An ink painting of birds by 12th-century
Emperor
Huizong was sold for 23 million yuan (US$2.77 million) at a
Beijing auction yesterday.
The emperor, named Zhao Ji, ruled from 1101 to 1125 during the
Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127).
After the sale at the city's Kunlun Hotel, Kou Qin - vice-president
of the auction firm China Guardian - said: "That marks the highest
price a single Chinese painting has ever achieved on the local
market.
"If the 10 percent commission we charge the buyer is taken into
account, the total cost of the painting will be 25.3 million yuan
(US$3.05 million)," Kou told China Daily.
Kou refused to reveal the buyer's identity. But there are signs
that the painting - entitled "Portraits of Precious Birds" - might
have been bought by a Chinese museum or company.
After more than 50 rounds of breathtaking bids, the painting's
price rocketed from the auction firm's estimate of 7.8 million yuan
(US$942,000).
A
young Chinese man in his 20s, who was probably a representative of
the real buyer, raised the final bid and immediately left the
auction room escorted by Kou and other auction firm employees.
This was the first time such a valuable work by the famous emperor
artist had ever appeared in an art auction, said experts.
Zhao Ji (1082-1135) was a controversial statesman and lost his
dynasty to invaders. However, he was well known as an excellent
painter and calligrapher.
The handscroll, 27.5 centimetres high and 521.5 centimetres long,
is one of fewer than 20 paintings by Huizong that have survived to
this day.
Prior to yesterday's auction, the painting was in the collection of
an anonymous Japanese collector, who entrusted China Guardian to
sell the work.
Kou said: "There is a tendency whereby precious Chinese artworks
stored by overseas collectors have begun to return to the Chinese
market in recent years. That is partly due to the political
stability, economic prosperity and growing interest in art
collecting in China," he noted.
Xu
Chen, a researcher from the China Academy of Arts in Beijing,
pointed out that the China Guardian sale also indicated that
Chinese artworks have been enjoying increasing popularity and
respect in the world art market as Chinese art and culture become
better understood.
Other experts argued that the overall price levels achieved by
Chinese artworks are still low compared with those of Western
artworks.
Collector Liu Yong said: "Such a situation is unfair considering
the value of Chinese art. I am confident the prices of Chinese
artworks - especially ancient ink painting and porcelain - will
continue to rise."
(China
Daily April 24, 2002)