily life and as a treasured investment that will continue to hold its value in the future.
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Fashion trends are not often a subject of conversation in the world of antiques, yet within the circle of discerning Asian art collectors I have noticed a quiet shift. More and more people are choosing to wear archaic jades as bracelets or necklaces in daily life. This practice not only allows the stone to be enriched by the warmth and natural oils of the body, it also offers a discreet way to display something both precious and luxurious without ostentation. The appreciation of beautiful stones seems almost innate, a tradition reaching back to the earliest Homo sapiens. To wear jade is to carry an amulet that bridges nature and history, embodying harmony and good fortune.
This beaded necklace reflects that spirit. Each bead possesses its own unique character and natural beauty, while the pendant serves as the centerpiece: a five-colored jade carved with a phoenix on one side and a rat at the top. In The Classic of Mountains and Seas, compiled in the 4th century BCE, the phoenix is described as a bird adorned with five-colored feathers. The artisan who carved this pendant likely drew inspiration from the natural hues of the stone, allowing the phoenix to emerge organically from its material.
The necklace comes from a Missouri estate and was originally acquired in the 1980s from Shee Lup Jung of Jung’s Inc. in Wilmington, Delaware.
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Megan's Picks
Megan Ma | Associate Specialist & Department Coordinator, Fine & Decorative Arts
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This pair of 17th century bronze phoenix-form vessels is truly a special piece in the auction that shouldn’t be overlooked. The delicate molded patterns on the bronze and the inscription to the interior of the gu-form vessel all indicates the masterful craftsmanship and unusuality of the lot. The roosters have long been revered in Chinese tradition as "sun bird," announcing the arrival of dawn and embodying the human desire for light and renewal. Over time, this symbolism developed into the divine tianji (heavenly rooster) or jinji
(golden rooster), believed to dispel evil spirits and bring protection, with an idiom 金鸡报晓, the gold rooster announces the dawn. From the Shang bronzes through to the Ming and Qing dynasties porcelains, the rooster motif endured as a powerful emblem of solar worship and auspicious transformation. This elegant pair of 17th century bronze vessels reflects that legacy, each cast in the form of a phoenix-like tianji supporting a tall gu-form beaker on its back. With stylized plumage and a bold silhouette, these works embody both the antiquarian imagination of their own time and the ritual dignity of ancient tradition.
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As one of the five great kilns of the Song dynasty, Ding ware held an influential place in Chinese ceramic history, admired for its elegant forms, subtle decoration, and luminous ivory-toned glaze. White glazed wares were highly prized for their purity and refinement, evoking jade in both tone and texture and embodying ideals of simplicity and restraint that resonated deeply with literati taste.
This finely potted Ding ware dish from the Jin dynasty caught my eyes at first sight with its extremely intricate molding under the thin glaze of this rare motif of Wu niu chuan yue
(the buffalo gasping at the moon). At the center, a water buffalo rests upon stylized waves, gazing upward toward a crescent moon emerging from drifting clouds. The subject alludes to a well-known Chinese idiom describing the buffalo’s timidity, mistaking the moon’s reflection for the sun and thus dreading its heat, a theme rich in poetic resonance since antiquity. The creamy white glaze, pooling slightly to reveal the crisp incised and molded decoration, is characteristic of Ding ware’s refined aesthetic. Similar example in the collection of The National Palace Museum, Taipei, and Hangzhou Archaeology Research Institute.
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Rebecca's Picks
Rebecca Campbell | Associate Specialist & Lead Cataloguer, Fine & Decorative Arts
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One of my favorite lots in the sale has to be this large white jade crawfish, carved in the 20th century with remarkable fluidity and lifelike presence. The artist has taken a material long celebrated in Chinese culture, pure white jade, cherished as "mutton-fat" for its luminous sheen, and transformed it into a symbol of vitality and abundance. Crawfish, with their association with resilience and the rhythms of water, harmonize perfectly with jade’s enduring connotations of purity and spiritual refinement. The subject itself is wonderfully unusual; while dragons and phoenixes often command center stage in jade carving, this piece celebrates a creature of water and resilience, sculpted with humor, charm, and striking realism. It’s a reminder that great art can
elevate even the most everyday forms of life into objects of contemplation. This is a piece that invites contemplation not only for its craftsmanship, but for the way it bridges natural beauty with cultural meaning, an artwork that feels at once timeless and alive.
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This charming and vibrant pentaptych spotlights Utagawa Sadahide’s lively depiction of Western Traders at Yokohama Transporting Merchandise,
a scene that captures the cosmopolitan energy of Japan’s opening to foreign trade in the mid-19th century. Sadahide, one of the great chroniclers of Yokohama’s transformation, masterfully balances documentary precision with the vivid color and dynamic composition that define the best of ukiyo-e. Each panel works beautifully on its own, but together they create a sweeping narrative, part documentary, part drama, and wholly engaging. This print offers bidders not just an artwork, but a window into a pivotal cultural exchange that shaped modern Japan. We are also delighted to share that collectors will have another opportunity to pursue Sadahide’s work in our upcoming September 30th
auction, the final installment of the important Nelkin Collection of Japanese Woodblocks, a landmark series of sales celebrating one of the finest collections of its kind.
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Charlene Wang
Acting Director, Asian Art,
Business Development
CharleneW@HA.com
(212) 486-3731
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Megan Ma
Associate Specialist &
Department Coordinator,
Fine & Decorative Arts
MeganM@HA.com
(214) 409-1196
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Rebecca Campbell
Associate Specialist &
Lead Cataloguer,
Fine & Decorative Arts
RCampbell@HA.com
(214) 409-1948
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