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Featuring Masterpieces from China, the Himalayas, Japan,Korea, and Vietnam — From the Neolithic Period to Modern Art
Dublin, October 2025 — This season’s Asian Art Auction presents a sweeping journey across millennia of artistic creation, uniting masterworks from China, the Himalayas, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. From Neolithic jade carvings to refined Edo-period prints, the sale celebrates the depth and diversity of Asian creativity.
Among the highlights are Archaic Chinese Jades (Lots34, 39, 52, 53, 56, 58, 137), artifacts that embody the earliest expressions of humanity’s spiritual beliefs. These ritual objects — revered by Neolithic peoples — capture the dawn of cosmological thought. Particularly outstanding is Lot 53, the Jade Pig Dragon, remarkable for its monumental form and exceptional preservation.
Another major section features The Ca Mau Shipwreck Collection (Lots 1–31). Discovered off the coast of southern Vietnam in 1998, the wreck dates to the late Kangxi to early Yongzheng reigns (c.1720–1735). The porcelain cargo, mainly Jingdezhen blue-and-white wares, offers rare archaeological evidence of Qing-dynasty maritime trade and the global circulation of Chinese ceramics. The 31 groups presented here come from an important Irish private collection with impeccable provenance.
The Himalayan Art section includes early Tibetan ritual and domestic objects (Lots 165, 194–196, 237–241) such as Thokcha (celestial iron talismans) and Nine Palace Eight Trigram plaques. These sacred items, blending material mystery and cosmological philosophy, reveal the profound spiritual vision of Tibetan Buddhism.
This season also introduces a new focus on Korean Art (Lots 304, 313), with refined ceramics and paintings admired for their simplicity, purity, and literati grace.
Finally, the Japanese Vanity Motif Collection (Lots 381–385) explores the philosophy of impermanence through haunting imagery of skulls and mortality, including Lot 383, inscribed with a celebrated haiku by Matsuo Bashō (1644–1694):
Among the summer grasses —
The remains of soldiers’ dreams —
The shadow of warriors.
Special Lecture Event
Across the Blue Waves from Jingdezhen to Dublin: TheVoyage of Blue and White Porcelain
Presented by Miss Li-Chun Hu
Saturday, 8 November, 3:00 PM
Li-Chun Hu is an independent consultant specializing in Chinese ceramics and works of art, based between Taipei, Jingdezhen, and London. With nearly fifteen years of experience advising collectors, museums, and auction houses across Asia, Europe, and North America, her research and curatorial projects bring fresh perspectives to longstanding questions in Chinese art. Drawing on her background in Industrial Design, she shapes both the conceptual and visual identity of exhibitions, bridging scholarship and design with insight and elegance.
Auction Date: Wednesday, 12 November, 11 AM (Dublin)/ 12 PM (Paris)
Location: 26 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, D02 X665, Ireland
Paris Preview: 28–31 October, 10 AM–6 PM, 18 rue de la Grange-Batelière,75009 Paris
(Please note that only part of the collection will be exhibited in Paris;contact the Asian Art Department to confirm specific lots.)
Dublin Preview:7-11 November, Adam’s, 26 St.Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, D02 X665, Ireland
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John ffrench was an instrumental figure in the design industry in Ireland and a distinguished pioneer of Irish studio pottery.
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"I should declare my hand. I have a weakness for pictures that punch above their physical weight, and for artists who have been quietly underrated for too long. This pair is both. They are intimate enough to live with at close quarters and serious enough to repay any amount of looking. If the market has lately shown signs of catching up with eighteenth-century Irish painting and I think it has, these two small panels feel, to me, like exactly the sort of thing that will look obvious in twenty years’ time."
Adam’s is honoured to present works from the collection of Lord Rossmore in the upcoming Country House Collections auction at Howth Castle on 28th April. It is seldom that an influential Irish family collection that has survived through the generations comes to the open market.
Works Sold at Adam’s Now in the Irish National Collection
A great opportunity to purchase both established and lesser-known artist’s work at an accessible price point, the Online Picture Auction is the first of many sales to be hosted at Adam’s in 2026. It is perfect for those looking to start a collection and the discerning collector alike.
Through this article, let our expert Adam Pearson guiding you to the (re)discovery of the once established Irish painter Richard O’Neill.
Buying at Auction and the Role of Antiques in a Modern Home
Important Irish Art Auction Highlights
Oliver Dowling Collection by Aidan Dunne
2024 is a year in which Adam’s wants to recognise the key role buying antique furniture and furnishings at auction contributes greatly to the sustainable initiative. In 2019 the Environmental Protection Agency reported stark figures that each year in Ireland 1.2 million reusable bulky items, primarily furniture goes into landfill. Similar to the problem of ‘fast fashion’, the constant production and consumption of new items is leading to rapidly growing waste problem. We want to acknowledge those who are already buying second hand or antique furniture at auction and to encourage new buyers by highlighting the benefits of acquiring affordable, well-made quality items that are built to last.
Irish author, recipe creator and lifestyle influencer, Indy Parsons, selects her favourite pieces from our upcoming Fine Jewellery & Watches auction
James Adam & Sons Ltd, Fine Art Auctioneers and Valuers, 26 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
D02 X665, Ireland
