This Saturday 21st of June 2025, the doors of Adam’s open wide for the much-awaited Dublin viewing of our Fine Asian Art Auction. After its Parisian première, the collection returns to Ireland until the 24th for the benefit of our clientele at home.

This time Adam’s has curated the Asian catalogue to include pieces, not only for their aesthetics nor their rarity, but for their diversity. In this auction, you’ll encounter the rich infinite variety of Asia’s culture through its greatest periods; from Neolithic China to modern Indonesia, the auction offers a curated journey through Vietnam, China, the Himalayas, India, and beyond.

However, we must state this clearly before losing the neophytes among you: don’t let this aesthetic mastery or historical rarity intimidate you. Every great collector began as a curious beginner. To get you started : On Saturday 21st June, Adam’s hosts an unmissable event guided by Dr. Wei Wang at 2pm and following this, a lecture given by Mr. Yuqi Pang at 3pm about Chinese Jade culture and history. So, whether you're a dedicated collector or just someone who happens to love a good story, this one’s for you.

Let us walk you through the highlights, threading the fascinating history revolving around this collection and the concurrent and inspired tastes in Europe. The echoes are often more familiar than you think. A warning! Once you fall in love with Asian Art, there is no going back.

The Hop o' My Thumb’s Jade

If there is one material that can carry 5,000 years of Asian civilization and fit in the palm of your hand, it's jade. Take Lot 215, for instance: a Neolithic face plaque from the Shijiahe culture, dating back to 2500 BCE. In the New Stone Age, Homo sapiens, as the premise of organized human civilizations, already questioned their existence by etching souls in jade, an object small enough to be protected wherever they went. Spirituality could be considered as the pivot point of humanity memory, before scripture.

Fast-forward a few millennia and cross the sea southward, and we land in Malaysia, where Lots 108 to 155 prove the longevity of the jade story with the legacy of Tan Sri Mr. Lee, a fourth-generation honoured family. They migrated southward from China to Malaysia in search of opportunity in the 19th century via the so-called Maritime Silk Road taking with them jade as a way of remembering. In doing so they have transmitted traditions through material heritage. If jade was the soul of China, these pieces are its diaspora’s heartbeat.

Then there's Lot 81: a mallet-shaped vase in Longquan celadon, a porcelain that fooled Japanese into thinking it was jade. They even gave it a name: kinuta seiji. The form, the colour, the glaze - it’s Asia in full dialogue with itself. But let’s not forget that this vase also owes a little something to Islamic glasswork, imported centuries earlier. This mosaic of culture shows the importance Asia owns as commercial platform.

The Confluence of East and West

As previously noted, Asia has long since been an inspiration for European art as exemplified by Lot 164: this masterpiece is a late Qing dynasty automaton clock made in Canton around 1900. It is a perfect vessel for Chinese folklore, seen in the gilded dragons, spinning waterfalls, and the words Da Ji (Great Fortune) shimmering across the front in glass. Here’s where the magic happens: in the little details. If you look closer, you will notice the Roman numerals, the Western foliage pattern, but also the gears mimicking Swiss precision. This is China seducing Europe.

And Europe sending its secrets right back. These hybrid clocks were so beloved by the Qing court that some ended up in the Forbidden City itself. From Guangzhou to Dublin via LA, it’s a small world after all.

The same complex chemistry of culture unfolds in Lot 199, a Yongzheng-period porcelain jar. I will spare you the details on the science but when you notice the almost perfect regularity of the color, you now understand that it is precisely that complexity that makes this work a masterpiece. You might be familiar with the Mount Congreve Gardens created by the Irish globe trotter Ambrose Congreve. He must have been amazed by this subtle art of balancing form and void, as represented by the lot 184, consigned directly from his personal collection.

The Adriaan’s thread of Asia

Let’s linger a moment on a few objects that feel oddly… familiar.

Lot 270, a bamboo parfumier carved with two ladies in a garden, tells the more romantic story of Da Qiao and Xiao Qiao, famed beauties of the Han dynasty whose marriages (according to legend) helped sway a whole military campaign. Strategically beautiful women changing the course of history? We’ve heard that tale before: Helen of Troy, anyone? Even the materials speak. Lot 234 is a pale jade belt plaque, a military ornament from the Tang dynasty symbolizing rank, power, elegance. A Roman general would’ve worn bronze. A Tang official? Jade.

Lot 266 takes a darker turn. A carved brush pot showing Zhong Kui escorting his little sister to her marriage with… ghosts? These ghosts and demons are well-educated enough to carry bridal gifts! This supernatural wedding procession remembers the European folklore of a macabre dance, where death can be funny and festive as seen in European masters of the theme such as Bosch or Bruegel. Even our demons have cousins.

Then comes Lot 271, an imperial book cover carved in zitan and cloisonné. It illustrates the Confucian ethics. How to govern, how to behave, how to live. Written for princes, much like illuminated Christian manuscripts were written for kings. Art is a powerful politic tool.

Finally, Lot 403, a gilt-bronze and cloisonné incense burner with a domed lid, supported by three legs. If your first thought is “Wait, is that a thurible?” Let me tell you you are on the right track. The swinging metal censer you’ve seen trailing fragrant smoke down the aisle of Christian churches is a common tool used throughout Asia, where centuries ago, incense was already deeply rooted in ritual, meditation, and ceremony.

Conclusion:

So whether you’re bidding or browsing, remember that you already know more than you think. You’ve seen these shapes in your own culture and have a relationship with them and associations which are valuable and relevant. Now let’s see how these apply to a culture you’re less familiar with. Step into the saleroom and see the world!

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Aude Colomina