KOLLER VIEW 2/23

22 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ASIAN ART Regi Preiswerk preiswerk@kollerauctions.com ONLINE CATALOGUES www.kollerauctions.com 1 A pair of gold splash bronze censers. China, 18 th c. H 17.5 cm. Estimate: CHF 100 000/150 000 2 A classical bronze wine vessel ‘Zun’. China, late Shang/early Zhou Dynasty. H 28 cm. Estimate: CHF 100 000/150 000 3 A gilt bronze figure of a high-ranking lama. Tibet, 16 th c. H 12 cm. Estimate: CHF 20 000/30 000 4 A bronze figure of the seated Buddha Shakyamuni. Thailand, Lanna, circa 1500. H 44 cm. Estimate: CHF 20 000/30 000 Bronzes for eternity Preview of the Asian Art auction on 20 June 2023 Inour upcomingAsianArt auctionwewill offer the sec- ond part of an extensive private art collection that was on display in Geneva’s old town for decades. Included is an archaic bronze vessel of the Zun type from the Shang dynasty, circa 11 th century BCE, which was used as a wine vessel during funeral rituals of high-ranking individuals, and was subsequently given as a burial gift (ill. 2). It is decorated with two so-called Taotie masks, horned monster masks that were supposed to banish evil. This vessel was exhibited at the Metropolitan Mu- seum of Art in New York as early as 1938. Among other outstanding objects in the collection is a pair of Chinese incense burners with gold splash from the 18 th century, which, in addition to their magnificent design, are remarkable for their Arabic inscriptions (ill. 1). Since the Xuande period of the Ming dynasty (1425–1435), incense burners with Koranic inscrip- tions became sought-after trade goods for the Islam- ic market. Such goods arrived via the Silk Road, which was actively used until the 15 th century. A Buddha Shakyamuni cast in northern Thailand around 1500 sheds light on another field of bronze work that flourished in Asia: Buddhist sculpture. This 1 2 well-proportioned, green-patinated bronze figure of the historical Buddha with a wonderfully contempla- tive expression (ill. 4) comes from the collection of Joseph-Clemens, Prince of Bavaria (1902–1990). 3