14 DAY TRIAL // A broken porcelain stand that had spent years gathering dust in a utility room in Cambridgeshire turned out to be a rare Chinese antique and sold at auction for a whopping £444,000 ($738,500 / €537,130).
The damaged wig stand was left in the utility room by the British owner, who had inherited it from a great uncle and probably had no idea what the antique was worth. However, the item was recently discovered by experts, who determined it was actually a really valuable piece of Chinese history.
The Mirror tells us that the ancient relic is a wig stand made in the 18th century for the Emperor Qianlong and even has the rulers' seal mark on the bottom. The 11-inch (27.9-cm) tall stand had previously suffered some damage as it had been split in two and then glued back together.
The Emperor Qianlong ruled China from 1711 to 1799 and was the sixth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty. He was also the emperor who lived for the longest time in Chinese history.
Cheffins Auctioneers from Cambridge, who sold the item, expected it to fetch approximately £10,000 ($16,600 / €12,000), but Chinese collectors showed high interest in this unique artifact, so its price raised to £360,000 ($598,800 / €435,500). With the added auctioneers’ expenses eventually set for £444,000 ($738,500 / €537,130).
Despite the obvious damage, the imperial wig stand still attracted some bidders. The antique was brought back to Britain from China about 80 years ago by the great uncle of the seller. It has six ornate feet that support a gilt bronze base and a rotating lid where scents were placed to give the wig a nice smell.
The seller, who is from the Cambridge area, was very surprised and excited to see that his item sparked so much interest. He was reportedly “bouncing off the walls” at the end of the auction.
George Archdale, an associate partner of Cheffins Auctioneers, said, “[The wig stand] was kept out of the way and was rather ignored and unloved. It had previously been broken in half at some stage and glued back together. It wasn’t a professional repair and not terribly well done.”
“Three hundred and sixty thousands pounds is a lot of money for anybody. Obviously we are delighted with the outcome,” he added.
This surprising sale proves that even damaged pieces can fetch huge sums, so if you happen to have some ancient items stored away you'd better take them to an expert and have them looked at.