Shock as 18th Century Chinese vase valued at £500k sells for £2.2million

It may be only 10in tall. But that didn’t stop an 18-century Chinese vase from fetching more than £2.2million after it triggered a bidding war.

The gold and yellow porcelain container was made during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor.

It was sold in the Ader Nordmann auction house in Paris on June 16 after the sale was rescheduled due to the coronavirus crisis.

The vase was initially estimated to be worth between £500,000 and £700,000. But the winning bid was £2.23million, made by a Chinese collector over the phone.

The vase is decorated with lotus flowers and has gold enamelled dragon handles. It carries the emperor’s six-character seal mark in red on its base.

In 2010, a Chinese vase discovered during a house clearance in north London was sold for a staggering £53.1million at auction.

Last year, another vase belonging to an emperor in the 18th century, was bought at a charity shop in Hertfordshire for £1 and eventually resold for £484,000. Pictured, Sworders Fine Art Auctioneers’ expert Yexue Li

The piece was put up for sale by a brother and a sister who found it while clearing out their parent’s home in north-west London after they recently died.

There was a furious bidding war between six men in the room and three bidders on the phone before it was eventually sold to a Chinese man.

And last year, another vase belonging to an emperor in the 18th century, was bought at a charity shop in Hertfordshire for £1 and eventually resold for £484,000.