Ancient letters auctioned for record 9.9 million yuan

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 ◆ Ancient letters auctioned for record 9.9 million yuan

A collection of letters written by important Chinese personalities during the Ming Dynasty has been sold for 9.9 million yuan (1.19 million US dollars) at an auction hosted by China Guardian Auction Co., Ltd., China's leading auctioneer.

The sale, reportedly made to a Chinese collector, was a record for rare ancient Chinese documents sold at auction.

The collection, which consists of more than 600 epistolary writings penned by over 400 noted personalities during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), paints a vivid picture of the political, economic and cultural aspects of life in China more than 400 years ago.

In addition, a piece of furniture said to belong to the imperial family in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) was sold for 9.4 million yuan (1.13 million US dollars) at the auction.

At present, China has 40 million collectors, and the transaction volume of antiques exceeds 5 billion yuan (more than 600 million US dollars) annually.