Sotheby's Hong Kong is holding an auction on April 29 to sell some 300 items of Chinese ceramics, works of art and emperor Qianlong's stationery, altogether estimated at HK$200 million.

At the press briefing on Tuesday, Sotheby's Hong Kong introduced to the reporters part of the items. Among the some 140 items of emperor Qianlong's stationery, the one with the highest estimated price, HK$7,000,000 to 9,000,000, is a soapstone seal which was masterfully carved with a mythical animal. It was used on a number of calligraphy that once belonged to the emperor, how housed in the Palace Museum in Beijing.

Other stationery include a carved and inscribed shell-shaped white jade cup, estimated HK$5,000,000 to 7,000,000, and an extremely rare inscribed green jade mountain, estimated HK$6,000,000 to 8,000,000, were also shown.

Some of the finest and very rare pieces of imperial porcelain will also be found in the auction. They include a pair of superbly enameled double gourd vases with dense foliage pattern from the late Qianlong period, estimated HK$6,000,000. The pair has got a dense bouquet of mixed flowers including peonies, roses, lotuses and daisies were finely enameled which displayed a myriad of pastel colors.
 
(Xinhua News Agency March 31, 2004)