KOLLER VIEW 4/24

02 pre view. 22 1 Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798–1861). Musha-e album with 58 colour woodcuts. Circa 1848. Estimate: CHF 10 000/15 000 2 A fire-gilt bronze seated Buddha. China, late Ming Dynasty. H 33.8 cm. Estimate: CHF 80 000/120 000 Heroes in colour Preview of the Asian Art auction on 26 November 2024 Alongside H iroshige and Kunisada, Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1789–1861) w as one of the most influential masters of Japanese col our woodblock printing in the late Edo peri- od of the mid -19th century. Our Asian Art auction features an extensive album of Kuniyoshi colour woodblock prints (ill. 1). It com bines 46 subjects from the series ‘Taiheiki eiyûden’ with heroic stories from the epic ‘Taiheiki’ (The Great Peace) and 14 sheets from the series ‘Meiko hyaku yûden’ (Lege nds of a Hundred Heroes of High Standing). These depict ions of historical warriors and samurai are called musha -e and are presented in the ôban format that was common at the time. The bronze fi gure of a seated Buddha from the late Ming Dynasty (ill. 2 ) is masterfully fire-gilded. The Buddha is wearing a m onk’s robe with finely engraved hems that cover both s houlders. With his right hand, he calls the earth to witn ess, while his left hand rests in his lap in a gesture of me ditation. A wooden B urmese Buddha from the Pagan period of the 12 th and 1 3 th centuries is extremely rare. The surface shows traces of gold over red lacquer (ill. 3). The Buddha, with a peace ful expression, is standing on a lotus base and wears a magnificent crown and floral earrings. A comparable f igure can be found in the Metropolitan Mu- seum of Art i n New York. 3 A Burmese standing Buddha. Wood. Pagan period, 12 th /13 th c. H 134 cm. Estimate: CHF 25 000/35 000 For further information Asian Art Regi Preiswerk asianart@kollerauctions.com Online Catalogues www.kollerauctions.com 1 2 3