It was plain stroke of serendipity for a Chinese man when he discovered the vase he bought for just a pound is actually an antique, costing between £50,000 and £80,000.
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According to reports in The Sun quoted in NDTV, the 8-inch vase once belonged to the Qianlong Emperor who ruled China from 1735 to 1796. The unnamed buyer picked up the antique vase at a charity shop and later listed it on eBay. He discovered its value when he was inundated with offers and bids and decided to withdraw the vase from the online auction.
This Qianlong famille rose wall vase was bought from a charity shop for just £1, however it is expected to make over £50,000 in our November Asian Art Auction! But why is it so special? Read the full story - https://t.co/w8fPa1puQq #chinese #qianlong #charityshop pic.twitter.com/o83x4OZW3L
— Sworders (@swordersfineart) August 29, 2019
The man got the vase appraised at Sworders Fine Art Auctioneers' in Essex, UK, who revealed that 'Qianlong famille rose wall vase' is inscribed with a poem praising incense. It also bears two iron-red seal marks on the side which read Qianlong chen han ('the Qianlong Emperor's own mark') and Weijing weiyi (be precise, be undivided).
According to Ladbible, Yexue Li, the head of the Asian art department for Sworders, said, "The gentleman vendor was in the charity shop and picked out the vase because he liked the look of it."
Revealing that the Chinese man was shocked and excited, Li added, "He was unaware of his significance so he put it on eBay with a very low starting price to begin with and there was a lot of interest. He decided to take the vase off eBay and bought it in to us to take a look. He was shocked and very excited when we explained its importance."
