Chinese bronze vessel sells for $722,500 at Hindman auction
Chinese bronze ritual gong vessel having a fitted cover depicting a horned beast. Price realized: $722,500. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers followed up on Thursday, June 12 with an “Asian Marketplace” auction, again with impressive results bolstered by online bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com. On that day a LiveAuctioneers.com bidder created excitement by buying a Chinese polychrome decorated ceramic figure of a lama estimated at $400-$600 for $266,200.
LiveAuctioneers.com facilitated Internet bidding for both auctions.
Online bidders utilizing LiveAuctioneers.com made their presence known in Hindman’s “Asian Marketplace” session, adding $407,255 to the gross. The sell-through rate by number of lots purchased by LiveAuctioneers bidders was a substantial 44.24 percent. Just over 3,400 visitors viewed the online catalog for Thursday’s event. More than 380 absentee bids were placed through LiveAuctioneers for Hindman’s Asian Marketplace sale, and there were 982 underbids from online bidders.
Wednesday’s session featured Chinese works of art assembled by Phillip and Kay Cha over a period of more than 30 years. The sale included paintings, ceramics and furniture from both their private collection and Asian House, their Chicago gallery.
The auction’s top three lots on Wednesday alone grossed more than a million dollars. The gong vessel attracted numerous buyers who flew into Chicago to view it firsthand, and had been in the Chas’ personal collection for several years after having been purchased decades ago from the storied Gurie Gallery in Montreal.
A gui vessel, also with Gurie Gallery provenance, sold for $266,500; and a yu, an unusual ritual vessel covered with pointed “bosses,” each brought $182,500. Both bronzes bear archaic inscriptions and were part of the Chas’ personal collection, kept and admired in their Chicago home for several years.
“Mr. and Mrs. Cha are two of the warmest, most generous, and intelligent people that anyone could meet. The success of this auction reflects their discerning taste and intuition in this field,” said Phyllis Kao, director of Asian works of art at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers.
Another highlight of the sale was an important Chinese painting on silk, which sold for $55,440 after a long struggle between telephone and online bidders. The painting depicted Vanavasa meditating in a grotto, and once hung in the Chas’ sitting room.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalogs for these sales, complete with prices realized, on LiveAuctioneers.com.
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Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.
ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE
Chinese bronze ritual gong vessel having a fitted cover depicting a horned beast. Price realized: $722,500. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
Chinese polychrome decorated ceramic figure of a lama, 13 3/4 inches. Price realized: $266.200. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
Chinese bronze ritual gui vessel, early Western Zhou style. Price realized: $266,500. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
Bronze yu ritual food vessel. Price realized: $182,500. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
Chinese painting on silk of Vanavasa meditating, anonymous, late Song Dynasty or later. Price realized: $55,440. Leslie Hindman Auctioneers image.
