Gazette Drouot - C apencheres

THE MAGAZINE AUCTION RESULTS
Chinese paintings calligraphy and furniture
It is a constant of history: the role each country plays
in the art market is proportionate to its power.
China is no exception. For years, Chinese collectors
at home or abroad eagerly snatched up their heritage
at auctions in Paris, London or New York. Less
is known about China's home market, but one thing is
certain: China Guardian Auctions has become the
world's third-largest auctioneer since starting up in
1993. The group, which until now only had a network
of representation offices here, has just held its first
HK$6.32 M A Huanghuali Kang Table
with Everted Flanges and Foot-Stretcher
Early Qing, 161 x 46 x 44 cm.
94 GAZETTE DROUOT INTERNATIONAL I N° 19
auction outside China – if you put Hong Kong in that
category, at any rate. For a first try, China Guardian
Auctions pulled off quite a masterstroke. The sale's 350
lots totalled HK$455M(approximately US$58.6M),
more than doubling initial estimates; the paintings
and calligraphy tripled them. Over 20 collectors vied
for Qi Baishi's Album of Mountains and Rivers, bidding
the 1922 watercolour's price up to HK$46m. Next
came Xu Beihong's 1936 masterpiece “L’Aigle et le Pin”
(The Eagle and the Pine Tree) (HK$21.27m; another,
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