NathanWhat Happened To The Mirror?
This bronze mirror cased inside a lacquer box was another one from the collection. Even though the origin of this cannot be traced, it is clear that the beautiful antique truly is something special too. Even though the vase was hard to beat, even this antique piece ended up getting sold for an insane amount. It was actually over 20 times the estimated value getting purchased at $180,000 USD.
No Idea
A surprising fact that everybody could not comprehend was just how blind the previous owners could have been to not know how valuable the vase was. “They knew it had some value but nothing like that, nor that it was from the Qian dynasty,” one spokesperson later revealed in an interview. But it was Olivier Valmier’s reaction that was truly something heartwarming. It was clear so many lives were going to change from then on.
Valmier’s Pride
Naturally, Olivier Valmier being so proud of what took place, ended up sharing the news on his LinkedIn account. Since he joined as a deputy director, Asian art specialist, an auctioneer at Sotheby’s Paris back in 2016, it was clear that the Qianlong vase was the greatest achievement of Valmier’s career as yet. He even posted a photo of him during the whole bidding showing just how excited he was.
Successful Auction
When Valmier was asked about the auction, he told interviewers that he could not stop himself from boasting about the event’s success online. The vase had broken records and to top it all, 100% of the items that had been put up for auction were all cleared up. It does not stop there just yet. From all of the 27 valuable antiques, a staggering 90% of them ended up exceeding their expected values.
Record Breaker
The vase was not the only item from China that ended up making a ton of money. In 2017, a Song dynasty bowl that was estimated to be a few thousand years old shot up to be sold at an unprecedented $37.7 million. Experts looked closer to this ceramic vessel and concluded that it was meant for storing calligraphy brushes. This bowl here was undoubtedly the most valuable Chinese item ever sold at a Sotheby’s auction.
Controversial Vase
Back in 2010, a huge amount of money was made from another vase. This vase was estimated to be from the Qianlong era. This vase was later bought for an unbelievable $57 million but ended up in the not-collected pile of the auction house for about 2 years. The person who bid the highest amount for this bill could not pay off the bill. Auctioneer Peter Bainbridge tried his best to put a stop to this controversy…