The market for good Chinese works of art had been hugely strong for more than a decade. Well-provenanced objects from the Qing period in particular have excelled with a corresponding growth of interest in works from both earlier and later periods.
Sworders have achieved great results in recent years for mark and period porcelain, selling a Qianlong famille rose wall vase inscribed with an imperial poem for £484,880 in November 2019, and a Kangxi blue and white brush pot inscribed with the text of the Shengzhu de Xianchen Song for £162,500 in November 2021.
We have also enjoyed success selling Chinese taste bronzes (particularly Buddhist artefacts) plus jades and other carvings. Highlights have included an exceptional rhinoceros horn libation cup from the late Ming period c.1600 (£252,800 in November 2016) and a Qing bronze censer with gilt splash decoration and a four-character Shijia Guzhi mark (£136,500 in November 2020).
Our buyers and sellers can expect the best customer service before and after the sale. Bidders who cannot make it to the sale or attend viewing in person can trust our detailed images and thorough condition reports and benefit from dual language cataloguing when appropriate.
Sworders has continued to observe exceptional results throughout the Covid 19 pandemic, including £182,000 for a Qianlong hardwood lacquer and ivory table screen sold in May 2021 and £27,300 for a Qing silk ‘peach festival’ kesi in May 2020.
To find out more about our forthcoming sales or talk further about potential consignments, please don’t hesitate to contact a member of our specialist team.
Our specialists hold regular valuation days. Please contact us for more information, or complete the online form to enquire about the valuation of your items.
Want to know how much your Chinese Works of Art may be worth? Fill out our easy to use form and a member of the team will be in touch with free advice shortly.
In our May auction of Asian Art we proudly present a rare consignment of Vietnamese contemporary fine art curated by acclaimed expert Raquelle Azran, with works from ten masters in their field including Phan Cam Thuong, Nguyen Bao Toan and Nguyen Quang Minh.
21 April 2022
Only a few select objects were required for the table of a Chinese scholar. There was an ink stone to grind up ink, brushes of different sizes for calligraphy, a brush washer for cleaning and a brush pot for storage.
24 March 2022
A collection of Chinese silver assembled by a family who lived in Shanghai in the early 20th century comes for sale at Sworders in November. The group of typical ‘export’ wares owned by the vendor’s grandparents who lived in ‘the Paris of the East’ had been stored in a trunk since the end of The Second World War.
19 October 2021