Home / Arts and Entertainment / Garage Sale Find Sells for $2 Million!
Garage Sale Find Sells for $2 Million!
24 Sep
Summary
- A Buddhist sculpture bought for about $75-100 sold for $2.06 million.
- The gilt-bronze figure depicts Cintamanicakra Avalokiteshvara, dating to late Tang.
- Sotheby's New York auction saw a seven-minute bidding war for the art.
A Buddhist sculpture, initially acquired for approximately $75-100 at a garage sale, has since realized an extraordinary $2.06 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York. The artwork, a gilt-bronze figure representing Cintamanicakra Avalokiteshvara, a form of the Chinese Buddhist deity Avalokiteshvara, is estimated to date from the late Tang Dynasty or the Five Dynasties period. The sculpture was presented at an auction of Important Chinese Art, which was part of Sotheby's Asia Week sales series.
This remarkable piece entered the auction with a pre-sale estimate of $60,000-80,000. The auction house reported that the bidding process for the sculpture lasted an intense seven minutes, culminating in its sale for a staggering $2,060,000. This outcome significantly surpassed expectations and highlights the immense value found in unexpected places.
The sale of the Cintamanicakra Avalokiteshvara was among several high-profile successes during Sotheby's March 2019 Asia Week events in New York. Other notable items included a rare complete set of the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment, which sold for $2.66 million, and a white jade brushpot from the Qing Dynasty, also fetching $2.06 million. A collection of Chinese jade from The Art Institute of Chicago further contributed, achieving $3.2 million.
