Chinese antiques valued at £11,000 discovered in Shropshire home
Two Chinese cinnabar lacquer antiques discovered in a Shropshire property are expected to sell for around £11,000 when they go under the hammer in the county in May.
The owner had no idea the antiques were so valuable and is looking forward to seeing how they sell at fine art auctioneers Halls’ Asian art auction in Shrewsbury on 13 May.
An ingot form box and cover on a carved hardwood stand dates to the early Qing Dynasty and is valued at up to £6,000 while the intricately carved, circular lacquer tray and hard wood stand, from the Qianlong Period, carries an estimate of up to £5,000.
“Both these Chinese antiques were discovered in a house in the Oswestry area and our valuation came as a complete surprise to the owner,” said Rebecca Moss, Halls’ Asian art specialist. “They have been in the family for generations but were stored away and not being used or displayed.
“This discovery demonstrates that there are Asian art treasures waiting to be identified in Shropshire and surrounding counties. Our advice to householders is if you don’t know what an item is, please bring in it for a free valuation. It may be worth little, but on the other hand you might be sitting on a small fortune.”
Another Chinese lot that is expected to do well at auction is a Longquan celadon censer from the Ming Dynasty period, which is valued at up to £2,000 and has been consigned by a Wolverhampton couple.
A large Chinese bronze statue of two cranes and a turtle on a carved hardwood base, which was brought back to the UK by the Oswestry vendor’s grandfather who was a railway worker in China, is expected to fetch around £1,500.
Other potential stars include a Chinese 'dou' stem bowl with matched cover from the Qing Dynasty and a pair of Chinese porcelain famille rose plaques from the Republic period, which are valued at £800 each.
A matched pair of Chinese blue and white ribbed jars is tipped to fetch £600 and a Chinese Claire De Lune bottle vase, which has been consigned by a Shropshire vendor who lived in China in the 1950s and ‘60s, is valued at up to £500.
Japanese lots include an ivory okimono of a woodsman at up to £600, a bronze Shakudo vase from the Meiji period at £500 and two ivory and bones shrines at up to £400.
The furniture section features a large 19th century Chinese rosewood altar table and a Chinese Canton export lacquer sewing table at up to £600 each.
