10th Apr, 2025 11:00
TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism
169
AN IMPERIAL GILT-DECORATED POWDER-BLUE ‘LOTUS’ VASE, QIANLONG MARK AND PERIOD
€20,000
€40,000
A buyer’s premium of 30.00% (including VAT) applies to the hammer price of this lot if your bid is successful.
Expert’s note:
The present lot is one of the few Imperial objects outside China with a confirmed provenance tracing back to the time of its manufacture—the Qianlong period. Notably, since Daniel Beale left China in 1797, it is certain that he acquired this vase during the Emperor’s lifetime. While this masterpiece from the Imperial workshops in Beijing is already magnificent and exceedingly rare on its own merits, its seamless, over 225-year-old provenance makes it truly one of a kind.
China, 1736-1795. The globular body supported on a spreading foot and surmounted by a trumpet neck flanked by reticulated handles in form of stylized phoenixes. The vase is decorated to the body with four large cartouches each depicting a large lotus head amidst scrolling tendrils, all above a band of stylized lappets to the foot rim. The neck is gilded with further lotus scrolls above a band of lotus and ruyi. The base and interior covered in turquoise, the recessed base with an underglaze blue six-character seal mark da Qing Qianlong nianzhi and of the period.
Provenance: Collection of Daniel Beale, acquired in China before 1797, and thence by direct family descent to this day. Daniel Beale (1759-1842) was a Scottish merchant and trader active in China during the Qianlong period and thereafter, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Born in Scotland, he became involved in the lucrative East Asian trade, working as a supercargo for the East India Company and engaging in private trade in Canton. Daniel Beale was the purser of, successively, the East India Company ships Walpole and General Coote on voyages between London and Canton in 1783-1786: in 1783 he joined the Macao partnership of John Henry Cox and John Reid in their mercantile ventures. Giving evidence before the British parliament's commons committee of Enquiry on the East India Company’s Affairs on 11 May 1815, Beale testified that he had been resident in Canton “from the latter end of 1787 to the middle of 1797” and acted as “agent for many of the mercantile houses in Bombay and Bengal.” He was connected with prominent trading firms and had extensive dealings with British and Chinese merchants. By 1797, Beale & Co. had become the biggest of the country traders, dealing with clients in Bombay, Calcutta and London, in Indian cotton, sandalwood, tin, pepper Chinese tea and silk as well as opium. In 1797, Daniel Beale left China to join Magniac & Co. in London. In 1800 the sole British firm in Canton is recorded as Reid, Beale & Co., formerly Hamilton & Reid, and in 1804 became Beale & Magniac. After Beale’s death, a part of his collection was sold at Christie’s and other auction houses, while the present lot was kept in the family for over 200 years.
Condition: Excellent condition with only minor wear and minimal firing irregularities, the gilt still very crisp and with few minor areas of rubbing mostly along the handles and upper rim.
Weight: 3 kg
Dimensions: Height 39.2 cm
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Paris, 9 June 2021, lot 226
Price: EUR 150,000 or approx. EUR 169,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-decorated powder blue-ground vase, China, Qing dynasty, copper red Qianlong six-character seal mark and of the period (1736-1795)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related gilt decoration on a blue ground, phoenix-form handles, lotus scroll, and Qianlong seal mark (albeit in red) on a turquoise base. Note the smaller size (35 cm) and more ovoid body.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Poly Auction, Beijing, 6 July 2023, lot 5628
Price: RMB 18,400,000 or approx. EUR 2,523,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A powder-blue-ground gilt-decorated vase, Qianlong mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the closely related gilt decoration on a blue ground. Note the underglaze-blue Qianlong reign mark in official script, as well as the more compressed body and the elephant handles.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Osenat, Paris, 21 February 2024, lot 146
Price: EUR 182,000 (for a pair)
Description: A pair of baluster-shaped vases in powder-blue enameled porcelain, Jiaqing mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the related form and decoration, albeit of a more cluttered style than the present lot. Note the size (32.4 cm) and simplified handles.
Expert’s note:
The present lot is one of the few Imperial objects outside China with a confirmed provenance tracing back to the time of its manufacture—the Qianlong period. Notably, since Daniel Beale left China in 1797, it is certain that he acquired this vase during the Emperor’s lifetime. While this masterpiece from the Imperial workshops in Beijing is already magnificent and exceedingly rare on its own merits, its seamless, over 225-year-old provenance makes it truly one of a kind.
China, 1736-1795. The globular body supported on a spreading foot and surmounted by a trumpet neck flanked by reticulated handles in form of stylized phoenixes. The vase is decorated to the body with four large cartouches each depicting a large lotus head amidst scrolling tendrils, all above a band of stylized lappets to the foot rim. The neck is gilded with further lotus scrolls above a band of lotus and ruyi. The base and interior covered in turquoise, the recessed base with an underglaze blue six-character seal mark da Qing Qianlong nianzhi and of the period.
Provenance: Collection of Daniel Beale, acquired in China before 1797, and thence by direct family descent to this day. Daniel Beale (1759-1842) was a Scottish merchant and trader active in China during the Qianlong period and thereafter, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Born in Scotland, he became involved in the lucrative East Asian trade, working as a supercargo for the East India Company and engaging in private trade in Canton. Daniel Beale was the purser of, successively, the East India Company ships Walpole and General Coote on voyages between London and Canton in 1783-1786: in 1783 he joined the Macao partnership of John Henry Cox and John Reid in their mercantile ventures. Giving evidence before the British parliament's commons committee of Enquiry on the East India Company’s Affairs on 11 May 1815, Beale testified that he had been resident in Canton “from the latter end of 1787 to the middle of 1797” and acted as “agent for many of the mercantile houses in Bombay and Bengal.” He was connected with prominent trading firms and had extensive dealings with British and Chinese merchants. By 1797, Beale & Co. had become the biggest of the country traders, dealing with clients in Bombay, Calcutta and London, in Indian cotton, sandalwood, tin, pepper Chinese tea and silk as well as opium. In 1797, Daniel Beale left China to join Magniac & Co. in London. In 1800 the sole British firm in Canton is recorded as Reid, Beale & Co., formerly Hamilton & Reid, and in 1804 became Beale & Magniac. After Beale’s death, a part of his collection was sold at Christie’s and other auction houses, while the present lot was kept in the family for over 200 years.
Condition: Excellent condition with only minor wear and minimal firing irregularities, the gilt still very crisp and with few minor areas of rubbing mostly along the handles and upper rim.
Weight: 3 kg
Dimensions: Height 39.2 cm
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s Paris, 9 June 2021, lot 226
Price: EUR 150,000 or approx. EUR 169,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A gilt-decorated powder blue-ground vase, China, Qing dynasty, copper red Qianlong six-character seal mark and of the period (1736-1795)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related gilt decoration on a blue ground, phoenix-form handles, lotus scroll, and Qianlong seal mark (albeit in red) on a turquoise base. Note the smaller size (35 cm) and more ovoid body.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Poly Auction, Beijing, 6 July 2023, lot 5628
Price: RMB 18,400,000 or approx. EUR 2,523,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A powder-blue-ground gilt-decorated vase, Qianlong mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the closely related gilt decoration on a blue ground. Note the underglaze-blue Qianlong reign mark in official script, as well as the more compressed body and the elephant handles.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Osenat, Paris, 21 February 2024, lot 146
Price: EUR 182,000 (for a pair)
Description: A pair of baluster-shaped vases in powder-blue enameled porcelain, Jiaqing mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the related form and decoration, albeit of a more cluttered style than the present lot. Note the size (32.4 cm) and simplified handles.
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Auction: TWO-DAY AUCTION: Fine Asian Art, Buddhism and Hinduism, 10th Apr, 2025
Galerie Zacke is privileged to present a remarkable two-day live auction event, featuring 684 works of art from China, Southeast Asia, India, and beyond.
The highlight is our flagship live auction on Day 1, showcasing lots 1-269, Among the many standout pieces are a ge-type octagonal bowl from the Southern Song dynasty, part of the Jules Speelman collection (lot 137), a rare 1st-2nd century gold figure of a mother goddess from the Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum collection (lot 176), as well as a group of four parcel-gilt bronze Bodhisattvas from the Bao-Xiang Lo Palace and Temple, with Qianlong marks and of the period (lot 52).
Day 2 continues with our general auction (lots 270-684), offering seasoned collectors and new bidders alike an opportunity to enhance their collections. Learn more.
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