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Lot 386
The Buchanan-Jardine Bitong. A Magnificent Chinese Imperial Spinach-Green Jade Brush Pot (Bitong), Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period 1736-95, 14.8cm high, 14.1cm dia. With thick cylindrical sides finely and deeply carved with scenes of Daoist immortals in a continuous dramatic tree-lined mountain landscape, the ten small figures arranged in four groups, one of a sage with two attendants carrying fruiting branches and a lingzhi sceptre, beneath rocks besides steps leading up the mountain, another of two figures beneath steps leading to a pagoda retreat, the third of a sage holding a staff and a small boy carrying a peach spray, the fourth of two figures on a mountain bridge, looking out over the landscape, the stone of a deep green color with some paler striations and dark speckling throughout, raised on an elaborate hardwood stand reticulated and carved with peaches, bamboo and chrysanthemum amidst rocks. Exhibited: The International Exhibition of Chinese Art, The Royal Academy of Arts, London 1935/6 catalogue number 2855. Provenance: Sir John William Buchanan-Jardine Bt. Purchased from Spink & Son in 1952. Sir John William Buchanan-Jardine (1900-1969), a Baronet, had a distinguished military career and later became the head of Jardine-Matheson. During his time as head of one of the most powerful organisations of the British Empire in the early 20th century, he had access to exceptional Chinese art works through a period of turmoil when many pieces from the Imperial Collection were dispersed. At some time following the 1935 exhibition, the Buchanan-Jardine collection was in turn sold in London. Catalogue Note: Another jade brush pot in the National Palace Museum, dating from the Qianlong period has similar dense carving and is illustrated in The Refined Taste of the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch'ing Court, Taipei, 1997, pp. 172-3, no. 55. See, also, Christie's London 13 May 2008, lot 54 for a larger green jade brush pot dated to the Qianlong period decorated with a rare scene of foreigners and a caparisoned elephant. In a discussion of the large green jade brush pot dated to the 18th century in the collection of Sir Joseph Hotung, Chinese Jade: From the Neolithic to the Qing, British Museum, London, 1995, p.407, no. 29.18, the author, Jessica Rawson, notes that jade workshops sometimes used conventional painting and printing themes as the basis for their designs. The carver treated the surface of the jade almost like a sheet of paper and used his 'techniques to produce the effects of a painting'.
Lot 387
The Bruce Imperial Bi Disc. A Magnificent and Rare Chinese Imperial Spinach-Green Jade Bi Disc, carved with Nine Dragons, Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period 1736-95, 20.1cm dia. Deeply carved in high relief with nine sinuous writhing dragons and chilongs encircling the central aperture, the reverse carved with an overall array of small raised circular bosses, the stone of a rich even spinach-green colour. Exhibited: The International Exhibition of Chinese Art, The Royal Academy of Arts, London 1935/6 catalogue number 2784. Provenance: The R.C. Bruce Collection. Purchased from Spink & Son in 1952. Catalogue note: Bi discs or stone rings were being made by the people of eastern China as early as the fifth millennium BC. Jade discs have been found carefully laid on the bodies of the dead in tombs of the Hongshan culture (about 3800-2700 BC), a practice which was continued by later Neolithic cultures, After the Shang period they are usually more ornate, carved with dragons, snakes or fish, and used in ritual ceremonies. While the meanings that the Neolithic jades carried in their own time is not known, it is theorized that they were to assist the spirit in the afterlife. A fine white jade bi disc from the Palace Museum Beijing, Gu103121 with related decoration to the reverse of the present example, dated to the Qianlong Period, is illustrated: China, The Three Emperors 1662-1795, No.200. This rare bi disc was reputedly made to celebrate the Qianlong Emperor's 60th birthday.
Lot 12
A pair of rare George IV Coadestone gatepier pineapples the bases stamped Croggan . late . Coade and dated 1823 87cm.; 34ins high Eleanor Coade (d.1821) opened her Lambeth Manufactory for ceramic artificial stone in 1769, and appointed the sculptor John Bacon as its manager two years later. She was employed by all the leading late 18th Century architects. From about 1777 she began her engraved designs, which were published in 1784 in a catalogue of over 700 items entitled A Descriptive Catalogue of Coade's Artificial Stone Manufactory. Then in 1799, the year she entered into partnership with her cousin John Sealy, she issued a handbook of her Pedlar's Lane exhibition Gallery. The firm became Coade and Sealey from this date and following Sealey's death in 1813, it reverted to Coade and in 1821 with the death of the younger Eleanor Coade, control of the firm passed to William Croggan, who died in 1835, following bankruptcy. Coade's manufactures resembling a fine-grained natural stone, have always been famed for their durablity (see A. Kelly Mrs Coade's Stone, London 1980). Pineapples are traditionally a symbol of hospitality and often appear on gate piers. A similar, but earlier pair dating to 1799-1800 may be seen at Ham house, Surrey. Unusually, this pair differs from the Ham house pair in the treatment of the rhomboid shapes which have been flattened off by hand when the clay was still in a wet state. The regency designer, C.H.Tatham also had a pair for his house, now sadly lost under the marshalling yards behind St Marylebone station. Literature; See Mrs. Coade's Stone by Alison Kelly Published by \sPA 1990, page 198
Lot 17
An impressive Coade stone unicorn head late 18th/early 19th century later mounted on iron base 112cm.; 44ins high This almost certainly originally formed the right hand section of a Royal Armorial, with a lion on the left hand side flanking the Royal coat of arms which would have borne the Coade stamp . These were in great demand in Georgian times for businesses which had received a Royal Warrant to supply some commodity or service. Such firms were and still are, entitled to display the Royal Arms on their premises. These are usually painted today, but in the reigns of George III and George IV, Coade stone offered an attractive and suitably architectural alternative. In 1799 Mrs Coade said that she had supplied Royal Arms, presumably Warrant holders, in Bond Street, Great Queen Street, Charing Cross, Strand, Long Acre, Fleet Street, St James' Street and Piccadilly. Official buildings also had their Royal arms. Mrs Coade had good connections with the War Office, since her 1799 list includes Royal Arms for barracks at Aberdeen, Edinburgh Hamilton, Glasgow, Perth, Northampton and York. Also see footnote to lot 12 Literature; See Mrs Coade's Stone, Alison Kelly, SPA 1990, pp273-5
Lot 27
* The Wrest Park Finials: A pair of extremely rare and fine lead lidded finials attributed to John Van Nost: 274cm.; 108ins high overall The garden at Wrest Park, Bedfordshire begun in the 1680's by Antony Grey, 11th Earl of Kent and continued by his son, Henry, created 1st Duke of Kent was one of the grandest and most admired gardens established in England in the first part of the 18th Century. It's roots lay in the Anglo- Dutch gardens of the 1690's and were intended to convey the Grey family's political support of William and Mary and the Glorious Revolution. Among contemporary documents that demonstrate Wrest's high reputation is the record of a garden tour in 1735, in which the gardens were described as " undoubtedly some of ye finest in England". Wrest had already been singled out for praise in 1781 in the Ichnographica Rustica of Stephen Switzer and John Mackay who included it in the fourth edition of his Journey through England in 1724 repeated what was probably the standard view of Wrest when he called it "A very magnificent, noble Seat, with large Parks, Avenues and fine Gardens". Wrest was one of only four estates that appeared in multiple views in Kip and Knyff's Britannia Illustrata. A generation later in 1735 Wrest was one of the earliest great gardens to be published in a large garden plan by John Rocque in which these finials can be seen flanking the entrance to the Duke's Square garden. John van Nost who died in 1729 was from a family of sculptors of Flemish descent. He had his own yard in the Haymarket, London by about 1687 and soon established himself as the leading maker of 'Marble and Leaden figures, Busto's and noble Vases, Marble chimneypieces and curious Marble tables'. John van Nost is recorded as having supplied the two large lead vases, still in the Wrest Bowling Green House and eight lead heads for the Duke of Kent in 1725 , and it is generally accepted that he supplied the impressive lead statue of William III in1710-20 which still stands in front of the Pavilion at Wrest. Stylistically, however, this impressive pair of lead finials with their strongly modelled amorini or cherub heads date to the very early part of the 18th century and were probably commissioned by the 11th Duke prior to his death in 1702. They were cast using the cire perdu or lost wax process which gives a crispness of detail and modelling seldom achieved in later works. The flame terminals, in particular are a tour de force with each flame tendril separately accentuated. By the late 1720's however, both finials were on pedestals dedicated to the 1st Duke's children; Anthony de Grey, Earl of Harrold who died in 1723 and his favourite daughter Annabell who died in 1727. They were placed in the Duke's square garden and removed by the vendors great grandfather when Wrest Park was sold in the late 1930's. A Portland stone sundial attributed to van Nost and originally at Wrest sold by the same family who bought Wrest Park in 1917 and thus with an identical provenance to these finials, was sold by Sotheby's on 15th June 2004. This carried a bronze sundial by the celebrated clockmaker Thomas Tompion. The pedestal is virtually identical to one at Kew Gardens, documented as being made by van Nost, which originally stood a Kensington Palace and was made for William III between 1688 and 1702. Literature; The Duke of Kent's garden at Wrest Park by Linda Cabe Halpern, published by the Journal of Garden History. Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851 by Rupert Gunnis Auction catalogue of the sale of Wrest Park, July 1917 Provenance Wrest Park, near Shefford, Bedfordshire, seat of the Grey Family, Earls and later Dukes of Kent. The Park was purchased in1917 by the great grandfather of the current owner.
Lot 48
A pair of rare Matthew Johnson composition stone cranes mid 19th century 110cm.; 43ins high A similar crane appears on the title page of Matthew Johnson's mid 19th century catalogue of ornamental vases, fountains, sundials and tazza's etc. in artificial stone. Matthew W Johnsons works rarely come onto the market. Whether this is because none of his pieces were stamped or because little was made is uncertain. An incomplete catalogue dating from the mid 19th century exists and he advertises the company as Sculptors and Masons as well as producing figures, fountains and vases in artificial stone "warranted to resist frost". The firm operated from New Road, Fitzroy Square, London and claimed "an immense variety of designs for inspection.
Lot 54
A rare and monumental Georgian carved Portland stone neo-classical tazza late 18th/early 19th century 106cm.; 42ins high by 230cm.; 91ins to extremities of handles, bowl diameter 200cm.; 79ins The form of this shallow bowl with outswept handles has it's origins in Greek pottery libation cups of the 6th Century B.C. The simplicity and elegance of form has ensured its popularity ever since. From the onset of the Grand Tour in the 17th Century, the fascination with ancient forms, both Greek and Roman has seen this shape copied extensively in materials as diverse as malachite to pottery. The rise in interest in Neo classicism in the late 18th and early 19th Centuries also manifested itself in garden decoration and sculpture. Many of the great houses of Britain including Chatsworth were laid out with statuary and ornament derived from the antique. Marble and stone urns of campana and tazza shape were particularly popular, however this shallow form with a raised and drilled central boss made it ideal for use as a fountain. Carved in Portland stone with its fine grain, much favoured in the 18th century, it is one of the hardiest of the British limestones but has the added attribute of building up an attractive patina of moss and lichens over the centuries. What makes this example exceptional in terms of rarity is the colossal scale of the bowl with an overall width of nearly 8 feet carved out of one single piece of stone including the handles. Whilst campana shaped urns were much more common, the wider and shallower urns required the best quality faultless stone and considerable skill on the part of the carver, with very few of this scale ever being made.
Lot 90
William Couper: A carved white marble figure of Psyche signed William Couper on associated marble pedestal 109cm.; 43ins, 183cm.; 72ins overall The American sculptor William Couper (1853-1942), a native of Virginia, was known for his serious, sympathetic studies of angels and other winged figures. He established a wide reputation in both Italy and America for his work, which included bas-reliefs, portrait busts, allegorical figures, and heroic statues. Lorado Taft stated Couper's angels "are not merely pretty, they are beautiful, radiant creations, gracefully conceived, carefully drawn, and exquisitely carved. Billows of realistic drapery provide an image that is even more winning on this account" (The History of American Sculpture, 1930). Five years before William Couper's birth, his father founded the Couper Marble Works behind the family home on the corner of Main and Granby Streets in Norfolk, Virginia. This firm specialized in importing and carving stone for construction and monuments. Succeeding generations of the family ran the business for 133 years (from 1848 to 1981). William often played in the marble works as a boy, watching the artisans create and carve works for sculptural display, experiences which had a profound impact on his life. William Couper received his first professional training in 1872 at the Cooper Art Institute in New York City. Then, in 1874, he went to Munich, Germany, attending both the Academy of Fine Arts and the Royal College of Surgery. He left for Italy the following year. In Florence, William Couper met many prominent artists, including Thomas Ball, Daniel Chester French, Joel T. Hart, Frank Duveneck, Julius Rolshoven, and the Hiram Powers family. William Couper became the pupil, and then the son-in-law, of noted Boston sculptor Thomas Ball (1819-1911). He specialized in portraiture and idealized statues and bas-reliefs. The Ball-Couper studios were a meeting place for local artists and musicians, as well as for the American and English residents of Florence. This Psyche is one of Couper's earliest winged statues, with small wings of almost botanical quality. A beautiful maiden is just about to open the vase which holds the gift of beauty from Persephone to Venus. She rests on one knee, her face reflecting doubt and curiosity as she invades the secret of the goddess. In 1885, Couper exhibited in Paris and London, taking along Psyche, Before the Scenes, Evangeline, Vision, the model for Coming Spring, and Princess. Copies were sold, of which this example is almost certainly one, and he arranged for an art dealer in London (probably Bellman & Ivey) to keep two medallions and a bust for display. Couper also shipped many of his statues to the United States, where they sold exclusively through Tiffany & Company, New York. In 1897 William Couper left Italy and returned with his family to America. He built a large home in Montclair, New Jersey, and opened a studio with Thomas Ball in New York City. Before his retirement he had executed more than a hundred and fifty works, including the heroic Confederate Soldier, the stately Moses atop the Appellate Court House in New York, a series of monuments for the National Military Park in Vicksburg, Mississippi, and fourteen marble busts of scientists for the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Literature: William Couper: The Man Who Captured Angels by Greta Elena Couper.
Lot 113
* Louis Hottot: A rare zinc figure of 'The girl on the moon' late 19th century signed L Hottot 178cm.; 70ins high on square panelled composition stone pedestal 75cm.; 29ins high Louis Hottot (1829-1905) exhibited at the Salon from 1885. Much of his oeuvre concentrated on Eastern subjects such as Fille d'Egppte (1885) and Almee du Caire (1887) as well as the Negro Banjo Player, which was also cast in zinc. This group was reputedly made for the 1900 'Exposition Universelle' in Paris.
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