Today, Imperial porcelain from China is worth a fortune. Sotheby’s will be selling a Ming Dynasty wucai fish jar (so called because of the decorations) in September, anticipating bids of $500,000-$700,000 in New York. In April, an older porcelain bowl from the Song Dynasty went for nearly $27m in Hong Kong.Traditionally, the porcelain art created at the time of the Jiajing Emperor had five colors. This rare piece has six colors. The piece is being sold by the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore to raise money for its Asian Art collection. The museum has another similar work.
Wucai “Fish Jar” From Ming Dynasty
July 26, 2012
16th Century Bottle Sells for $683,000
April 24, 2013Together, two bottles and a rare temple step accounted for almost $2m at Bonhams’ Islamic and Indian art sale in London yesterday. The bottles, as one might imagine, were very special, 16th century Iznik vessels from the Ottoman Empire. One made a new world record at $683,000, and the other sold for $460,000. Both were from the collection of a Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, who paid $765 for them back in 1919.
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Imperial Price For Qianlong Jade Seal
March 21, 2013Stories of unlikely discovery have highlighted Sotheby’s Asia Week in New York, the latest being the one concerning an imperial seal of the Qianlong emperor. Until a Washington family submitted it for evaluation, they had no idea of its value. It developed that the seal was among the most significant of those created to mark the Emperor’s 70th birthday. With that rarity in mind, Sotheby’s assigned an estimate of $1m-$1.5m. This, as it happened, was modest. This week the seal fetched $3.4m, more than double expectations.
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$3 Tag Sale Bowl Realizes $2.2m
March 20, 2013What collector hasn’t had this fantasy? Yesterday in New York, a Chinese bowl purchased for $3 at a 2007 tag sale sold at Sotheby’s for $2.2m. Curiosity about the 1000-year old ‘Ding’ bowl’s origins led to its eventual consignment with Sotheby’s, which set an estimate of $200,000-$300,000. After a bidding war with three other contenders, London-based dealer Giuseppe Eskenazi claimed the Northern Soon Dynasty bowl for $2.225m, including commission.
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Rising Value of Unrestored Cars
By Malcolm Welford, Vintage Car Specialist
