Porcelain bowls bought from the second hand market is only 35 USD, and sells for more than 700,000 USD

A porcelain bowl bought from a second hand market for $ 35 is identified as a precious antiquity and priced at $ 500,000. However, the actual selling price is even more startling, up to more than 700,000 USD.
The porcelain bowl was bought by the owner from a second hand market in New Haven, Connecticut in the US in 2020 for only 35 USD, has just been sold for 721,800 USD at the auction house Sotheby’s. CNN reported on March 18.

The bowl, identified as a rare Ming-era antiquity, even achieved a much higher selling price than Sotheby’s initial valuation of $ 300,000-500,000. It sold for $ 721,800, nearly 29,000 times the original purchase price from the second hand market. The lotus bowl originating from the reign of Emperor Minh Thanh To has just been sold for $ 721,800. Photo: Sotheby’s. The bowl is white with delicate motifs of lotus flowers, peony flowers, chrysanthemums and pomegranates. The diameter of the bowl is about 15 cm. While auction organizer Sotheby’s did not disclose the identity of the owner who bought the precious bowl, Sotheby’s head of the Chinese arts department, Angela McAteer, told CNN By phone prior to the March 17 auction, the person who found the bowl at a second hand market did not haggle when buying it for an asking price of 35 USD. Immediately after buying, he sent a photo of the bowl to auction specialists, and it was immediately identified as an object of historical significance. “Instinctively we have a very, very good feeling about the bowl,” said Ms. McAteer. After more thorough examination, experts identified this antiquity – also known as the “lotus bowl” – produced by the Ming court during the reign of Emperor Minh Thanh To (1403-1424) – during period is famous for its special sophisticated porcelain technique. “The bowl has an extremely smooth porcelain body and the glossy enamel is not abrasive,” Ms. McAteer said. The industry of making this bowl is no longer found in later dynasties. Photo: Sotheby’s. The bowl-making industry was not replicated in the later Ming dynasties, nor in successive dynasties, Ms. McAteer added. According to representatives of Sotheby’s, there are only 6 bowls in the world similar to antiques found in Connecticut, including those on display at the National Palace Museum in Taipei, the British Museum and Victoria & Albert Museum in London.