Collection of Chinese antiques bought by a British farmer for as little as £100-a-piece sells for incredible £45.9MILLION

A collection of Chinese antiques bought by a farmer for as little £100 per item has sold for £45.9million.

Roger Pilkington of Aldbourne, Wiltshire, collected 100 pieces of exquisite Chinese ceramics during the late 1950s and early 1960s.

The late Mr Pilkington paid between £100 (£3,000 in today's currency) and £5,000 (£140,000 today) for pieces from the Tang, Song, Ming and Qing dynasties, which spanned from 618 to 1912.

High value items: The most expensive item, a 9in blue and white Moon Flask from the 15th century, pictured left, fetched £10.1million. A holy water vessel from the same period, pictured right, achieved £9.1million

Exquisite: A 15th century palace bowl, pictured, made for a Ming dynasty emperor, was sold for £6million and was described as so rare that many of the world's greatest museum collections lack an example.