On 13 December, auction hoouse I.M. Chait will close out the year with its 'Asian Art, Antiques and Estate' auction. The sale is highlighted by a painting by contemporary Chinese artist Liu Wei, Chinese and Japanese antiques, a fine selection of jewellery and watches, Egyptian and Greco-Roman antiquities and even cars like a Mercedes Maybach and Ford Mustang. Here are eight of the top lots to watch:
Asian Art
Liu Wei is a contemporary artist from Beijing who specialises in performance art, video and photography, and painting. His work has been featured at the Centre Pompidou, the Venice Biennale and the 798 Art District in Beijing. This oil on canvas painting by Liu Wei is titled You Like Me, Why Not, which is part of a larger 'You Like Me' series, characterised by large, biomorphic faces surrounded by abstract or natural shapes, such as these pink, purple and yellow roses.
This antique Chinese enamelled porcelain bowl with dragon motif has the Kangxi mark, denoting that it was made during the rule of the Kangxi Emperor (1653-1722). Coloured dragons symbolised imperial' power, strength and luck.
Painted screens originated in ancient China as room dividers but gradually become more decorative through the centuries until they have become veritable collectors' pieces for tastemakers like Coco Chanel, who owned over thirty. This Chinese four-panel painted screen depicts figures in a sumptuous interior enjoying a meal and tea.
These two antique Japanese woodblock prints are by celebrated Japanese painter and printer Torii Kiyonobu. Born in 1664, Kiyonobu went on to found the Torii school of ukiyo-e in Edo (present-da Tokyo). Kiyonobu was especially interested in capturing kabuki, Japanese theatre, as his father was a famed Kabuki actor. His work is characterised by animated and theatrical figures and bold lines.
Antiquities
This Roman marble fountain feature depicts the river god Tiberinus resting with a cornucopia in hand, dating to 1st-2nd Century AD. Tiber was the god of, and the namesake for, the Tiber River, the second largest in Italy, which flows through Rome.
This Egyptian bronze figure of Harpokrates, Late Period, is seated with finger to mouth and wears a large Hem-Hem crown and Nemes head cloth. Harpokrates was the god of silence and secrets and was the Greek form of the Egyptian Harpakhered, the child god of the sky in Ancient Egyptian religion.
Jewellery and Watches
This platinum, alexandrite and diamond ring weighs weighing approx. 7.27 carats. Alexandrite is a very rare gem that changes colour and was discovered in the Ural Mountains of Russia in the early 19th century and named for Emperor Alexander Romanov. The most valuable alexandrites can change from pure green to pure red, depending on the natural sunlight.
A beautiful example of an early 1984 gloss dial Rolex Submariner 16800, this model comes in stainless steel with what appear to be original hands, dial and insert. The 16800 was produced from 1977–87 and has now been discontinued. This is therefore a unique opportunity to own a vintage favourite, the updated version of the classic 1680.