THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 2026 
From Imperial Jades to Sèvres Porcelain: an Exceptional Sale
A udap & Associés will hold its Collections & Classical Works sale on 18 and 19 June, bringing together a particularly eclectic selection of works of art, paintings, tapestries, porcelain and Far Eastern objects.
Highlights include an important group of Chinese jades, a remarkable ensemble of Sèvres porcelain from the celebrated Déjeuner de l’Éloge de la Rose commissioned by King Louis-Philippe for the Shah of Persia, and an outstanding collection of Japanese maki-e lacquerware, illustrating the refinement of both Eastern and Western decorative arts.
Among the sale’s highlights is a group of twelve Chinese jade carvings (lots 337–348), reflecting the exceptional status long accorded to jade within Chinese imperial culture. For centuries regarded as the embodiment of the Confucian virtues of benevolence, wisdom, courage, integrity and purity, jade remains one of the most prestigious materials in Chinese art. This ensemble is particularly evocative of the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (1736–1795), a true golden age for jade carving, marked by an intense appreciation for hardstones and finely crafted collector’s objects.
Among the sale’s highlights is a group of twelve Chinese jade carvings (lots 337–348), reflecting the exceptional status long accorded to jade within Chinese imperial culture. For centuries regarded as the embodiment of the Confucian virtues of benevolence, wisdom, courage, integrity and purity, jade remains one of the most prestigious materials in Chinese art. This ensemble is particularly evocative of the reign of the Qianlong Emperor (1736–1795), a true golden age for jade carving, marked by an intense appreciation for hardstones and finely crafted collector’s objects.
Among the pieces is a rare celadon jade candle pricket from the Qianlong period (lot 341, est. €30,000–50,000), directly associated with the rituals of the imperial court and used during New Year celebrations by the Qianlong Emperor himself. Only two comparable examples are known today: one preserved in the National Palace Museum in Taipei and the other in the Palace Museum in Beijing.
The sale will also feature several notable works of European painting and decorative arts. A Flemish tapestry dating from around 1500 depicting The Murder of Louis, Duke of Orléans on 23 November 1407 (lot 352, est. €10,000–15,000) recalls one of the defining events of the civil war between the Armagnacs and the Burgundians. It will be shown alongside two altarpiece wings depicting Saint Veronica and Saint Mary Magdalene, executed around 1530 (lot 17, est. €15,000–20,000), whose interior and exterior panels appear to have been entrusted to two different artists, one an Antwerp Mannerist painter and the other probably German.
Among the works on paper are two rare portraits by Louis Carrogis de Carmontelle, preserved in the descendants’ collection of the sitters since their creation (lots 53 and 54), together with a group of four Venetian Capriccios by Giacomo Guardi (lot 124, est. €15,000–20,000), heir to the great Venetian tradition of vedute painting.
Decorative arts will also feature prominently, notably through an exceptional group of Sèvres porcelain pieces (lots 105–109) from the prestigious Déjeuner de l’Éloge de la Rose, commissioned by King Louis-Philippe as a gift for the Shah of Persia. Their decoration combines rose bushes with cameo portraits of writers who celebrated the rose in their works, reflecting the nineteenth century’s fascination with floral allegory and the decorative arts of the table. Finally, an important collection of Japanese maki-e lacquer tea caddies and storage boxes (lots 293–336) will highlight the refinement of this art of “sprinkled pictures”, in which gold and silver powders are used to create designs of extraordinary delicacy.
Decorative arts will also feature prominently, notably through an exceptional group of Sèvres porcelain pieces (lots 105–109) from the prestigious Déjeuner de l’Éloge de la Rose, commissioned by King Louis-Philippe as a gift for the Shah of Persia. Their decoration combines rose bushes with cameo portraits of writers who celebrated the rose in their works, reflecting the nineteenth century’s fascination with floral allegory and the decorative arts of the table. Finally, an important collection of Japanese maki-e lacquer tea caddies and storage boxes (lots 293–336) will highlight the refinement of this art of “sprinkled pictures”, in which gold and silver powders are used to create designs of extraordinary delicacy.
