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China Daily) 09:53, April 09, 2014
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Comments twitter facebook Sina Microblog reddit A porcelain cup known as a "chicken cup" because of its decorations fetched $36 million at a Sotherby's auction in Hong Kong on Tuesday. The buyer was Shanghai billionaire Liu Yiqian. LI PENG / XINHUA
An 8.2-centimeter-tall porcelain cup from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) fetched astaggering HK$281.24 million ($36 million) at an auction in Hong Kong on Tuesday, settinga new record for Chinese porcelain at auction.
Shanghai billionaire Liu Yiqian won the bidding via a telephone consignment.
The cup, which is in pristine condition, was made using the doucai method of fashioningporcelain that began during the Ming Dynasty, and was used for appreciation, not fordisplay. It is commonly known as a "chicken cup" because it is decorated with paintings ofchickens.
The cup celebrates the pinnacle of the Chenghua style of porcelain-making from 1465 to1487 that is renowned for refining the doucai method. Well-preserved examples from thatperiod are rare.
Historians say this particular style is an important variation of Chinese porcelain because itfeatures a contrast of overglaze enamel - which is applied on top of an existing glaze -paired with underglaze outlines - or decorations applied to the surface of a ceramic beforeit is glazed. Rich tones of yellow, red, olive green and underglaze blue are common duringthis period.
"There is nothing rarer in the Chinese porcelain than a Chenghua chicken cup. There areless than 20 genuine ones in the world," said Giuseppe Eskenazi, a London dealer ofChinese antiques who once owned the cup and made unsuccessful bids on Tuesday.
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