Art may well be created for art's sake, but sometimes it is bought with deep pockets and a generous sense of national pride. Sotheby's, the first auction house to be established in Hong Kong back in 1973, considers itself a 'repatriation channel' for treasures of Chinese heritage. Kevin Ching Sau-hong, who is the first Chinese chief executive of Sotheby's Asia, explained that buyers were now showing interest beyond traditional works of Chinese art such as imperial porcelain or ceramics.
'In recent sales, we have seen non-ceramic pieces such as those from the Qianlong [Qing dynasty] period including a jade sword and armour objects,' Mr Ching said. 'These and other objects were taken away by foreign powers during the sacking of the Summer Palace.' He said looted treasures and relics had become increasingly popular.
'When mainlanders got rich, they wanted to buy back a piece of history. It has to do with a sense of pride and patriotism,' he explained. 'They are works of historical significance, although they may not be artistically beautiful.'
Some of the more controversial pieces include bronze animal heads, designed by Jesuit missionaries and depicting the Chinese zodiac. The 12 heads formed part of an elaborate water clock fountain and the mainland government claims they were stolen by foreign troops during the second Opium war. In 2000, Sotheby's sold the tiger head amid protests in Hong Kong. Beijing's Poly Art Museum, an affiliate of the People's Liberation Army, bought the piece for HK$15million.
Macau tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun bought the boar head in a private sale three years later and it is now housed in the Poly Art Museum, along with the tiger, monkey and ox heads.
In October, he pre-empted the Sotheby's auction and purchased the horse head for HK$69 million. It wasn't the first time the casino mogul had donated newly purchased art to the mainland. Last year, he spent more than HK$28million on five lots of Reunification Art that were part of a private collection of 30 paintings and other works of art. The collection was first seen at an exhibition organised by the mainland's Ministry of Culture to commemorate Hong Kong's handover in 1997.
