South East Asian Dragon Terminal

A gilt-bronze figure (after the Gandharan style, or that of the neighbouring Uddiyana region), of Shakyamuni Buddha modelled with his hands clasped together in dhyana mudra and seated in the dhyanasana posture on a throne flanked by two roaring lions; robes with U-shaped folds in the Mathuran style and the head with a prominent ushnisha. 95 grams, 70 mm

Fine condition.

Acquired for the ‘Buckingham Collection’ by the late Nik Douglas (1944-2012), renowned author, curator and Asian art expert; the collection formed from the early 1960s to early 1970s; displayed at the major exhibition ‘The Buddha Image: Out of Uddiyana’, Tibet House, 22 West 15th Street, New York, 16 September-20 October 2010, extended to 16 November and again to 7 January 2011; where the collection of one hundred pieces was publicly valued at US$ 15M; this piece was scheduled to be included in an exhibition titled ‘On the Silk Route; Birth of The Buddha’, to be held in London from November 2012, but sadly his death prevented this. Accompanied by copies of several press releases and articles for the exhibition, including Artnet News, This Week in New York, Huffpost, Buddhist Art News, and copies of the relevant London and Tibet House exhibition catalogue pages. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.10907-168639.

Gandhara was a principal gateway through which Buddhism spread to China. Academic research conducted after the death of Nik Douglas (above) explains that Gandharan sculpture has been found in neighbouring regions, such as in Uddiyana. Sculpture from the Gandharan and Uddiyana regions has similar characteristics and as a result has often remained undifferentiated. As a result of this recent research however, it is becoming more feasible to identify distinctions between the sculpture of these different regions.

A hare's fur tea bowl of conical form, with everted rim and discoid foot, the interior decorated with a lustrous blackish glaze shot through with streaks of blue-silver 'hare's fur' markings, the exterior displaying russet and silver markings, the brown ware visible towards the foot. 173 grams, 13 cm wide



Acquired in Hong Kong, 1980s. UK private collection.

A group of four glazed ceramic vessels: two shallow dishes and two footed bowls with everted rim and basal ring. 659 grams total, 9.1-16 cm wide



Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.

The Tek Sing (True Star) wreck is one of the famous recovery stories of the 20th century. Sailing from the port of Xiamen (then known as Amoy) in February 1822 the vessel Tek Sing was bound for Jakarta, Indonesia laden with porcelain goods and 1600 Chinese emigrants. The captain decided to pass through the Gaspar Strait, between the Bangka-Belitung Islands, and ran aground on a reef. The vessel sank in about 100 feet of water. The next morning, February 7, an English East Indian vessel captained by James Pearl, passing through the same waters, encountered debris and some survivors and managed to rescue about 190 of the latter.