Christie’s sale of Japanese and Korean Art, will feature over 210 works of art offering a selection for collectors of all interests, from screens to porcelain, to paintings by modern masters.  The Japanese section will feature an iron articulated model of a dragon (estimate: $200,000-300,000) from the Edo period (18th-19th century), measuring approximately 3½ feet in length.   This is the second-largest known iron articulated dragon signed by a Myochin artist, the best-known of several great armor-making clans active in the 15th and 16th centuries.  As the Edo period was relatively peaceful, however, there was not a great demand for armor and the Myochin expanded their repertoire into the manufacture of other iron objects, with the animals later considered by some to be the high point of their art.  The great variety of iron model animals made by the Myochin is attested by examples in museum collections.  Although the Myochin artists strove, for the most part, for realism in the creatures they made, it was the dragon that allowed the greatest play to their imaginations.  Additional highlights in the Japanese portion of the sale include an eight-panel screen depicting the River Festival at Tsushima Shrine (estimate: $300,000-350,000) and a lacquer book cabinet (shodana) from the Meiji period (estimate: $30,000-40,000).

Leading the Korean portion of the sale is a large blue and white porcelain jar (estimate: $380,000-400,000) from the Joseon dynasty (18th-19th century).  Standing over one foot tall, this impressively modeled jar is decorated with a landscape scene.  A strong selection of modern and contemporary Korean paintings will also be offered, including works by Hyon Gyon (R.I.P., 2010; estimate: $30,000-40,000), Lee Seunghee (Tao, 2012; estimate: $8,000-10,000), and Kim Sou (Figure, 1958, estimate: $8,000-12,000).