Market Analytics
Search Price Results
Wish

LOT 0069

A Chinese Scroll Painting By Li Cheng

[ translate ]

A Chinese Scroll Painting By Li Cheng

Dimensions:
32 3/4 x 20 1/4 inches (83.5cm x 51.5cm)

Provenance:
The collection of Sheng Enyi (1892-1958), owner of the Chenglu Villa.
Henry J Oppenheim Collection: Purchased at Chenglu Antiques and Calligraphy Exhibition at Juxingcheng Bank in 1946.

The items from Chenglus old collection in this auction were provided by a private collector in the UK. According to the collector, these artworks were purchased early on from an antique shop in the UK, and the purchase voucher has been lost. However, the items still retain the Juxingcheng Bank label from China, affixed with Republic of China tax stamps, detailing the exhibition number during the Juxingcheng Bank exhibition. Some items also have Henry J Oppenheims label, with paint markings indicating the time Henry J Oppenheim acquired these artworks, similar to the markings on some objects that Henry J Oppenheim donated to the British Museum.

Chenglu Sheng Enyi's villa, where Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling lived in December 1927 after their marriage.
Sheng Enyi (1892-1958), the fourth son of the industrialist Sheng Xuanhuai, was a prominent Chinese businessman and philanthropist. After studying at the University of London and Columbia University in the United States, Sheng Enyi became the general manager of Han Yeping Company after his father's death in 1916. When Song Ziwen returned to China after studying in the United States, he served as Sheng Enyi's English secretary. Sheng Enyi inherited a substantial fortune from Sheng Xuanhuai, including various properties such as the Lingering Garden in Suzhou. Due to his gambling addiction and extravagant lifestyle, the family's wealth gradually declined, and some of the family's possessions ended up in pawnshops and banks.

Juxingcheng Bank, founded in March of the 4th year of the Republic, was established with contributions from Chongqing tycoon Yang Wenguang and his family. It was the only commercial bank among the major Sichuan merchants without military or political background, and one of the early well-known commercial banks in China. In 1946, Juxingcheng Bank was designated as one of the foreign exchange banks and established an overseas department in March of the same year. It set up overseas branches in Chongqing, Shanghai, Kunming, and Guangzhou and signed foreign exchange-related contracts with financial institutions in London, San Francisco, Calcutta, Mumbai, and other locations. In the thirty-fourth year of the Republic, Juxingcheng Bank advertised the Chenglu Antiques and Calligraphy Exhibition in the Da Gong Wan Bao newspaper, continuously, and is currently selling Chenglus old collection of antiques.

Henry J Oppenheim (1895-1959), born into a banking family, was a shareholder of the famous Carlbeck Syndicate collectors company and a permanent member of the Oriental Ceramic Society. Before his death, he donated over 500 items of his collection from Europe (London, Paris, Berlin) between 1919 and 1939 to the British Museum. According to the British Museum's collection records, there are over 500 items from Henry's old collection in the museum.

[ translate ]
Estimate
Unlock
Reserve
Unlock
Time, Location
02 Dec 2023
Italy, Venice
Auction House
Unlock

[ translate ]

A Chinese Scroll Painting By Li Cheng

Dimensions:
32 3/4 x 20 1/4 inches (83.5cm x 51.5cm)

Provenance:
The collection of Sheng Enyi (1892-1958), owner of the Chenglu Villa.
Henry J Oppenheim Collection: Purchased at Chenglu Antiques and Calligraphy Exhibition at Juxingcheng Bank in 1946.

The items from Chenglus old collection in this auction were provided by a private collector in the UK. According to the collector, these artworks were purchased early on from an antique shop in the UK, and the purchase voucher has been lost. However, the items still retain the Juxingcheng Bank label from China, affixed with Republic of China tax stamps, detailing the exhibition number during the Juxingcheng Bank exhibition. Some items also have Henry J Oppenheims label, with paint markings indicating the time Henry J Oppenheim acquired these artworks, similar to the markings on some objects that Henry J Oppenheim donated to the British Museum.

Chenglu Sheng Enyi's villa, where Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling lived in December 1927 after their marriage.
Sheng Enyi (1892-1958), the fourth son of the industrialist Sheng Xuanhuai, was a prominent Chinese businessman and philanthropist. After studying at the University of London and Columbia University in the United States, Sheng Enyi became the general manager of Han Yeping Company after his father's death in 1916. When Song Ziwen returned to China after studying in the United States, he served as Sheng Enyi's English secretary. Sheng Enyi inherited a substantial fortune from Sheng Xuanhuai, including various properties such as the Lingering Garden in Suzhou. Due to his gambling addiction and extravagant lifestyle, the family's wealth gradually declined, and some of the family's possessions ended up in pawnshops and banks.

Juxingcheng Bank, founded in March of the 4th year of the Republic, was established with contributions from Chongqing tycoon Yang Wenguang and his family. It was the only commercial bank among the major Sichuan merchants without military or political background, and one of the early well-known commercial banks in China. In 1946, Juxingcheng Bank was designated as one of the foreign exchange banks and established an overseas department in March of the same year. It set up overseas branches in Chongqing, Shanghai, Kunming, and Guangzhou and signed foreign exchange-related contracts with financial institutions in London, San Francisco, Calcutta, Mumbai, and other locations. In the thirty-fourth year of the Republic, Juxingcheng Bank advertised the Chenglu Antiques and Calligraphy Exhibition in the Da Gong Wan Bao newspaper, continuously, and is currently selling Chenglus old collection of antiques.

Henry J Oppenheim (1895-1959), born into a banking family, was a shareholder of the famous Carlbeck Syndicate collectors company and a permanent member of the Oriental Ceramic Society. Before his death, he donated over 500 items of his collection from Europe (London, Paris, Berlin) between 1919 and 1939 to the British Museum. According to the British Museum's collection records, there are over 500 items from Henry's old collection in the museum.

[ translate ]
Estimate
Unlock
Reserve
Unlock
Time, Location
02 Dec 2023
Italy, Venice
Auction House
Unlock