A Chinese painting dating back to 1924, and it was said to be worth at least $ 45 million, failed to be auctioned off Monday evening in Hong Kong.
And auction house “Christie’s” offered “Slave and Lion” painting by Chinese artist Xu Beihong for sale after weeks of promotion, but no one has bought it.
The auction opened at 260 million HK dollars (about 33 million US dollars) and raised the price to 320 million HK dollars (about 41 million US dollars) within seven minutes, before ending the bid without closing the sale.
Christie’s issued a press release quickly about the non-sale, then quickly retracted it and said that a new statement would be issued soon.
The painting, which depicts a slave hiding in a cave and a lion, is based on ancient Roman myths and the myths of Aesop, according to “Christie’s”.
Xu Beihong often used the lion in his works to embody his belief in the rise of the Chinese nation.
Source: A.B.