Chinese bowl 27 million
The modest-looking imperial ceramic bowl that was made around 900 years ago had been expected to fetch up to HK$80 million, but it was snapped up by an unidentified telephone bidder for HK$208 million ($26.7 million).
The price sets a new record for a piece of ceramic from the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), according to Sotheby’s, dwarfing the price for a “Guan” Mallet Vase, which went for HK$67.52 million in 2008.
“The piece is possibly the greatest masterpiece of Song ceramic that we have ever offered in Hong Kong,” Sotheby’s Asia deputy chairman Nicolas Chow said.
“It is a piece of Ruyao, which is probably the most fabled type of Chinese ceramic ever to have been created,” he told reporters.
Eight hopefuls competed for over 15 minutes during intense bidding for the extraordinarily rare flower-shaped bowl, which Chow said drew worldwide bidders but “mostly from Asia”.
“We didn’t know it was going to be such a phenomenon,” he said.
“Ru” ceramics — named after one of five large kilns operating under the Song — are the rarest in China, and it is estimated that only 79 complete pieces remain in the world, most in museums.
The “Ruyao Washer” is the only bowl that features an organic floral shape and an opaque glaze.
The interest and price is testament to the vitality of Asia’s art market, which has witnessed explosive growth over the past decade — despite disappointing sales last year amid a fragile global economic outlook.
Sotheby’s five-day sale of wine, jewellery, ceramics, watches and Chinese art — an event seen as a yardstick of Asian collectors’ sentiment — suggested a rebound in the market.
Sotheby’s raked in HK$468 million on Tuesday from its fine Chinese paintings sale, more than double the forecast, in an auction that it said was dominated by “spirited competition from greater China”.
The star lot was Chinese painter Qi Baishi’s “Willows At The Riverside; Begonias” — a rare pair of gold screens depicting Chinese landscape and flowers that fetched HK$70.1 million, tripling its pre-sale estimates.
The two-day wine sale series over the weekend also beat estimates and achieved a total of HK$63.6 million after all lots were sold, driven by strong demand in the “mature, classic” Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne.
Hong Kong has emerged as one of the biggest auction hubs alongside New York and London, fuelled by China’s economic boom and demand from Asian collectors, especially cash-rich mainland Chinese buyers.
Global art auction sales rose to a record $11.5 billion in 2011, according to France-based market data provider Artprice, with China cementing its spot as the top market with $4.79 billion in sales
But what was initially meant to be a public event was turned into a more private showing for potential buyers as organizers feared a stampede of visitors, after the bowl drew crowds in Shanghai on Wednesday and Thursday.
"An object has rarely generated so much excitement and for security reason we thought it would be preferable for our clients to view it within the confines of a private room," Nicolas Chow, deputy chairman for Sotheby's Asia, told Agence France Presse.
The flower-shaped Ru dish from the Northern Song Dynasty (1086-1125) features six sharp notches on the edge and a subtly translucent matte glaze, and is believed to be the only one of its type in the world, Sotheby's auction house has said.
Chow has called "the superb Northern Song lobed washer from the fabled Ru kilns" ... the "star of the season".
"It is the first time in 30 years Sotheby's has auctioned off a piece of ceramic this rare. I would say this is about the highest degree of rarity you can find."
Of the 79 surviving Ru ware dishes, the "Ruyao Washer" is the only one that features an organic floral shape and an opaque glaze, he said.
It was expected to sell for up HK$80 million ($10.3 million) at Sotheby's spring auction in the southern Chinese city on April 4.
Other pieces to go under the hammer include a large, early 15th-century blue and white dish from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and an Anhua stembowl from the Xuande reign (1426-35) featuring dancing dragon motifs.
More than 380 lots with an estimated worth of more than HK$650 million will be sold at the auction, Sotheby's said.
Hong Kong has emerged as one of the biggest auction centers after New York and London.
Chinese art prices have rocketed in recent years, fuelled by China's economic boom and a steady demand from rich Asian collectors, especially mainland Chinese buyers.
But a Sotheby's auction of imperial Chinese porcelain this time last year sold for less than pre-sale estimates.
After Shanghai and Beijing the bowl is to be shown in Taipei.
"The Taiwanese are probably among the most sophisticated collectors in the field of Chinese art," said Chow. "They'll pick something extraordinary to raise their collections."
The extremely rare item was only expected to receive a winning bid of about one-third the eventual total during a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong, Associated Foreign Press reports. The purchase by an anonymous bidder breaks the previous record for the most expensive ceramic bowl from the era. Sotheby’s says the bowl is from the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) and easily tops a 2008 auction on a Guan Mallet Vase from the same era.
“The Ruyao Washer is among the most sophisticated achievements in Chinese ceramics. Its appearance on the market has created enormous excitement,” Sotheby’s Asia deputy chairman Nicolas Chow said.
Earlier estimates had the bowl going for about $10 million.It is said that only 79 complete pieces from the era remain in existence. Eight individuals took part in the 15-minute competitive bidding process, vying for the flower-shaped bowl.
The bowl comes from a private Japanese collection and is “arguably the most desirable piece of Ru official ware remaining in private hands,” according to Sotheby’s.
With China’s booming economy, Hong Kong has become one of the world’s top auction spots, behind New York and London.