A CHINESE BRONZE LUDUAN INCENSE BURNER AND COVER LATE MING DYNASTY The mythical beast standing four-square with its tail raised, the head forming the cover hinged to the body at the neck below the jaws, decorated with a scrolling mane and a fierce expression with bulging eyes and bared fangs, 5kg, 32cm. Provenance: from a private English collection, Heath House, Hampshire. The same collection includes a Louis XVI bureau plat which was originally the working desk of the French Emperor Napoleon III, offered as part of the Country House Collections and Fine Furniture sale at Woolley & Wallis, 16th April 2024, lot 191. 明晚期 銅甪端香爐

Composed of several subsidiaries, the Drouot Group is a major player in the art market. Hôtel Drouot, located in the heart of Paris, has been the world's largest public auction center since 1852. 15 salerooms are available to more than 70 auction houses. The emulation generated by an annual offer of 230,000 artworks from 21 major specialities - from Antiquity to street art - attracts some 3,000 visitors every day. The Group's digital platform, Drouot.com, offers digital sales - Live auctions (live broadcasting and participation in auctions), Online-only auctions (dematerialised auctions) and Buy Now sales (sales of lots at fixed prices). Nearly 2 million items are offered annually by 600 auction houses. Auction news is reported every week in La Gazette Drouot, the leading weekly magazine for the art market and culture published by Auctionspress.