Classical art still going strong

A rare Song Dynasty hand scroll, classified as a grade one cultural relic of the State, fetched 79.52 million yuan ($11.6 million) on Saturday at China Guardian's Spring Auction.

The scroll by an anonymous painter of Southern Song Dynasty (AD 1127-1279), entitled A Copy of Guo Zhongshu's Four-Hunter Painting, vividly portrays four nomadic horsemen who are respectively riding to the field, training an eagle, hunting and resting.

Paintings of the ethnic groups who lived on the vast grasslands of northern China, became a distinct category of painting in the late Tang dynasty (AD 618-907). The painting, part of the treasure trove of the Qing (1644-1911) royal court, was smuggled out of the palace by Emperor Puyi as a reward to his brother in 1922 and was later transported overseas.

Another royal treasure of the Qing court, Listening to Spring by Jin Tingbiao, sold for 45.13 million yuan ($6.6 million). The painting portrays a scholar sitting by a stone among pine trees. It was completed shortly after Jin served as a royal court painter.

Other items that came under the hammer at the auctions included a Qianlong Tibetan-Style Ewer with under-glazed blue and iron red dragon and cloud motif, which fetched 35.84 million yuan ($5.2 million), and Shi Chong's oil painting Present Landscape that was sold for 26.09 million yuan ($3.8 million).

More than 6,600 lots of Chinese painting and calligraphy, oil painting, sculptures, antique, stamps and coins are going under the hammer at Guardian's Spring Auctions, which last until Tuesday.

"Global auctioneering came to a standstill last year. But against that backdrop the Chinese auction market has achieved notable growth, and our annual proceeds established a new record," says Wang Yannan, president of China Guardian Auctions.

Last year, three pieces of Chinese painting and calligraphy heralded the arrival of a 100 million yuan ($15 million) era for the classical Chinese art market, including one item Writings by Prominent Personage in the Song Dynasty on Attendant Xu's Seal Character, featuring calligraphy by seven renowned scholars, such as Zhu Xi and Zhang Jingxiu, that was sold at Guardian's autumn auction.

"As a warm-up for the spring auctions, our auctions in March yielded a turnover of 262 million yuan ($38.4 million). It further increased collectors' confidence in the market," Wang says.

One work that is expected to set a new record is Zhang Daqian's Austrian Lake, a painting in a series inspired by the maestro's two-day stay at the Achensee Lake in Austria, when he traveled through Europe with friends in 1965. The painting to be auctioned is widely believed to be one of the largest and most brilliant of the series.

There is also great anticipation for Pan Tianshou's finger painting of An Eagle on Rock. Pan started to learn finger painting in his youth and elevated the technique to art. The painting was created in 1962 when the artist was in his prime.