Bidding for brush washer from 11th century Ru imperial kiln began at HK$80 million, and 30 bids were made before it was sold; amid speculation over who the buyer is, inquiry to Chinese collector Liu Yiqian draws a polite non-answer
A 900-year-old brush washer from the Northern Song dynasty broke the auction record for Chinese ceramics after it was sold in Hong Kong for HK$294.3 million (US$37.7 million) including commission on Tuesday.
The rare piece, fired in the 11th century Ru imperial kiln in present-day Henan province, drew strong demand at auctioneer Sotheby’s sale room in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Bidding began at HK$80 million and some 30 bids were made before the bowl was knocked down for HK$260 million excluding Sotheby’s commission. The winning bid was made by phone by an anonymous Asian buyer.
The final price was nearly triple the pre-sale estimate of HK$100 million.
There wasn’t a great deal of expectation ahead of the autumn auction season after fairly flat sales in spring. Market watchers predicted the Chinese authorities’ continuing crackdown on corruption and restrictions on capital outflows would have a negative effect on the autumn sales in Hong Kong just as they did on the spring auctions.
“The stock market has certainly been a factor. We are also seeing more young Chinese buyers becoming interested in building up their own antique collections, which means that more people are buying,” Wilson said.
The eight-day “golden week” holiday for national day in China drew many more mainland Chinese visitors to the auction previews than normal, he said, but the real buyers were still largely the familiar faces who come to Hong Kong every season.
There was plenty of speculation about who the buyer of the Ru brush washer is. Dealers said privately that very few ceramics collectors would have HK$294.3 million to spend, and the most likely candidate was Liu Yiqian, the Shanghai collector who set the previous record price for a Chinese ceramic piece when he bought a Ming dynasty “chicken cup” for HK$281 million in 2014. However, a query sent via WeChat to Liu’s wife, Wang Wei, elicited in response only a polite Mid-Autumn Festival greeting.
Collector Liu Yiqian with his wife, Wang Wei. An inquiry to Wang about Tuesday’s record auction purchase was met with a polite Mid-Autumn Festival greeting. Photo: Sam Tsang
The dish is one of just 87 known pieces to have survived from an imperial kiln that was only in operation for a short period of time between the late 11th century and early 12th century. Only four known Ru wares currently remain in private hands.
The seller is Robert Tsao, the Taiwan-born founder and former chairman of United Microelectronics Corporation.
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Brush washer breaks ceramics auction record
source : http://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/2113821/chinese-bowl-auctioned-record-us377m-hong-kong-buyer-rare
