World · India Bureau
French family's attic discovery sells for €16m at Sotheby's
A rare 18th-century Chinese porcelain vase, casually transported to auction in a shoebox, fetched €16.18 million at Sotheby's Paris. The imperial piece, initially undervalued by experts, far exceeded expectations when collectors recognised its historical significance.
LSN India ·
An ordinary attic clearance became an extraordinary windfall for a French family when an overlooked Chinese vase sold for over €16 million at a Paris auction house in 2018. The famille brought the delicate porcelain piece to Sotheby's with minimal fanfare, transporting it in nothing more than a shoebox, apparently unaware of its true worth.
Upon examination, specialists identified the vase as a rare imperial creation commissioned during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor in the 18th century. The discovery transformed a routine estate sale into a significant event in the Asian art market, with the lot generating intense bidding among collectors.
The final hammer price of €16.18 million represented a stunning return on value. Sotheby's initial estimate had placed the vase's worth at considerably less than €700,000, meaning the realised price exceeded predictions by more than 23 times. The extraordinary result underscored the enduring demand for authenticated imperial Chinese porcelain among international collectors.
The sale highlights how valuable artefacts can remain hidden in plain sight, passed down through generations without their owners fully understanding their historical or monetary significance. For the fortunate French family, the accidental discovery proved that sometimes the most valuable treasures are those gathering dust in family homes.