Chinese Auctioneers Upbeat on Coming AuctionChina's leading auction house is eager to start the bidding for its large spring auction May 7-9, after learning of the pre-auction excitement from collectors worldwide.Kou Qin, vice president of China Guardian Auctions Co., Ltd., said that while most of the customers at the sale will be seasoned buyers who have attended many of the company's past sales, many new faces are expected to appear as the antiques market is regaining its popularity among international collectors. Guardian will bring many treasured antiques to the auction block, including a six-volume set of rare books with the foreword written by Emperor Qianlong (1736-1795), with bidding set to open at one million yuan (about US$120,500), and the only existing copy of an ancient medical book which dates back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). Among other precious lots are a landscape painted by well-known contemporary artist Li Keran, and an abstract oil painting by Zhao Wuji. Meanwhile, an extremely rare blue and white "double dragon" vase from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and a large vase decorated with 100 deer are expected to fetch up to 4 million yuan (US$481,000) and 800,000 yuan (US$ 96,385) respectively. Also for sale will be a 10.06-carat diamond with an opening bid of between 1.8 and 2 million yuan (US$216,000 to 240,000); such a jewel has never been available before at a Chinese auction. After a three-year slump in the international antiques collection market, Guardian set a sales record in China of 67.5 million yuan (US$8.13 million) at its autumn auctions last year, surprising most of the company's auctioneers. "We worked to cultivate the market and now have seen the first rays of hope," Kou said. To further promote the collection of Chinese art and antiques, Guardian cooperated with Cable & Wireless HK Telecom (CWHKT) and Soft Bank China Venture Capital (SBCVC) to set up a comprehensive auction website, www.guaweb.com. |
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