Start checking the attic.
A Chinese vase which had an estimated price of around €1,200 was sold at an auction in Co. Laois on Saturday for a massive €740,000 which is a new Irish record for a public auction.
The previous record, which was set in 2012, was dubbed the Durrow Dragon and was a small piece of Chinese Jade that went for €630,000 although it was only believed to be worth a couple of grand.
The item is a Period Blue and White Double Gourd Vase with scroll handles and was for sale at a Sheppard’s auction in Durrow and was previously in the possession of a Dublin-based man.
Incredible sale at auction at Sheppard's in Durrow, Co Laois… 18th century Chinese vase with a guide of €800-1200 has sold for €740,000! pic.twitter.com/XinwPGYPNg
— Philip Bromwell (@philipbromwell) June 17, 2017
According to the Independent, there were eleven telephone bidders contesting the sale with a Paris-based bidder winning out after seven minutes.
The vase is from the 18th century and is roughly around 23cm tall and 18cm wide. It’s painted with a floral pattern and on the base, it has the mark of Qianlong, who was a Chinese emperor in the 18th century.
Sheppard’s Auction House are no strangers to finding Chinese gems in the shape of vases. Back in 2012, they sold a similar vase for €120,000 and two years previous, another Chinese vase smashed its €150 guide price to sell for €110,000 in Laois.
