Displaying items by tag: song dynasty

On December 2, 2015, selected items from the most comprehensive private collection of Song ceramics ever to appear at auction will be offered for sale at Christie’s Hong Kong. Carefully assembled over three decades by a distinguished Japanese collector, The Linyushanren Collection is comprised of exquisite examples created during the Song dynasty (960-1279), encompassing some of the most important kiln sites active across China at the time.

The highlight of the 36-lot sale is a very rare Ge foliate dish dating from the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). It was shown in the seminal 1952 exhibition dedicated to Chinese ceramics by the Los Angeles Museum, and was once owned by the famous collector Stephen Junkunc, III (Estimate on Request).

Sotheby’s will offer a selection of exceptional Japanese and Chinese works of art drawn from the collection of Japanese connoisseur Tsuneichi Inoue on May 13, alongside its biannual auction of Important Chinese Art.

“The Soul of Japanese Aesthetics: The Tsuneichi Inoue Collection” offers a revealing cross section of prevailing aesthetic tastes in Tokyo during the early to mid-20th century. Classical Ming and Song Dynasty porcelain and ceramics were very much in vogue, along with archaic Chinese bronzes.

Chinese billionaire Liu Yiqian is known to set record prices at art auctions worldwide. At a Sotheby’s sale in Hong Kong on Tuesday, the Shanghai-based Liu proved himself once again.

This time, he bought a Southern Song dynasty-era (1127-1279) vase for 113.9 million Hong Kong dollars ($ 14.7 million). The price is one of the highest ever paid at an auction for a ceramic vase of that period. The crackled bluish-green artifact is part of the Guan Yao, or official ware created for the imperial court of that time.

Three art historians who are affiliated with the state-run Shanghai Museum are saying that Sotheby’s sold a fake Chinese scroll for $8.2 million last September. ‘Gong Fu Tie,’ which soared past its high estimate of $500,000, was listed as a thousand-year-old masterpiece of Chinese calligraphy by Song Dynasty poet, Su Shi.

The historians are saying that the work, which was purchased by Shanghai businessman and collector, Liu Yiqian, was produced during the 19th century using an old method for copying and retracing artworks. The experts also stated that the forgery was made using a stone carving rather than the original work.

Sotheby’s released a statement saying that the auction house “firmly stands by the attribution of ‘The Gong Fu Tie Calligraphy’ to the Song Dynasty poet Su Shi.” If the scroll is deemed a forgery it could be a major blow to Sotheby’s, which is trying to expand its reach in China and touting its high standard of expertise to collectors both in and outside of the country.