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Lot 531: ALBUM ‘ONE HUNDRED BEAUTIES’ BY GAI QI

Est: €4,000 EUR - €8,000 EURSold:
Galerie Zacke ViennaVienna, AustriaOctober 16, 2021

Item Overview

Description

‘ONE HUNDRED BEAUTIES’ BY GAI QI (1774-1829)
China. The present album consists of 40 leaves, each with a masterful and highly detailed portrait of a young beauty painted by Gai Qi, all wearing elegant robes and elaborate headdresses, sometimes richly adorned with jewelry and jade pendants. Black ink, gold, silver, and watercolors on thin paper, laid down on album leaves. Unsigned.

Provenance: Collection of Li Shimin. Collection of Gérard Lévy, thence by descent. Li Shimin was a writer, actor and an English teacher of Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975), the leader of the Republic of China between 1928 and 1975. Gérard Lévy (1934-2016), named by Le Figaro as ‘The Man with the Carnation’ for the flower he would always wear on his lapel, was a revered dealer and connoisseur of Asian art and antique photography. His gallery in Paris, designed by Le Corbusier, opened in 1966, and is today run and managed by his daughter, with the help of her two brothers, both renowned collectors themselves.
Condition: Good condition with old wear, minor soiling, little creasing, small losses, few minute tears. Extensive wear and traces of use to album cover.
Expertise: A translation of and commentary about the inscriptions on the cover and the first page by Studio des Pensées Fraiches, written in French by Laurent Long for Gérard Lévy, dated 20 September 2010, accompanies this lot.
Album inventory: An (incomplete) name list of the beauties depicted in the present album, including some historic references, written in French and compiled by Galerie Gerard Levy, accompanies this lot.

Dimensions: Leaf size 31 x 19.5 cm (each), Size 34 x 22.5 x 13 cm (the box and cover)

The album covers are made from solid brown cardboard, overall encapsulated in finely woven yellow silk, bearing a central Shou character, encircled by bats and bearing the title inscription on a paper label: ‘One Hundred Beauties by Gai Qixiang [Gai Qi] of Qing, preserved by Li Shimin’. The first page of the album bears a long inscription mentioning the biography of the painter, his influences, and a description of his work. The album is preserved inside a fine Chinese hardwood box and cover, the front with a metal handle, dating to the 19 th century. (2)

The artist Gai Qi (1773-1828), known by his courtesy name Boyun and scholar name Yuhu Waishi, was one of the most accomplished artists of the Qing dynasty, who mastered the painting of lady's portraits beyond comparison. He is also noted for the illustration of an important fiction in Chinese literature history, Dream of the Red Chamber, also known as The Story of Stone.

Expert’s note: Of the 100 beauties mentioned in the title, 40 remain in the present album. The original compilation was – according to a dating inscription on page one – posthumously created in the year 1863, at which time also the box, the front and back covers, and page one were probably added to the paintings. Additionally, the title label was most likely added shortly after the fall of the Qing dynasty, as indicated by the missing ‘da’ (great) character which usually precedes the dynasty name in dating inscriptions written during the Qing dynasty. Note that there is a second paper label hidden directly beneath the present title label. It therefore seems clear that Li Shimin did not originally compile the present album, but rather preserved it during the tumultuous times of the Republic period, adding the present title label.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related album by Gai Qi, but comprising only eight leaves of 22.8 x 19 cm, at Christie’s New York, in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 17 September 2010, lot 1061, sold for USD 16,250 and another comprising only eight leaves of 32 x 18 cm at Bonhams Hong Kong, in Fine Chinese Art on 27 May 2021, lot 15, bought-in at an estimate of HKD 400,000-500,000. Compare also a larger painting of a beauty by Gai Qi at Sotheby’s New York in Fine Classical Chinese Paintings on 13 September 2012, lot 664, sold for USD 16,250; and another at Sotheby’s Paris in Arts d’Asie on 12 June 2013, lot 13, sold for EUR 8,750.

改琦(1774-1829)《百美圖》
中國。冊頁,紙本設色。冊頁由40頁小品組成,每幅小品中都描繪一位仕女,比如魚元機手展詩卷、側身坐於藤癭椅上的情景,衣紋細秀,敷色清雅,別具風格。未落款。

來源:李時敏收藏;Gérard Lévy收藏, 保存至今。李時敏曾是一個作家、演員,以及蔣介石 (1887-1975) 的英語老師。Gérard Lévy (1934-2016) 被費加羅報命名為“康乃馨先生”,因為他總是在領上佩戴著康乃馨花,他是一位受人尊敬的亞洲藝術和古董攝影經銷商和鑑賞家。 他在巴黎的畫廊由Le Corbusier 設計,於 1966 年開業,如今由他的女兒在她的兩個兄弟的幫助下經營和管理,兩兄弟都是著名的收藏家。
品相:狀況良好,舊磨損,輕微污跡,少量摺痕,小缺損,輕微裂痕。
冊頁收藏 : 隨附一份Gerard Levy提供的完整的侍女名字包括其生平的法語文字。

尺寸:冊頁31 x 19.5 厘米, 總 34 x 22.5 x 13 厘米 (盒子和蓋子)

冊頁封面由褐色硬紙製成,整體覆的黃綢,題:“清改七薌百美圖大全 李時敏藏”。冊頁第一頁是一段清代馮金伯編著的畫家傳略《墨香居畫識》對改琦生平及作品的描述。冊頁保存在精美的中國硬木盒內,帶有金屬手柄,可追溯至十九世紀。

拍賣結果比較:比較一件改琦冊頁, 八頁,22.8 x 19 厘米,見紐約佳士得Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2010年9月17 日 lot 1061, 售價USD 16,250 ;另一件同樣為 八頁的冊頁,32 x 18 厘米,見香港邦翰思Fine Chinese Art 2021年5月27日 lot 15, 估價HKD 400,000-500,000 ;另一幅大型改琦《仕女圖》見紐約蘇富比Fine Classical Chinese Paintings 2012年9月13日 lot 664, 售價USD 16,250; 以及另一幅,見巴黎蘇富比Arts d’Asie 2013年6月12日 lot 13, 售價EUR 8,750。

Artist or Maker

Payment & Shipping

Payment

Accepted forms of payment: American Express, MasterCard, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

For domestic shipping, Galerie Zacke (hereinafter "the company") charges 15 to approx. 50 euros per item, depending on size and weight. These fees cover the costs of packing and shipping respectively. For bulky or fragile items, postage fees will be quoted upon request. For personal deliveries abroad, postage fees will also be quoted uponrequest. Following handover of the package ed item to the post office or to another carrier (whose commissioning the customer s hall agree to by submitting a purchase order), the goods shall be transported at the risk of the customer. Should the customer so wish, the auctioned goods may be insured to the value of the purchase price (highest bid and surcharge). Such insurance shall cost 3% of the purchase price. For purchase prices in excess of 350 euros per auction, transportation insurance shall be arranged by the Company automatically. Payments due to the Company under the insurance contract shall be credited to the customer and the Company shall also be entitled to assign claims under the insurance contract to the customer, providing the terms of the insurance contract do not prevent this. In any case, the Company shall only be required to make payment to the customer specifically once payment has effectively been received from the insurance company.

Auction Details

Terms

Buyer's Premium

26.4%

Bidding Increments

From:To:Increment:
€0€99€5
€100€199€10
€200€399€20
€400€999€50
€1,000€1,999€100
€2,000€3,999€200
€4,000€9,999€500
€10,000€19,999€1,000
€20,000€39,999€2,000
€40,000€99,999€5,000
€100,000€199,999€10,000
€200,000+€20,000

Terms & Conditions

Buyer's Premium 26.4% including VAT
Online Bidding Fee 5% including VAT
Further information please read terms of auction § 3

TERMS OF AUCTION
§ 1) The auction shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the rules of procedure of GALERIE ZACKE©, SZA VERSTEIGERUNGEN UND VERTRIEBS GMBH, MARIAHILFERSTRASSE 112, 1070 WIEN (hereinafter referred to as the company) as well as in accordance with sections 244-246 of the GEWERBEORDNUNG [Industrial Code] of 1994. The auction shall be carried out on commission. The auctioneer shall be entitled to withdraw lots exceptionally, to conduct the auction deviating from the order of the catalog numbers and to offer lots jointly. In the event of any dispute concerning a double bid or if the auctioneer has missed a bid, the auctioneer shall be entitled to revoke acceptance of a bid and to continue auctioning the item. The figures stated in the catalog shall be the highest bid in Euro (€) expected by the respective expert. As a rule, the bid shall be increased by 10% of the last bid. (See table of the bidding increments).

§ 2) The acceptance of a bid shall be granted to the highest bidder unless a hidden reserve has been agreed upon with the consignor of the item in question. Such a hidden reserve (also called limit or just reserve) shall be the minimum price under which the item will not be sold during the auction. This reserve will be disclosed upon request and after the auction only and may exceed the estimate. The auctioneer will in this case bid on behalf of the seller against all other bidders until the reserve has been reached. If a reserve is not reached during the auction, the auctioneer will knock down the item to the highest bidder at the final bid, but the sale will be conditional of the acceptance of this final bid by the seller. In this case the highest bidder shall be bound to his/her last bid for a term of 8 days starting with the day of the knockdown. If the winning bidder does not receive a written cancellation notice within this term of 8 days, the knockdown becomes unconditional and the sale is final. Typically, only a minority of all items in an auction have a hidden reserve.

§ 3) Most items shall be subject to differential taxation. A uniform surcharge of 22% plus the value added tax applicable to the surcharge to the amount of 20% shall be added to the achieved highest bid (final and highest bid). Thus, the surcharge shall be 26.4% of the final and highest bid in total. Items with added VAT are marked in the online catalog. For online bids an additional 5 % will be charged.

§ 4) In the event of sales abroad, the value added tax will be repaid if the item is sold to a country which is not a member country of the European Union (third country), the legal requirements are met, and the proof of exportation is provided. The value added tax shall not be shown separately on the invoice.

§ 5) The auction buyer must pay the purchase price immediately upon acceptance of the bid (final and highest bid plus 22% surcharge, plus the value added tax applicable to the surcharge to the amount of 20%, or the added VAT on top of the final price, when a lot is highlighted accordingly in the auction catalog). The company may grant an auction buyer a term of payment for the purchase price in whole or in part when this has been formally applied for in writing before the auction.

§ 6) In the event of a term of payment, or any payment delay, in whole or in part, the company shall be entitled to charge default interest (12% p.a.) as well as storage charges (2.4% pf the final and highest bid per month commenced) after 14 days upon acceptance of the bid. The item purchased at auction shall be handed over exclusively upon full payment of the purchase price including all costs and charges accrued since the acceptance of the bid.

§ 7) The buyer should take acquired items into possession, as far as possible, immediately or after the end of the auction. Items which have been fully paid for shall be handed over in our show rooms in GALERIE ZACKE, MARIAHILFERSTRASSE 112, 1070 VIENNA. If a deferred purchase price is not paid within the set period, the company shall be entitled to auction the item again in order to recoup its claim from the defaulting auction buyer. In this case, the defaulting auction buyer shall be liable to the company for the total loss of commission incurred by the company due to the re-auctioning as well as for any default interest and storage charges.

§ 8) The company shall be entitled to a lien on all items of the buyer irrespective of whether the buyer bought them within the scope of an auction or in free sale or the company secured ownership of these items otherwise. This lien shall serve to secure all current and future, qualified, limited and unmatured claims to which the company is entitled and which result from all legal transactions concluded with the buyer.

§ 9) The items received for auction will be exhibited and may be viewed prior to the auction. In doing so, the company shall give everyone the opportunity to check the nature and the condition of the exhibited items to the extent deemed possible within the scope of the exhibition. Every bidder shall be deemed to act on its own behalf unless it provides a written confirmation saying that it acts as a representative or agent of a well-known principal. The company may refuse bids; this shall particularly apply if a bidder who is unknown to the company or with whom the company has no business connections yet does not provide a security deposit before the auction. However, in principle there shall be no claim to accept a bid. If a bid has been refused, the previous bid shall remain effective.

§ 10) The company's experts evaluate and describe the items received for auction and determine the starting prices unless otherwise stated in the catalog or expert opinion. The information concerning production technique or material, state of preservation, origin, design and age of an item is based on published or otherwise generally accessible (scientific) findings concluded by the company's expert with the necessary care and accuracy. The company shall warrant to the buyer according to §34-38 of the AGB (Terms and Conditions) that properties are correct provided that any complaints referring to this are made within 45 days after the auction day. Subsequent complaints shall be excluded in principle. The company shall not be liable for any further information in the catalog and expert opinion as well. This shall also apply to illustrations in the catalog. The purpose of these illustrations is to guide the potential buyer during the preview. They shall not be authoritative for the condition or the characteristics of the pictured item. The published condition reports shall only mention defects and damage affecting the artistic or commercial value significantly. Complaints concerning the price shall be excluded upon acceptance of the bid. The company reserves the right to amend the catalog online prior to the auction. These amendments shall also be made public orally by the auctioneer during the auction. In this case, the company shall be liable for the amendment only. All items offered may be checked prior to the auction. These items are used. Any claims for damages exceeding the liability named above and resulting from other material defects or other defects of the item shall be excluded. When making the bid, the bidder confirms that he/she has inspected the item prior to the auction and has made sure that the item corresponds to the description.

§ 11) If a customer is not able to participate in an auction personally, the company shall accept purchase orders. These orders may be placed in writing via mail, e-mail, fax, www.zacke.at or a third party bidding platform. In the case of a purchase order placed by phone or orally, the company shall reserve the right to make the performance dependent on a confirmation from the principal communicated in writing. Furthermore, the company shall not be liable for the performance of purchase orders. Equal purchase orders or live bids will be considered in the order of their receipt. Bids which below the estimate shall be exhausted completely. Bids which do not correspond to the increments determined by the company (see bidding increment table) will be rounded up to the next higher increment. The table of these increments can be sent upon request. The written bid (purchase order) must include the item, the catalog number and the offered top bid limit which is quoted as the amount of the acceptance of the bid without buyer's commission and without taxes. Ambiguities shall be carried by the bidder. A purchase order which has already been placed may only be cancelled if the written withdrawal is received by the company at least 72 hours prior to the beginning of the auction.

§ 12) The company may refuse a purchase order without explanation or make its execution dependent on payment of a security deposit. In the event of an unsuccessful order, such a deposit will be reimbursed by the company within 5 working days. Processing of purchase orders is free of charge.

§ 13) Every seller shall in principle be entitled to withdraw the items offered for auction until the start of the auction. Therefore, it is impossible to assume liability or to give warranty for the actual offering.

§ 14) Paid items must be collected within 30 days after payment. Items which have not been collected may be re-offered without further communication at the starting price from the recent auction reduced by 50%. Items which have not been collected within 30 days after the auction or for which the company does not receive any proper shipping instructions stating the type of shipping and the address of dispatch (independent of a possibly placed purchase order) shall be stored at the owner's risk. Furthermore, the company shall be entitled to store items which have been purchased at auction and paid but not collected at the buyer ? risk and expense, including the costs for an insurance, with a forwarding agency. It shall be understood that the provision concerning the re-auctioning of unpaid and paid but not collected items must also apply to items not exhibited or stored on the premises of the company. The ownership shall be transferred to the buyer at the time of handing over the issuing note.

§ 15) In the case of mixed lots with a starting price of less than EUR 350.00, the company shall not warrant for the completeness or correctness of the individual items within a mixed lot.

§ 16) A registration for a bid by telephone for one or several items shall automatically represent a bid at the estimate price of these items. If the company cannot reach a bidder by telephone, it will bid on behalf of this bidder up to the estimate price when the respective lot is up for auction.

§ 17) Payments made to the company by mistake (through the payer ? fault) (e. g. due to miscalculation of the exchange rate by the payer) or payments made to the company for the same invoice several times shall be compensated in form of a credit note for goods for an indefinite period of time. The repayment of such payments in cash shall be excluded.

§ 18) Certain auction lots may exist several times (multiples). In such a case, the auctioneer may accept a second, third or even more bids from the underbidder(s). In this case, the text in the catalog and not the illustration shall be exclusively binding with regard to the warranty.

§ 19) The company reserves the right to assign to the buyer all rights and obligations resulting from the contractual relationship between the company and the seller by way of a respective declaration, as well as to assign to the seller all rights and obligations resulting from the contractual relationship between the company and the buyer by way of a respective declaration, in each case in terms of a complete assignment of contract with the result that the contractual relationship - following the submission of the aforementioned declarations by the company - shall exclusively be between the seller and the buyer, all of which is in accordance with the basic model of the commission agreement. Buyers and sellers shall already now give their explicit consent to this contract assignment.

§ 20) The place of performance of the contract brought about between the company on the one hand and the seller as well as the buyer on the other hand shall be the place of business of the company. The legal relationships and contracts existing between the company, the sellers and the buyers shall be subject to Austrian law. The company, the sellers and the buyers shall agree to settle all disputes resulting from, concerning and in connection with this contract before the territorially competent court of Vienna.

§ 21) The export of certain art objects from Austria shall require a permit from the Bundesdenkmalamt [Federal Monuments Office]. The company will orally provide information about art objects for which such export permit will probably not be granted at the beginning of the auction.

§ 22) Whenever making a bid, whether personally or via an agent, in writing, online, telephone, or in any other way, the bidder fully and unconditionally accepts the Terms of Auction, the 'Important Information' section in the auction catalog, the Terms and Conditions (AGB) of Galerie Zacke, §1-48, the Fee Tariff, and the Bidding Increments table, all as published on www.zacke.at on the day of the auction.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

According to the general terms and conditions of business of Galerie Zacke Vienna, Founded 1968, SZA Versteigerungen & Vertriebs GmbH, 1070 Wien, online at www.zacke.at

ABSENTEE BIDDING
Absentee bids are carried out under the regulations of the terms of business of Galerie Zacke, SZA Versteigerungen & Vertriebs GmbH, which requires written submission of your purchase limit. Orders without purchase limits cannot be processed.
Only the submitted lot number of the auction lot is binding for the processing of the absentee bid. The place of jurisdiction is Vienna, Austrian Law and Austrian jurisdiction are exclusively applicable for all legal questions arising from the business relationship. Absentee bids for this auction will be accepted until the day of auction by 10:00 a.m. We regret that absentee bids received after the time stated above will not be processed until after the auction.

PLEASE SEND ABSENTEE BIDS FOR THIS AUCTION TO:
Fax: +43 1 532 04 52 20 or
Email: office@zacke.at or
Mail: Galerie Zacke, Mariahilferstrasse 112, Stiege 1, 2. Stock, 1070
Wien, Austria, Europe
WE ACCEPT THE FOLLOWING METHODS OF PAYMENTS:
• Cash
• Certified or personal check
• Bank transfer (please inquire to receive
our bank account information)
• Credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Diners Club)

TELEPHONE BIDDING
It is generally possible to bid by telephone during the auction. Please fill out the absentee bidding form enclosed in this catalog and include your telephone number at which you can be reached during the auction. In the "bid in euro" column please write "TEL" and then send us the completed absentee bidding form. Galerie Zacke will call you on the day of the auction, on the telephone number provided, 5 lots before the lot you are bidding on and the bidding will commence at the starting price, as stated in the catalog. If Galerie Zacke cannot reach you during the auction, Galerie Zacke will bid up to the estimate on your behalf.

ESTIMATES AND STARTING PRICES
The auction will begin with the starting price and written bids will be accepted only with a minimum amount equivalent to the starting price.

SHIPPING AND TRANSPORT INSURANCE
For domestic shipping Galerie Zacke (hereinafter called "the company") charges in average Eur 15,- to Eur 50,- per item, depending on size and weight. These fees cover the costs of packing and shipping. Fees for bulky or fragile items, or international shipping will be quoted upon request.
The purchased goods are transported at the risk of the customer following handover of the packaged item to the post office or another carrier which the customer agrees to through his/her submission of the purchase order. According to the specific wish of the customer, the auctioned goods may be insured for the value of the purchase price (highest bid and all surcharges). This insurance fee is 3% of the purchase price. For any lots with a purchase prices exceeding EUR 350,- the transport insurance will be automatically arranged by the company if it does not expressively receive the purchaser's written denial of this service and signed waiver of claims. Payments due to the company under the insurance contract will be charged to the customer. The company is also entitled to assign claims under the insurance contract to the customer providing the terms of the insurance contract do not prevent this. In any case, the company is only required to make payment to the customer specifically if payment has effectively been received from the insurance company.

COLOR AND CONDITION
Auction lots will be exhibited for viewing prior to the auction, thus offering all interested customers the opportunity to examine the quality and condition of the works exhibited. The catalog illustrations are intended to assist customers during such preview. In illustrations, printed colors do not correspond exactly to the originals. The printed catalog images are not representative for the condition of the illustrated pieces. Hidden flaws and damages are indicated in the condition report. The illustrations in our online catalogs can be strongly magnified, so that most damages and restorations are well recognizable.

ENDANGERED SPECIES / CITES INFORMATION
Some items in this catalog may for example consist of ivory, rhinoceroshorn, tortoise shell, or some types of tropical wood, and are subject to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora [CITES]. Such items are marked with a symbol on www.zacke.at and may only be exported outside the European Union after an export permit in accordance with CITES has been granted by the Austrian authorities. We would like to inform you that such licenses are typically not granted. For objects which have a low ivory content or have been proven beyond doubt to be in the EU before 1982, please contact our office for more information on how to obtain a CITES license.

COMPLAINTS
At its auctions, Galerie Zacke sells consigned lots on behalf of third-party consignors. For this reason, any complaints related to purchased lots must be in accordance with §32-48 of the general terms and conditions of business of Galerie Zacke, which can be found on www.zacke.at

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Whenever making a bid, whether personally or via an agent, in writing, online, telephone, or in any other way, the bidder fully and unconditionally accepts the Terms of Auction, the 'Important Information' section in the auction catalog, the Terms and Conditions (AGB) of Galerie Zacke, §1-48, the Fee Tariff, and the Bidding Increments table, all as published on www.zacke.at on the day of the auction

THE ART LOSS REGISTER
All items starting above 2.000,- EUR have been checked by the Art Loss register

Premium and Payment

Invoice will be sent after the sale, payment due within 7 days.
Buyer's premium 26.4%
Online Bidding Fee 5%

Shipping Terms

For domestic shipping, Galerie Zacke (hereinafter "the company") charges 15 to approx. 50 euros per item, depending on size and weight. These fees cover the costs of packing and shipping respectively. For bulky or fragile items, postage fees will be quoted upon request. For personal deliveries abroad, postage fees will also be quoted uponrequest. Following handover of the package ed item to the post office or to another carrier (whose commissioning the customer s hall agree to by submitting a purchase order), the goods shall be transported at the risk of the customer. Should the customer so wish, the auctioned goods may be insured to the value of the purchase price (highest bid and surcharge). Such insurance shall cost 3% of the purchase price. For purchase prices in excess of 350 euros per auction, transportation insurance shall be arranged by the Company automatically. Payments due to the Company under the insurance contract shall be credited to the customer and the Company shall also be entitled to assign claims under the insurance contract to the customer, providing the terms of the insurance contract do not prevent this. In any case, the Company shall only be required to make payment to the customer specifically once payment has effectively been received from the insurance company.