Fencai Qing dynasty vase beats estimate by 9,780% in Boston

A Fencai imperial Qing dynasty vase saw $24.7m at Skinner in Boston on September 18, smashing the previous record for a Qing dynasty vase in the US.

The lot was initially valued at $250,000, resulting in an increase of 9,780%.

Skinner vase Chinese
The Qianlong vase was made at the Jingdezhen kiln

Skinner comments that the vase "was fired at the Jingdezhen kilns under the direction of the famous superintendent Tang Ying (1682-1750).

"The National Palace Museum in Beijing, China is home to the only other known example of the same size and decoration."

Fencai is an enamelling technique developed in the Qing period that allowed artists to blend colours to create highly detailed compositions.

The present lot displays a complex array of floral patterns and landscapes.

Judith Dowling, director of Asian works of art at Skinner, commented: "The vase is a tour-de-force of ceramic techniques, and it is believed that the Emperor ordered it made."

The best examples of Qianlong vases are hugely sought after among collectors and regularly achieve significant sums. In January last year an example discovered in an attic made £25m ($40m) in a private UK sale.

Other Asian Art Week sales in New York this week include a selection of Chinese ceramics from the Sakamoto Goro collection.

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