How Taiwan’s market for antique jade has been hit by souring ties with mainland China that cut tourist flow, and by a flagging global economy
- The value of Taiwan’s antique jade market is about a quarter what it was in the ‘boom years’ of Chinese tourism and the sector is awash with counterfeits
- Hong Kong tells a different story, with one expert pointing to a trend in which antique collectors are releasing long-cherished collections for auction
Running his hands over a palm-sized jade pig resting on its haunches, an antique trader in Taiwan says the ears on the nearly 400-year-old piece are a marker of its authenticity.
“The folds in the pig’s ears show the handiwork, the ancient handicraft” of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), says the 60-year-old trader, who would only provide his last name, Lee.
“It takes very careful carving. If it were [a duplicate], they wouldn’t make it that delicate and detailed.”
Lee’s shop in Taipei’s Da’an district holds ancient treasures worth more than a condominium located in the same neighbourhood.
The value of his merchandise represents just a fraction of an industry that the island’s jade association says brought in nearly US$16 million annually in recorded sales of antique jade before the coronavirus pandemic.