Looted Old Summer Palace relic sells for US$12m at HK auction   

圓明園文物清代龍紋罐在港拍出7400萬天價

[Photo: Beijing Youth Daily]

(ECNS) – A porcelain pot looted from China's Old Summer Palace, or Yuanmingyuan Imperial Garden, was auctioned and sold for the sky-high price of HK$94,200,000 (US$12,142,380) at a Sotheby's autumn sale in Hong Kong on Wednesday, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.

The pot, dating back to the Qing Dynasty's Qianlong Emperor (1736-1795), was given a starting price of HK$50 million at the auction.

The pot was identified as a looted Old Summer Palace relic with a label reading "Fonthill, No.643" on the bottom, according to Liu Yang, a committee member of the Yuanmingyuan Society of China.

The label implies that the pot had spent time in the collection of Alfred Morrison, who bought a number of relics from the Old Palace Garden in 1861, said Liu.

It's the third time the pot has been at auction, Liu added. The first two auctions were at Christie's London in 1971 and Sotheby's Hong Kong in 1988.