Chinese furniture makers show off auction wares
Author: Richard Brewster | Posted: 5th June, 2018
For more than 250 years, Chang Ming Lei’s family made furniture and designed buildings for the Chinese emperors of their day.
Located in Beijing, they were even lucky enough to make modifications to the magnificent Tiananmen Tower (initially built in 1417 during the Ming Dynasty) that takes pride of place in Tiananmen Square.
For the past 20 years, Chang Ming and his wife Mary have lived at 18 Stanhope Grove, Camberwell and are now moving back to China.
As a result, they have asked Kim’s Auctions to sell the contents of their magnificent home on site from 11am Sunday June 10.
The leading highlight is a massive four-poster bed and canopy made from gold Phoebe timber, which has been dug from the ground in China since these trees are no longer in existence. The bed is 40 years old and is the only one of its type in Australia.
Another major feature is the 1950s hand carved (with nine dragons) and polished Zhi Tang wood throne in the royal pattern, made in Beijing and usually used by Chinese emperors. The throne is carved on both sides in Ming Dynasty style.
A similar throne was featured in Christie’s New York 2000 catalogue and sold for $300,000.
Other attractions include a large Later period Egyptian cedar wood panel circa 600BC. The front surface has been decorated with a large central image of Hathor and other deities painted in polychrome pigments with registers of hieroglyphics.
The inscription reads ”A boon which the king gives to Hathor lady of the house.”
Another Egyptian highlight is the New Kingdom (1580BC-1350BC) 18th Dynasty wooden sarcophagus mask originally from the M.J. Hayson Collection and acquired in 1976 in London from E. Fairclough.
Rare is the Shang Dynasty figurative axe blade made from heavy bronze. A similar example resides in the Asiatische Kunst in Berlin.
The auction also contains an 1860s English silk oak grandfather clock, several David Bromley nudes and a set of eight Tang Dynasty equestrian musicians in different poses all playing various instruments.
