World

Pot o’ Gold: Family’s Old Vase Fetches $83 million

Pot o Gold: Familys Old Vase Fetches $83 millionLONDON (AP) — A Chinese vase that sat, little-noticed, in a suburban London home has become one of the most expensive artworks ever sold, evidence that China’s sizzling art market shows no signs of cooling down.

The 18th-century porcelain vase, sold by a family clearing out a deceased relative’s house, went to a Chinese buyer for 51.6 million pounds ($83 million) — more than 40 times the pre-sale estimate and a record for a Chinese work of art.

For Peter Bainbridge, a small independent auctioneer who specializes in house clearance sales, Thursday’s result was an extremely pleasant shock.

“How do you anticipate the Chinese market?” he said Friday. “It’s totally on fire.”

Bainbridge, whose 8.6 million pound buyer’s premium is included in the sale price, said the outcome was “a fairy tale” for the family who owned the vase.

He said the sellers, who wish to remain anonymous, are the sister and nephew of a deceased elderly woman clearing out her “very modest home” in the London suburb of Pinner.

The vase had been in the family at least since the 1930s, though they don’t know how it was acquired. Many Chinese artifacts surfaced in Britain in the 19th century, having been looted from Beijing’s Summer Palace when it was sacked by British and French troops at the end of the Second Opium War in 1860.

The vase was spotted as special by the auction house’s specialist valuer and given an estimate of up to 1.2 million pounds.

But on Thursday Bainbridge’s suburban sale room was “full to bursting,” and there was excitement in the air.

“There was a silence that wrapped itself around the sale as the figure grew slowly but surely up to the sky,” Bainbridge said.

“I’m an auctioneer, so at that point I‘m just doing the professional job I’m paid to do. But once the hammer’s down you do take stock slightly and think, ‘Oh, wow, that’s really rather a lot of money.’”

The vase, bought by a Chinese bidder on behalf of an undisclosed buyer, is the most expensive Chinese artwork ever sold, beating a Song Dynasty scroll that sold for almost $64 million in Beijing in June.

Experts say it is an exceptional piece, made for the personal enjoyment of Qing dynasty Emperor Qianlong, at a time when Chinese porcelain-making had reached a zenith. The 16-inch (40-centimeter) vase in imperial yellow features a delicate double-walled construction and is adorned with medallions depicting leaping goldfish.

Roland Arkell, deputy editor of the Antiques Trade Gazette, said the price makes this work by anonymous artisans the 11th most expensive Pot o Gold: Familys Old Vase Fetches $83 million artwork ever sold at auction.

“It’s right up there alongside the Picassos, which is unheard-of for a piece of porcelain,” he said.

More record prices are sure to follow. Prices for Chinese art and antiquities are buoyant.

Art markets in the West are still feeling the effects of the economic downturn. Masterpieces set records — often acquired by Russian, Middle Eastern or Asian collectors — while mid-range works languish unsold.

“It’s like a creme brulee: hard at the top and a bit soft underneath,” said Robert Read, a fine art expert at specialist insurer Hiscox

In contrast, China’s booming economy means new collectors are joining the market all the time, and wealthy buyers are keen to repatriate treasures from their heritage.

“There’s definitely a shift in the balance of power,” said Read. “Things are going east these days.

“That’s where the future is, and that’s where the big collectors are going to be over the next 20 years.”

___

Online:

Bainbridge Auctions: http://www.bainbridgesauctions.co.uk

Comments (30)

  • mrdbcooper
    Posted on November 15, 2010 at 2:21pm

    I had 2 of those behind my couch…

    Report Post » mrdbcooper  
  • Corona
    Posted on November 14, 2010 at 8:18pm

    Soon Obama will put his boot on the neck of Big Auction.

    Report Post »  
  • Dawgnabox
    Posted on November 14, 2010 at 8:38am

    My Grandma had one of those, she said they used them in the mornings. The chamber maid emptied it first thing every day.
    Go figure……

    Report Post »  
  • uncleherbert
    Posted on November 14, 2010 at 7:10am

    moa killed 70+ million nationalist, that money was not inherited you think? at least he made it as an ornament on the white house christmas tree….all property belongs to the state!

    Report Post » uncleherbert  
  • Freedom_fighter
    Posted on November 14, 2010 at 12:20am

    All I have to say is wow.

    Report Post » Freedom_fighter  
  • woodydad
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 10:42pm

    83 million dollars? That’s about $32.17 in Obama bucks isn’t it?

    Report Post » woodydad  
  • Mojoron
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 9:01pm

    What recession?

    Report Post » Mojoron  
  • gregory.prunty@gmail.com
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 7:01pm

    this kind of thing is why Obama wants to redistrabute wealth you just must have more money than you know what do do with but…………………… its their money and their choice to spend it, I bet Obama was/is pulling his hair out, how dare they spend that kind of money don’t they know they must spend other peoples money like obama.

    Report Post »  
  • firstHat
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:59pm

    This is exactly the sort of thing that the post/anti colonialist cherish. This is their goal. The “old empires” are collapsing and the former “victims” are buying back their own again using funny money. Western art will begin to dwindle along with the culture. I’d rather have the rainbow than this pot of gold at the end of it.

    Report Post »  
  • Sledgehammer
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:39pm

    I had one of those, tried to use it for a spitoon, but it was full of holes, so I tossed it.

    Report Post » Sledgehammer  
  • Parkeralan
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:35pm

    83 million is nothing, they just have to sell us 83 million useless trinkets made in China!

    Report Post » Parkeralan  
  • zagfan
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:26pm

    I have a matched set of Mason jars with ball lids….anyone….anyone…No. Darn~

    Report Post » zagfan  
  • Bobby P
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:15pm

    Did you see the sticker on the bottom? It said “Made in Taiwan”.

    Report Post » Bobby P  
  • joseph Fawcett
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:48pm

    Good for the family and I bet Soros was the buyer!!!

    http://www.josephfawcettart.com western artist

    Report Post » joseph Fawcett  
    • zagfan
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:25pm

      Mr. Fawcett,

      Beautiful work…thanks for the preview~

      Report Post » zagfan  
    • snowleopard3200 {mix art}
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 5:24pm

      Great artwork, love the sketch of the Elk.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • Ameribrit
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 6:16pm

      WHOW……such talent…… Such a gift from the man upstairs….. God bless you for letting us view it.

      Report Post » Ameribrit  
  • MadeInAmerica
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:41pm

    I have a 7 yr old cheese sandwich in the bottom of my refrigerator. Some day, some day…..

    Report Post »  
  • kryptonite
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:37pm

    Oh, &%#! Someone outbid Michelle’s $82-milllion offer.

    Report Post »  
  • J.C. McGlynn
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:30pm

    Talk about a pot-o-gold. Are you sure they didn’t steal it from a leprechaun?

    Report Post » J.C. McGlynn  
  • burnteye86
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:05pm

    I want my daddys vase!

    Report Post » burnteye86  
  • spirited
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 2:57pm

    Time to take Trump’s advise

    Report Post » spirited  
  • burnteye86
    Posted on November 13, 2010 at 2:55pm

    I used to have a vase like that. I sold it to a man from London for 3 bucks…hey…wait a minute

    Report Post » burnteye86  
    • snowleopard3200 {mix art}
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 3:03pm

      Good thing they did not try to sell it here in America, Obama-sans pet thugs of the KGB-IRS would have figured out some way to confiscate all the proceeds and bankrupt the family. Unless it just happened to be a member of the political elite Left party. They would be excused from such needs as to pay taxes like everyone else does in the land.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • godlovinmom
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 4:17pm

      why can’t I find something like that laying around the house….

      Report Post » godlovinmom  
    • Robert W
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 6:15pm

      Ah man! I just threw one of them out last week!

      Report Post »  
    • Oil_Robb
      Posted on November 13, 2010 at 9:01pm

      I agree….Im sure that theres somthing in the Obama care bill that says they can tax rare vases ..theres a gold tax in there so why not Antiques Road Show profits?

      Report Post »  
    • GeoBible
      Posted on March 5, 2011 at 10:32pm

      I have something that should bring in much more money than that: Over 30 years ago I discovered that This Earth has a way of recording images of people animals objects and events. I can get these images from the worlds past that must go all the way back in time.
      I use Satellite/Photographic imaging with you might say a twist. I can get images all day long every day from all over the world from the past. I never know what is around the next corner but I can’t get into everything on here but because of the way this works I decided to see if it could work on other planets as well.
      .
      I used NASA/Hubble images with a twist and was dissapointed to find nothing much until I looked where I never expected to find life. I found on Titan several people that looked human and male and female looking. Bear in mind that these are images from the past so that does not mean there is still life there BUT ! chances are good there is because the quality of images are as good as my images here on Earth.
      Now ! If I have an Artist paint this picture with these people from Titan that pcture / first picture of life from another Planet/Moon should be priceless. All I need to get the ball rolling is a Scientist or someone from Who’s Who or news media to look into my story and the ball will start rolling.
      .
      I can teach most anyone how this is done and so far I have all kinds of discoveries from this.
      .
      I can find images around the Nazca Lines in Peru which will help us figure out what that site is about and the same thing for Stone Henge,
      .
      Then there is the so called Aztec Calender. I can prove it is not a calender . It is a repleca of a real working object and I can show you much about all the parts on it that are suposed to be mechanical parts and much more.
      I recently retired to Jackson Tennessee 38301 and I need to get the world involved in this discovery. It is not easy to tell the world because if you are not a scientist no one will listen or look into the discovery. I offered to pay a Chicago Triune reporter $ 5,000 to look into it and if he liked what he saw then write about it but he said he is not allowed to do that.
      .
      That offer is no longer available and I will not try and teach anyone unless it is in person .

      Report Post » GeoBible  

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