If the difference between the pre-auction estimated value and what it actually fetched at auction is eye popping, ponder this fact; in 1967 the vase was deemed to be worth US $200. When spread out evenly over that time period the vase accrued approximately US $102,626.31 per year.
A blue-and-white, 15th-century Chinese vase, which Laurance Rockefeller used as a lamp and Sotheby's Holdings Inc. valued at up to $400,000, sold last week for $3.9 million.
The vase was one of the highlights of the record- setting, Asian art auctions in New York. In six auctions over three days, Sotheby's and Christie's International totaled a record $52.9 million, with Chinese art sales making up half the figure.
Driving the market are newly wealthy Asian collectors, clamoring for a piece of their cultural heritage.
... full text via Bloomberg.com.
... PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF LAURANCE S. ROCKEFELLER page at Sotheby's site. Click on "Lauch Minisite" to view highlights from the auction.
