Qing-Dynasty vase fetches record price (Shenzhen Daily) Updated: 2005-10-25 16:28
A Hong Kong art dealer paid a world record price of HK$115.48m (US$14.88m)
for a rare Qing-Dynasty porcelain vase at auction Sunday.
 The auctioneer
shows the Qing-dynasty vase. [shenzhen
Daily] | It was the highest price ever paid
at auction in Asia for a work of art. The tiny vase dates from the Qianlong
Emperor鈥檚 reign, 1735-1796.
The 210-year-old piece, measuring just 16.5cm in height, is decorated with a
pair of pheasants on a flowering branch.
Sotheby鈥檚 auction house said there were only four similar vases in the world,
rare examples of Qing-Dynasty porcelain.
鈥淭he price achieved is a vindication of the object鈥檚 historical importance,鈥�
said Nicolas Chow, head of the Sotheby鈥檚 Chinese Ceramics Department.
鈥淚n 30 years, only two other vases of this type have appeared at auction,鈥� he
added.
The vase was sold to William Chak, a Hong Kong art dealer, after several
minutes of intense bidding. Chak latter admitted that he was offering the bid
for one of his customers from the mainland but refused to give further details.
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