NathanRare Collection
Sotheby’s claimed that this was a Giuseppe Castiglione design because the vase had so much in common with another one found in France. It is an item from the prestigious Ernest Grandidier collection, that is kept in the Paris’ Musee Guimet. Both vases are considered Yangcai, or “auspicious deer,” because of the deer in their design. So after learning about all of this, how much do you think this vase is worth?
The Original Price
It had been a couple of months since the owners kept the vase in the custody of Sotheby’s. After extensively investigating, they finally decided that it was time to put the Yangcai up for auction. So what was its original price? Well, it was about $588,000 and $823,000. It would have been impressive to get to see a vase for even a fraction of its price tag. But wait, the actual amount this vase went to was a front-page newsworthy amount…
Rollercoaster Auction
The initial price was already quite impressive but then after the long bidding started, the twisting and turning of the price lead to something unbelievable. The bidding process actually took about 20 minutes long! Some guests were afraid that this bidding would never ever stop. However, the auctioneer finally hammered the last blow and the price that was announced was something you would never imagine…
Finally Sold!
In the beginning, no one expected that this vase would ever amount to something more than half a million it was priced at. But after the very long bidding was finally over, the Yangcai had ultimately been sold for an amount that left many speechless. The ancient Chinese vessel that had innocently been found in a French attic by a disinterested woman ended up being sold for, can you believe $19 million!?
Record Breaking
The antique vase ended up shattering not only its original value but even a string of records in the process. Following the 20-minute long bid war, the French branch of Sotheby’s had officially auctioned off its most expensive item ever creating a history that day with this vase. And to think this all started with just a casual trip the attic. So who ended up getting their hands on the precious vase?
Secret Buyer
So who ended up paying this ridiculous, record-shattering amount for the vase? Perhaps a Russian billionaire? Maybe an avid art collector? Sotheby’s decided that it would be better to conceal the identity of the buyer so there was little to nothing known about the mystery buyer. They only spoke about the fact that he was hailing from an Asian background. So what made this person shell out so much for this vase?