IN the autumn, an older man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of - auctions. And so, on November 2, Christie's will sell 30 examples of what are described as 'some of the finest imperial wares of the 18th century' that have been culled from the personal collection of Robert Chang.
The most breathtaking examples of enamels, monochromes and blue-and-white wares executed by the master craftsmen of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) will be sold to buyers at the most breathtaking prices. These are items of exquisite rarity.
As, indeed, is Mr Chang. Like his finely fashioned porcelain, he is a one-off. Wearing a green-striped blazer, a tie dotted with bunny rabbits, dark glasses and the most resplendent watch, he is a man of memorable presence. Mr Chang, you feel, is someone who has surely made an unforgettable impression in the world's auction rooms (in which he always liked to have the Number One paddle to wave at the auctioneer).
He is the last of the old-school dealers, an individual who has spent his life assessing beautiful objects with ruthless scrutiny. Although he likes to present himself as a roguishly twinkling character, a sort of Shanghainese version of Maurice Chevalier ('Nice clothes, nice food and eyeing the nice girls,' he gamely replies when asked what he might do with the money from the sale), he is, professionally, a rigid perfectionist.
Pass him one of his own pieces - an imperial famille rose ruby-ground bowl, say, which is expected to fetch more than $8 million - and he gazes upon it with gimlet-eyed authority, turning it over and over in his hands, checking for the non-existent flaws.
He is selling because he feels old; he feels he has reached the end of a cycle of possession in his life. If that sounds sad, it is not intended to be. In any case, Mr Chang at 73 looks as spry, and acts as irrepressible, as a man of 50.