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I am contacting you today from Morton Auctioneers. We have two huge, incomparable ivory sculptures; A Takarabune and a Pair of Enthroned Chinese Emperors, which we believe to the largest ivory sculptures of this type in the world. I am sending you the photos and descriptions as they may be of interest to you to exhibit.

These items will be available at our upcoming auction on Thursday, December 6, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. CST. I would encourage you to view the pieces and consider them as a lobby/conference room/Suite sculptures. Please see below photos of the items and their respective descriptions, and also a link to our website for additional information. Thank you for your time and for viewing these exquisite pieces, should you have any questions or need additional photos or information, please do not hesitate to contact Mark Sommerfield with Morton Auctioneers and Appraisers below:


Mark W. Sommerfield
Consignment Specialist & Senior Cataloguer
Morton Auctioneers & Appraisers
4901 Richmond Avenue
Houston, Texas 77027
713.827.7835

www.mortonkuehnert.com

A MONUMENTAL SIZE IVORY TAKARABUNE WITH SEVEN LUCKY GODS (We have not encountered a Takarabune this size outside of Japan).

Mid 20th Century
43 x 34 x 18 inches (109.2 x 86.4 x 45.7 cm).
This incomparable huge Takarabune (Treasure Ship) features the Seven Gods of Fortune (Shichi Fukujin), all hand carved from solid ivory. Each sail is carved from a tusk and incised with Japanese characters.

The Seven Gods of Fortune, commonly referred to in English as the Seven Lucky Gods, refer to the Seven Gods of Good Fortune in Japanese mythology and folklore. The Seven Lucky Gods of Japan are a group of deities whose origins stem from Indian, Chinese, and indigenous Japanese gods of fortune. The seven gods are often depicted on their ship, the Takarabune, as shown here. The tradition holds that the seven gods will arrive in town on the New Year and distribute fantastic gifts to worthy people. It is assumed that the first earnest believers of the Seven Lucky Gods were merchants, and that the first two gods of the seven to gain immediate popularity were Daikoku and Ebisu, the gods of commerce and merchants. Japanese society began to look amongst the pantheon of Gods to find one suitable for their own endeavors. Before long, the goddess Benten became the patroness of the arts. Fukurokuju, god of happiness and Jurojin, god of longevity as well as Hotei were Chinese imports who were gods and sages. The first two, Fukurokuju and Jurojin, began to have their following amongst the intellectual classes and the latter, Hotei, began to occupy a unique position among the other gods as the happy god of abundance and good health. Bishamon, god of warriors, was looked to by travelers, doctors and missionaries.
Provenance: Dr. Paul Pasha Collection, Houston, Texas.
Notes: "The Seven Lucky Gods of Japan" by Reiko Chiba

Very good condition.
Estimate $ 400,000-800,000 Opening Bid $200,000

A MONUMENTAL PAIR OF CHINESE CARVED IVORY ENTHRONED EMPERORS
Mid 20th Century
56 x 17 1/2 x 14 1/2 inches (142.2 x 44.5 x 36.8 cm).
Pair of huge Chinese carved Ivory Emperor and Empress figures. Each is seated on elaborate dragon and phoenix thrones respectively, both emperor and empress are dressed in dragon robes and wearing chao zhu court necklaces, with the empress holding the carved ivory pearls of her chao zhu court necklace in her left hand in meditation. Malachite cabochons adorn the headdresses of the emperor and empress, and small coral beads are in place of the eyes of the dragons and Fenghuang, or Chinese phoenixes, carved into their imperial thrones and robes.
Notes: Dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck. With this, the Emperor of China used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength. According to Chinese legend, both Chinese primogenitors, the earliest Emperors, Yandi and Huangdi, were closely related to 'Long' (Chinese Dragon). At the end of his reign, the first legendary Emperor, Huangdi, was said to have been immortalized into a dragon that resembled his emblem, and ascended to Heaven. The other legendary Emperor, Huangdi's brother, Yandi was born by his mother's telepathy with a mythic dragon. Since the Chinese consider Huangdi and Yandi as their ancestors, they sometimes refer to themselves as "the descendants of the dragon". During the late Qing Dynasty, the dragon was even adopted as the national flag. The dragon is featured in the carvings on the steps of the Forbidden City in Beijing and in tombs. In contrast, the Empress of China was often identified with the Fenghuang.
Fenghuang are mythological birds of East Asia whose rare appearance is said to be an omen foretelling harmony at the ascent to the throne of a new emperor. A common depiction of Fenghuang was of it attacking snakes with its talons and its wings spread. According to scripture, Fenghuang is said to be made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the forehead of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish. The Chinese considered the dragon and phoenix symbolic of blissful relations between husband and wife, another common yin and yang metaphor. In yin and yang terminology, a dragon is yang and complements a yin fenghuang.
The chao zhu or court necklace was introduced as part of the official ceremonial attire by the Qing rulers, a design that was based on the Buddhist rosary such as the Ming example illustrated in Jewellery and Costumes of Ming Dynasty, Beijing.
References: Jewellery and Costumes of Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2000.
China: Land of Dragons and Emperors, Yen Mah, Adeline. 2009.
Very good condition.
Two pieces total.
Estimate $ 40,000-50,000 Opening Bid $30,000

Let us know how they do. To me the boat looks pretty nasty, but I imagine the seated couple will sell.

Mr. Sommerfield,

I'm more of a guest than an expert to the Asian Art Forum, so I am not 100% sure how they view using the posting as advertising, but I think they frown on it.

Nevertheless, in viewing your 2 items I am reminded of the adage, size isn't everything, and have the following comments:

First, those familiar with Asian art, and there are many more qualified than myself, know that most of the finest masterpieces (and most valuable) are generally small in stature, sometimes only a few inches in size. This is especially true for ivory.

More important than size, what is relevant to true Asian art enthusiasts is the quality of the craftsmanship/artistry and the historic importance of an artifact. Your 2 pieces are lacking in both of these areas - they were commercially produced for the Western market.

Had you presented these pieces to this forum in a scholarly pursuit, perhaps as someone looking for further information about the items, I think it would be unfair to be overly critical.

However, since you are simply advertising your upcoming auction I feel that I can be blunt. Your auction estimates of $400k-$800k and $40k-$50k are absurd. Aside from being commercially made of low quality, there are no past auction records to support these exorbitant estimates.

I can only surmise you are intentionally misleading a less educated buyer into bidding on items that have only decorative value no where near what you've stated.

I appeal to your sense of responsibility as an honest auctioneer and ask that you adjust your estimates so they are inline with similar quality items. You can do so by checking past sales results on www.liveauctioneers.com (which your auction is listed).

I don't wish to offend, but "solid ivory" of this grand size doesn't exist in the real world. Such large constructs are modular, assembled and glued together from carefuly carved and fitted parts.

While some of the figures shown here may be all or part-ivory, sectioned portions of the Takarabune appear to have the texture of bone. Further, the pedestals beneath such imperial pairs often are veneered over less expensive material.

If such Takarabune are scarce outside of Japan, you might consider looking in China, where bone carvers are supersizing virtually every traditional icon for export. Maybe David Lackey, who is in your area, could take a look at the material in these pieces on your behalf. In any event, your imperial figures appear to be the late Qing Guangxu Emperor and Empress Dowager Cixi, because she, who became known as the original "dragon lady", appears to be sitting on the dragon throne.

Best regards,

Bill H.

FYI - Here is a price point on a couple of ancestor statues I saw a few years ago.

Cheers,
Stan

URL Title :Ancestor Statues

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