What is the highest bid increment you have ever seen in an auction? In most cases, we see bid increments of 1m, 5m or even 10m. However, a bid increment in the Buddhist sculptures sale at Poly auction Hong Kong beat all the above bid increments. The leading lot of this special sale selling Buddhist sculptures from the Yongle period was a gilt bronze figure of Yamantaka-vajrabhairava. The bidding of this figure started at HK$40m but soon soared to $90m after the first bidder made his move. The bid increment of $50m, more than a double of its starting bid, came as a complete shock to everyone in the room. The figure was hammered down at a sky-high price of HK$112m after eight bid increments.
The highlights were undoubtedly the three Buddhist sculptures from the collection of Speelman, a celebrated art dealer specialising in Asian antiques, with a particular emphasis on sculptures. For Buddhist sculptures, the Speelman collection is a synonym of high-quality works of art. The sale started an hour later than its scheduled time but the room was already flooded with crowds coming all the way mostly for the three Buddhist figures from the Speelman collection.
To show their respect for this solemn occasion, Poly auction sent out their team to make an appearance in front of everybody before the auction began. The team made a hand gesture of Añjali Mudrā with the palms of their hands pressed together, and then took a bow. The auction house even arranged three auctioneers to take turns in this sale of only 11 lots.
The first Buddhist figure from the Speelman collection was a gilt bronze figure of Chakrasamvara, estimated at HK$22m-28m. Led by the auctioneer Lan Chen, the bidding started at HK$20m. The bidding atmosphere was getting heated and soon reached the price HK$40m. There were only two bidders staying in the bidding war. One of them was a gentleman in the room and the other one was a client of Zhao Xu (executive director of Poly Auction Hong Kong).
The two bidders alternatively offered higher bids. The bidding price went up to HK$52m, a bid made by the telephone bidder. The auctioneer asked for a higher bid and waited for a while.
In the end, the man in the room raised the bid to HK$53m. With his phone holding on his hand, Zhao Xu (image below) hesitated for a while and said, “You can have it.” The auctioneer then put his hammer down and the lot was sold for HK$62.5m with buyer’s premium.
Just when the next auctioneer Wan Hao was going to takeover, Zhao Xu, who was still on his phone, suddenly yelled, “It is not finished! Not yet hammered down!” Everybody in the room responded, “Hammered down already”, only then Zhao Xu came to realize the bidding war was over.
The second Buddhist figure from the Speelman collection was a gilt bronze figure of Yamantaka-vajrabhairava, which was the leading lot of the sale, carrying an estimate of HK$50m-70m. Led by the second auctioneer Wang Hao, the bidding began at HK$40m. To everyone’s astonishment, the second bidder raised the price to HK$90m. Everyone immediately took out their phones to take photos and record videos.
After a while, other bidders further pushed the price to HK$93m. The bid increments seemed to be back on the “normal” track but the next bid increment disrupted the pattern again. A bidder offered HK$100m straight away and the next bidder raised the bid to HK$110m.
The figure was hammered down at HK$112m and sold for HK$132m with buyer's premium. The successful bidder was a client of Albert Du, senior specialist of Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art (the one on the left in the front row).
The last figure Buddhist figure from the Speelman collection was a gilt bronze figure of Kapaladhara Hevajra, which carried an estimate of HK$25m. Led by the third auctioneer Sally Lin, the bidding started at HK$25m. There were mainly two bidders, one in the room and the other phone bidder represented by Zhao Xu. Two of them alternatively offered higher bids. The gentleman in the room made his moves almost without any hesitation while the latter one took longer time in considering whether to increase the bid. In the end, the winner was the telephone bidder. The figure was hammered down at HK$47m and sold for HK$55.4m with buyer’s premium.
Buddhist Sculptures from the Speelman Collection at Poly Auction (Hong Kong)
A GILT BRONZE FIGURE OF YAMANTAKA-VAJRABHAIRAVA, MARK AND PERIOD OF YONGLE, 1403-1424
Lot no.: 3206
Height: 20cm
Provenance:
- Christie’s London, 16th November 1977
- The Speelman Collection, UK
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 7th October 2006, Lot 812
Estimate: HK$50,000,000 - 70,000,000
Hammer price: HK$112,000,000
Price realized: HK$132,160,000
A GILT BRONZE FIGURE OF CHAKRASAMVARA, MARK AND PERIOD OF YONGLE, 1403-1424
Lot no.: 3204
Height: 21cm
Provenance:
- The Speelman Collection, UK
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 7th October 2006, Lot 810
Estimate: HK$22,000,000 - 28,000,000
Hammer price: HK$53,000,000
Price realized: HK$62,540,000
A GILT BRONZE FIGURE OF KAPALADHARA HEVAJRA, MARK AND PERIOD OF YONGLE, 1403-1424
Estimate: 3208
Height: 21.3cm
Provenance:
- The Speelman Collection, UK
- Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 7th October 2006, Lot 814
Estimate: HK$25,000,000 - 35,000,000
Hammer price: HK$47,000,000
Price realized: HK$55,460,000
(All prices realized have included buyer’s premium unless otherwise specified)
Auction details
Auction house: Poly Hong Kong Auction
Sale: Pure and Solemn – An Important Private Collection of Yongle Imperial Buddhist Sculptures
Venue: Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, Wan Chai
No. of lots: 11
Previewing: 2017/9/30 - 10/1
Auction: 2017/10/2｜4pm