Page 87 - C.T. Loo A paper about his impact and activities in the Chinese art Market

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image of a bronze mask was placed next to Duveen Brothers, Inc.’s half-page

advertisement with no images (Fig. 26). 162

The rivalry between C. T. Loo & Co. and Yamanaka & Co. is hardly surprising. 163

Yamanaka & Co.’s New York firm was established as early as 1894 by Yamanaka

Sadajiro, one of the leading dealers in Chinese art. Although Loo arrived at the American

art market almost 20 years later, two companies shared many similarities in terms of their

stature, strategy, and clientele. Both were international establishments with offices in

China, Europe and America. Both specialized in high-end Chinese sculptures, bronzes,

jades, and ceramics. The rivalry between them was shown in a subtle manner in Loo’s

offer of the Buddhist stele (MFA 23.120) to the MFA. In his letter to the MFA curator

J.E. Lodge, Loo compared the stele he was offering for $ 25,000 with another stele (MFA

19.125) sold by Yamanaka & Co. to the MFA for $4,000 in 1919. 164 Loo wrote to Lodge

to justify the higher value of his stele, “Slab A seems very much the same as the Wetzel

monument…this one has more curious designs.” (Fig. 27a,b) 165

The relationship between dealers could become complicated when objects with

obscure or problematic life history circulated among them. When sensitive issues

concerning restoration, provenance, and authenticity were raised, it could be extremely

162
Parnassus, January 1939, 1.
163
Considering Loo’s connection with the Guomindang government in China, the
nationalistic sentiment prompted by the brutal military conflict between China and Japan
in the 1930s and 1940s may also have had a bearing on the relationship between Loo and
Yamanaka.
164
The Wetzel stele was purchased from Yamanaka for $4,000 on August 18, 1919
(Joseph Scheier-Dolberg, email message to author, October 11, 2007).
165 C. T. Loo to J.E. Lodge, August 23, 1922, folder: Lai-Yuan Co., box: Unofficial
Correspondence L, 1910-1922, AAOA-MFA.