Hong Kong collector and self‑made businessman Au Bak Ling is well known in the trade for an exceptional yet rarely seen collection of imperial porcelains. Christie’s offered a first glimpse in 2024 with two single‑owner sales that together realised around HK$195 million, confirming the depth of interest in works from his collection.
On 8 April 2026, China Guardian Hong Kong followed with its own Au Bak Ling Collection auction. All 47 lots, spanning Song to Qing ceramics, found buyers for a total of HK$120 million (US$15.3 million), with many pieces selling above estimate.
The top price went to a Yuan blue‑and‑white “peony” meiping, which sold for HK$17.7 million (US$2.3 million), followed by a Qianlong famille‑rose bowl decorated with pomegranate and peony at around HK$12.1 million (US$1.5 million).
Au Bak Ling
Born into poverty in Hong Kong in 1928, Au Bak Ling worked his way up from running a small post‑war bookstall to founding Ling Kee, which grew into a global conglomerate with six divisions – including educational publishing, IT, land development, property investment, manufacturing, and hotel – comprising almost 50 companies worldwide.
Alongside this business career, he became one of the most respected collectors of Chinese ceramics, driven by a determination to acquire only the finest imperial wares. Over several decades he built an almost textbook‑like survey of porcelains from the Song to Qing dynasties, much of it kept strictly private.
For years, the Au collection was known mainly to specialists, with only a selection shown publicly at the Royal Academy of Arts in London in 1998, in the exhibition 100 Masterpieces of Imperial Chinese Ceramics from the Au Bak Ling Collection – the institution’s first single‑owner ceramics exhibition since its founding in 1768.
With Christie’s and, now, China Guardian Hong Kong staging dedicated single‑owner sales, his name and his porcelain encyclopedia are becoming familiar to a much wider circle of collectors.
Lot 1182 | A magnificent blue and white ‘peony’ vase, meiping
Yuan dynasty (1279-1368)
Height: 42.5 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 5 April 2004, lot 285
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$8,000,000 - 12,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$15,000,000
Sold: HK$17,700,000
For much of the last century, blue‑and‑white porcelain was thought to be a Ming invention. Only in the 1950s, after archaeological finds of genuine Yuan examples, did scholars begin to rewrite the history of Chinese ceramics.
Its emergence was tightly bound to Persian culture: under the Mongol empire, the opening of Silk Road routes brought cobalt into China, and that deep blue pigment became the catalyst for an entirely new kind of porcelain.
By the mid‑14th century, Jingdezhen had become China’s porcelain capital, and the recipe for blue‑and‑white was essentially in place. Potters fired a fine, pale body at high temperatures, then painted it with imported cobalt from the Islamic Middle East to achieve a strong, saturated blue under a clear glaze. Because this cobalt was rich in iron, it left irregular dark‑blue to almost black specks that sink into the clay, giving Yuan blue‑and‑white its distinctive, almost “granular” texture.
Production at this level was strictly controlled. A state bureau oversaw kilns working for the court, and pieces of this quality were reserved for officials and imperial relatives or dispatched along trade routes as tribute and diplomatic gifts to the Islamic world. The blue‑and‑white palette, familiar from Middle Eastern mosques and architecture, also resonated with Mongol cultural tastes: white symbolized purity and heaven; blue suggested the cosmos.
Today, most surviving examples are housed in public institutions, with the largest holdings in the Topkapi Palace Museum in Turkey and the National Museum of Iran. In China, the Gao’an City Museum in Jiangxi has the most substantial public group, with just nineteen pieces; most museums hold only three or four.
Among private collectors, only the world‑famous Tianminlou Collection ever came close to rivaling these institutional holdings, at one point comprising more than twenty Yuan blue‑and‑white examples – more than any other private collection in the world.
A Jin dynasty painting in the Jilin Museum showing aristocratic dress featuring a four‑lobed cloud collar
The present meiping follows the classic Yuan profile: flared lip, short neck, broad shoulders, and a gently tapering body resting on a shallow unglazed foot. Originally used as wine vessels – the narrow neck easy to seal, the broad shoulder ideal for pouring – meiping later became vases for sparse plum blossoms.
The decoration is organised by incised borders into clear registers. Inside the mouth runs a scrolling foliate band; below the neck appear bands of scrolling lotus. A string band at the junction of shoulder and body divides the vase into “heaven” and “earth”.
The main body carries a scrolling peony band, a favourite motif on Yuan meiping. On the shoulder, ruyi‑shaped cloud panels enclose phoenix and peacock among flowers – a rare and opulent choice of subject. One phoenix looks back with wings spread and curling tail; another flies downward with twin tails streaming. These “cloud shoulders” echo aristocratic court dress in the Yuan, where four‑lobed cloud collars were reserved for the highest ranks.
Blue‑and‑white meiping with phoenix and peacock within cloud collars are exceptionally rare, with only a handful of related examples in major museums. A closely comparable Tianminlou example, with scrolling floral decoration and original cover, realised HK$67.77 million at Christie’s Hong Kong in 2023.
A close example in the Metropolitan Museum
A blue and white ‘peony scroll’ meiping and cover | Yuan Dynasty | Sold: HK$67,775,000, Christie's Hong Kong, 2023
Lot 1198 | A superb famille rose ‘pomegranate and peony’ bowl
Qianlong six-character sealmark and of the period (1736-1795)
Diameter: 15.1 cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s Hong Kong, 27 May 2008, lot 1583
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$6,000,000 - 9,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$10,200,000
Sold: HK$12,084,000
On this Qianlong‑period famille‑rose bowl, the enamel painting starts low on the exterior, climbs the wall and passes over the rim into the interior. This playful, continuous device is known as guozhihua – literally “flowering branch passing over [the rim]”. It is closely related to what Qing sources call guoqiangzhi (“branch passing over the wall”), a phrase homophonous with “long‑lasting order” and carrying a wish for peace and good government under the reigning emperor.
Most guozhihua decoration appears on dishes, where broad, flat surfaces give painters space to let the branches wander. Applying the same idea to bowls is far more demanding: the form closes in, the walls are steeper, and every misjudged line is magnified.
Here, two pomegranate sprays twist gracefully from the foot, up and over the lip and into the well, their fruit shaded from pink to pale green, seeds bursting from split skins, while a full peony blooms below and five small red bats hover in the remaining white space.
The imagery is loaded with auspicious meaning. Peony stands for wealth and honour; pomegranate, with its many seeds, promises abundant descendants; and bats are a visual pun on “good fortune”. Bringing pomegranate, peony and five red bats together on a single, finely potted bowl is highly unusual, setting this piece apart even among Qianlong famille‑rose wares.
Closely related guozhihua pomegranate bowls of this period are preserved in the Palace Museum in Beijing, and the Nanjing Museum, although they show only pomegranates and pomegranate blossoms. A Yongzheng guozhihua “peach” bowl from the collection of the legendary dealer Edward T. Chow realised HK$26.79 million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2020.
A famille-rose 'peach' bowl, mark and period of Yongzheng | Sold: HK$26,790,000, Sotheby's Hong Kong, 2020
Other Highlight Lots:
Lot 1196 | A pair of black-ground polychrome-enamelled ‘floral’ cups
Yongzheng six-character marks and of the period (1723-1735)
Diameter: 9.8 cm
Provenance:
- Marchant, London, July 1976
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,600,000 - 2,600,000
Hammer Price: HK$7,400,000
Sold: HK$8,808,000
Lot 1215 | A rare lavender-glazed drum-shaped jar and cover
Yongzheng six-character sealmark and of the period (1723-1735)
Height: 16.5 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 12 May 1976, lot 239
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,500,000 - 3,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$5,700,000
Sold: HK$6,819,000
Lot 1197 | A blue and white and polychrome-decorated ‘phoenix and peony’ vase, fanghu
Qianlong six-character sealmark and of the period (1736-1795)
Height: 15 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 16 May 1977, lot 208
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,000,000 - 3,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$4,750,000
Sold: HK$5,700,000
Lot 1181 | A small blue and white ‘camellia’ jar
Xuande six-character mark and of the period (1426-1435)
Height: 13.5 cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s London, 8 June 1992, lot 70
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,500,000 - 4,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$4,300,000
Sold: HK$5,160,000
Lot 1202 | A blue and white and famille rose ‘garden scene’ teapot and cover
Qing dynasty, Xianfeng period, dated Xinhai year, corresponding to 1851
Width: 14 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 1 November 1999, lot 391
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,000,000 - 1,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$4,100,000
Sold: HK$4,920,000
Lot 1205 | A large blue and white ‘flower and wave’ dish
Ming dynasty, Yongle period (1403-1425)
Diameter: 41 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Los Angeles, 11 March 1976, lot 1564
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,500,000 - 4,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$3,950,000
Sold: HK$4,740,000
Lot 1216 | A ming-style blue and white ‘peach and bat’ vase, fanghu
Qianlong six-character sealmark and of the period (1736-1795)
Height: 31 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 12 May 1976, lot 112
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,800,000 - 4,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$3,100,000
Sold: HK$3,720,000
Lot 1175 | A pair of inscribed famille rose ‘prunus’ cups
Qing dynasty, Daoguang period, dated Gengxu year, corresponding to 1850
Diameter: 8.5 cm
Provenance:
- Edward T. Chow (1910–1980)
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 25 November 1980, lot 168
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$900,000 - 1,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$3,050,000
Sold: HK$3,660,000
Lot 1178 | A famille rose ‘chicken’ cup
Yongzheng six-character mark and of the period (1723-1735)
Diameter: 9.5 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s London, 1 & 2 April 1974, lot 347
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 15 November 1983, lot 718
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,400,000 - 2,200,000
Hammer Price: HK$3,050,000
Sold: HK$3,660,000
Lot 1177 | A sacrificial-red-glazed ovoid vase, zun
Yongzheng six-character mark and of the period (1723-1735)
Height: 12.6 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 31 October 1974, lot 158
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$800,000 - 1,200,000
Hammer Price: HK$2,550,000
Sold: HK$3,060,000
Lot 1173 | A famille verte ‘figural’ square jardinière
Qing dynasty, Yongzheng period (1723-1735)
Width: 42.5 cm
Provenance:
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,200,000 - 2,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$2,500,000
Sold: HK$3,000,000
Lot 1217 | A famille rose buddhist stupa
Qing dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795)
Height: 44 cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s London, 9 November 2010, lot 330
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,800,000 - 3,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$2,500,000
Sold: HK$3,000,000
Lot 1179 | A large blue and white and underglazed-copper-red ‘dragon’ vase, tianqiuping
Qing dynasty, Yongzheng period (1723-1735)
Height: 67.2 cm
Provenance:
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 31 October - 1 November 1974, lot 231
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$2,500,000 - 4,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$2,500,000
Sold: HK$3,000,000
Lot 1206 | A large blue and white ‘figural’ jar
Ming dynasty, Zhengtong period (1436-1449)
Height: 39.5 cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s London, 11 May 2010, lot 202
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$2,050,000
Sold: HK$2,460,000
Lot 1195 | A celadon-glazed brush washer
Qianlong six-character sealmark and of the period (1736-1795)
Diameter: 16.5 cm
Provenance:
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$900,000 - 1,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$1,950,000
Sold: HK$2,340,000
Lot 1186 | A rare guan leys jar, zhadou
Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279)
Diameter: 12.7 cm
Provenance:
- Richard Bryant Hobart collection, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., New York, 23 May 1969, lot 58
- J.T. Tai & Co.
- Sotheby’s New York, 22 March 2011, lot 182
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$1,800,000 - 3,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$1,800,000
Sold: HK$2,160,000
Lot 1172 | A famille verte ‘mandarin duck’ bowl
Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722)
Diameter: 14.3 cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s London, 5 July 1976, lot 15
- The Au Bak Ling collection
Estimate: HK$900,000 - 1,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$1,700,000
Sold: HK$2,040,000
Auction Details:
Auction House: China Guardian Hong Kong
Sale: The Au Bak Ling Collection
Date: 8 April 2026
Number of Lots: 47
Sold: 47
Sale Rate: 100%
Sale Total: HK$120,129,000