Will Qianlong Gilt-Bronze Bell Crush Its Estimated Value at Christie's London Fall 2019 Auction?

This imperial gilt-bronze bell (bianzhong) from the Qianlong period caught my attention whilst I was surfing the internet today :p I'm very curious to know if it'll crush its estimated value of £800,000 - 1,200,000 at the upcoming Christie's London Fall 2019 auction :p



https://en.thevalue.com/articles/qianlong-bianzhong-gilt-bronze-bell-christies-yamanaka

Over $400million in Online Sales in 6 Days for Sotheby's!

I must admit that that was quite a feat....even for an auction house as reputable as Sotheby's:p Looks like online bidding (up 44%) is still the preferred choice when compared to phone bidding (up 17%) :p Good to know that the ongoing chaos in HK didn't deter serious collectors from bidding for their favourite pieces :p Would be interesting to see if online bidding drops when and if normalcy ensues in HK...


https://amp.scmp.com/business/money/wealth/article/3032403/auction-house-sothebys-raises-over-us400-million-sixth

Chinese Porcelain (as Decor Pieces)

Just wanted to share this simple guide on Chinese porcelain (as decor pieces). Hope you find this a useful point of reference:)

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/south-east-se-asia/china-art/a/chinese-porcelain-decoration

Only One out of Four Yuan-Ming Jun Wares Sold at Christie's Hong Kong

It's interesting that only one out of four Yuan-Ming Jun wares managed to be sold at Christie's Hong Kong recent spring sales. However, given all of the bowls offered are similar in shape and sizes, I am inclined to agree that the lack of uniqueness could be one of the reasons leading to the flop.

Having said that, I must say the numbered one bulb bowl was my favourite among the three unsold pieces :p What about the rest of you?

https://en.thevalue.com/articles/christies-jun-ware-masterpieces

Legendary Collector Robert Chang Pays a Whooping 540,000Euros for Qianglong White Jade Vase

Hmm....it's interesting how white jade pieces have been highly sought-after in recent years. It would be interesting to see if this trend changes over time.

https://en.thevalue.com/articles/art-d-asie-christies-paris-spring-2019-result

Junkunc Jade Dragon Head Fails to Sell at Christie’s New York

The only Tang-dynasty jade dragon head (in private hands) fails to find a new owner at Christie's New York despite pre-sale hype....

It's interesting how the sentiment in the room changed so quickly. I personally couldn't help but wonder if it would have been snapped up had Christie's been willing to settle for a 'modest' US$2.2million.


https://en.thevalue.com/articles/junkunc-jade-dragon-head-tang-christies-fail

Thank you, BBC!

While the documentary may have been a short one, I am so glad BBC was literally granted full access to the Terracotta warriors from the Qin dynasty! I was particularly pleased that viewers were given a glimpse of the hidden 'stamps of quality control' found on some of the Terracotta warriors.


https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p07n8vwl/how-mass-production-shaped-history