In 1992, a Ru ware dish from the Junkunc Collection was sold for almost US$1.6m at Christie’s to the prominent collector Au Bak Ling. The previous owner, Stephen Junkunc III, is considered one of the great Chinese art collectors. His collection at its height numbered over 2,000 examples of Chinese porcelain, jade, bronzes, paintings and Buddhist sculptures. Part of the Buddhist sculptures from his collection is now up for auction at Sotheby’s in New York this autumn.

A large limestone head of Buddha, Tang dynasty

A white marble inscribed triad group, Northern Qi dynasty

A gilt-bronze altar stand, Tang dynasty

Stephen Junkunc, III (d.1978), was born in Budapest, Hungary. He then emigrated to Chicago as a young child. His father founded General Machinery & Manufacturing Company there in 1918. The company specialised in the manufacture of knife-edge fuel nozzle head. With the outbreak of World War II, General Machinery converted its shop to begin manufacturing various aircraft parts. Stephen Junkunc III, the manager and part owner of the company, spent his free time forming an extraordinary collection of Chinese art.

Stephen Junkunc III then became an important collector in Chinese art. He purchased many great porcelain examples from leading London dealers like Bluett & Sons, W. Dickinson & Sons, John Sparks. From the letters that he wrote, we find that he was particularly fond of Ru ware, Guan ware, Ge ware, as well as clair de lune of the Kangxi period. His reputation was well established for his impeccable taste for ceramics.

Junkunc III was known for his impeccable taste in collecting

The Ru dish now belongs to the prominent collector Au Bak Ling

Ru ware ranks top among the Five Great Kilns. There are less than a hundred Ru pieces in existence and most of them are in the collection of major museums. Junkunc III once owned two examples of the fabled Ru ware, including the Ru dish that we mentioned above. Junkunc III purchased the Ru dish from the lengardary collector C.T. Loo in 1941.

Regarding Junkunc III's taste in Buddhist sculpture, we learnt from a letter that he wrote to art dealer John Sparks that he wanted to secure a limestone relief fragment from the Longmen caves showing a luohan holding a lotus blossom. Regrettably, Junkunc III never managed to get this fragment. It was sold at auction to Chicago-based collectors and was later sold by Eskenazi in London. The fragment is today in the collection of Cultural Relics Bureau in Beijing.

The sale Junkunc: Chinese Buddhist Sculpture will offer a total of 18 lots. Let’s take a look at the featured lots here. We are going to introduce some of them in our next articles. Please stay tuned!

 

 

Featured lots from Junkunc: Chinese Buddhist Sculpture (from high to low estimate)

A Superbly Carved And Extremely Large Limestone Head Of Buddha. Tang Dynasty

Lot no.: 5
Height: 70cm
Provenance:

• Tonying & Company, Inc.
• Parke-Bernet Galleries, 30th-31st March 1955, lot 301.
• Collection of Jay C. Leff (1925-2000).
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$2,000,000 - 3,000,000

An Exceptional Large Limestone Figure Of A Bodhisattva. Tang Dynasty

Lot no.: 8
Height: 100cm
Provenance:

• Collection of Mrs. Christian R. Holmes (1871–1941).
• Parke-Bernet Galleries New York, 15th-18th April 1942, lot 386.
• Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 1st November 1962.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III, (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$1,500,000 - 2,500,000

A Marble Figure Of A Standing Bodhisattva. Northern Zhou/Sui Dynasty

Lot no.: 15
Height: 88cm
Provenance:

• Acquired prior to September 1952.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$400,000 - 600,000

A Limestone Figure Of A Standing Buddha. Eastern Wei / Northern Zhou Dynasty

Lot no.: 13
Height: 56cm
Provenance: Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$300,000 - 500,000

A Large And Extremely Rare Sandstone Head Of Avalokiteshvara. Nothern Qi / Sui Dynasty

Lot no.: 17
Height: 46.3cm
Provenance:

• Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 1st November 1951.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$300,000 - 500,000

A White Marble Inscribed Triad Group. Northern Qi Dynasty, Dated Tianbao Tenth Year, Corresponding To 559

Lot no.:6
Height: 36cm
Provenance: Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$300,000 - 500,000

A Large And Rare Brown Conglomerate Limestone Head Of A Luohan. Song - Early Ming Dynasty

Lot no.: 14
Height: 41.3cm
Provenance:

• Collection of American Consul General Angus Ward (1893-1969), acquired in China in 1931.
• Richard Ravenal, Asian Gallery, New York, 20th January 1969.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$150,000 - 250,000

A Very Rare White Marble 'mythical Beast' Stone Panel. Early Tang Dynasty

Lot no: 4
Size: 40.6 x 50.2cm
Provenance: Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$150,000 - 250,000

A Limestone Relief Fragment Of Vimalakirti. Northern Wei Dynasty

Lot no.: 9
Height: 38cm
Provenance: Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$120,000 - 150,000

A Rare Sandstone Relief Fragment Of An Apsara. Northern Wei Dynasty

Lot no.: 3
Height: 54cm
Provenance:

• Yamanaka & Co., April 1943.
• Frank Caro, successor to C.T. Loo, New York, 15th November 1961.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$100,000 - 150,000

A Rare Limestone Relief Fragmentary Head Of A Bodhisattva. Northern Wei Dynasty

Lot no.: 7
Height: 36.9cm
Provenance:

• Alice Boney, New York, 19th June 1954.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$80,000 - 120,000

A Dry Lacquer Head Of A Luohan Southern. Song Dynasty

Lot no.: 18
Height: 28cm
Provenance:

• Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 2nd November 1959.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$50,000 - 80,000

A Carved Red Sandstone Relief Fragment Of An Attendant. Northern Wei Dynasty

Lot no.: 12
Height: 56.5cm
Provenance:

• Frank Caro, successor to C.T. Loo, New York, circa 1959.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$50,000 - 70,000

A Marble Stone Fragment Of An Elephant Head. Tang Dynasty

Lot no: 2
Height: 17.1cm
Provenance:

• Frank Caro, successor to C.T. Loo, New York, circa 1959.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$50,000 - 70,000

A Gilt-bronze Altar Stand. Tang Dynasty

Lot no: 16
Width: 16.5cm
Provenance: Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$40,000 - 60,000

A Limestone Fragmentary Relief Head Of A Luohan. Sui/Early Tang Dynasty

Lot no.:10
Height: 15.2cm
Provenance:

• Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 20th December 1952.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$15,000 - 25,000

A Small Gilt-bronze Figure Of Avalokiteshvara. Tang Dynasty

Lot no.: 11
Height: 8.1cm
Provenance:

• Nagatani, Inc., Chicago, 1st November 1956.
• Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).

Estimate: US$10,000 - 15,000

A Small Gilt-bronze Figure Of Avalokiteshvara. Sui/Early Tang Dynasty

Lot no.: 1
Height: 9.9cm
Provenance:
C.T. Loo, Paris.
Collection of Sir Percival David (1892-1964), until November 1939.
Frank Caro, successor to C.T. Loo, New York, 26th February 1953.
Collection of Stephen Junkunc, III (d. 1978).
Estimate: US$10,000 - 15,000

Auction details
Auction house: Sotheby’s New York
Sale: Junkunc: Chinese Buddhist Sculpture
Lots offered: 18
Preview:
7 September 2018｜10am - 5pm
8 September 2018｜10am - 6pm
9 - 11 September 2018｜10am - 5pm
Sale date: 12 September 2018｜10am