Pax Romana April 26 Auction Surveys Art of Asia: from Antiquity to Present Day

Fascinating art objects follow timeline from Ancient Mesopotamia to modern-day China

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Apr 20, 2020, 08:57 ET

LONDON, April 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On April 26, Britain's premier antiquities auction house, Pax Romana, will take collectors on a virtual 5,000-year journey across time, from Ancient Mesopotamia to modern-day China. The expertly curated 337-lot selection allows all collectors, whether novice or advanced, to bid on authentic ancient art and cultural objects backed by trusted provenance and scholarship. All ancient items will convey with a professional Certificate of Authenticity signed by Pax Romana's owner/director, Dr Ivan Bonchev (PhD, University of Oxford).

L to R: Lot 622 Large Chinese Ming bronze Guanyin, Ming Dynasty, 16th/17th century, weighs over 6kg, est. £4,000-£8,000; Lot 400 Fine Chinese gilt bronze figure of Vajrasattva, circa 1700 or earlier, est. £3,000-£5,000; Lot 353 Superbly modeled Chinese gilt bronze figure of Vajrasattva, circa 1700 or earlier, est. £3,000-£5,000

Fine and very rare Famille Rose enameled double-gourd-shape glass snuff bottle, Qianlong, Chinese Imperial Palace Workshops, 4-character mark (1736-1780). Similar to example auctioned by Christie's NY in 2006 for $329,600. Est. £50,000-£75,000

Featuring antiquities and works of art from China, India, the Holy Lands, Western and Southeast Asia, the auction's Ancient section includes a great variety of artifacts in terracotta, stucco, bronze and stone.

A large and finely cast 16th/17th-century Chinese Ming bronze Guanyin from the Ming Dynasty depicts the deity in a seated position on the back of a dragon. Weighing over 6kg (13lbs., 4oz.), it is estimated at £4,000-£8,000. Two circa-1700 (or earlier) Chinese gilt bronze figures of Vajrasattva carry individual estimates of £3,000-£5,000. Archaic Chinese bronzes of various types and designs from the R. Unger collection include a circa-12th-11th century BC Late Shang dynasty (or later) bronze ritual wine vessel, £3,000-£5,000.

A most outstanding and extremely rare Famille Rose enameled double-gourd-shape glass snuff bottle, Qianlong, Chinese Imperial Palace Workshops Beijing, bears a 4-character mark from 1736-1780. The bottle is similar to one sold by Christie's NY on March 29, 2006 for a staggering $329,600. Pax Romana's bottle is conservatively estimated at £50,000-£75,000.

A magnificent collection of fully authenticated (by Ralf Kotalla, Germany) Ancient Chinese objects includes a menagerie of Han and Tang animals. They include a TL-tested circa 618-907AD Tang dynasty terracotta horse, 26in high x 26in long, £6,000-£9,000; and an appealing TL-tested Han dynasty pottery guard dog, £5,000-£8,000.

A stellar array of Gandharan sculptures depicting the Buddha and various scenes includes an important Gandharan grey schist statue of Bodhisattva, circa 300AD, estimated at £2,000-£3,000. An extremely rare Gandharan Buddhist shrine panel/stela made of Phyllitic schist, circa 500-600AD, could reach £4,000-£8,000.

The auction also includes various objects from western Asia and the Holy Lands, rare pots from Persia, Indus Valley idols, Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets and more. A large and rare Sassanian bronze ritual bowl, circa 500-600AD, is expected to reach £3,000-£5,000.

View the online catalogue and bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers. Online: www.paxromana.auction

Media Contact:
Dr. Ivan Bonchev
+44 7424 994167
[email protected]

SOURCE Pax Romana Auctions