Chinese imperial treasures, including an emperor's seal and a scroll painting of military scenes, defied the slowing art market by fetching record prices at an auction house in Hong Kong, Takungpao reported.

"Qianlong yubi", the rare white jade seal from the court of Qing emperor Qianlong at Sotheby's Wednesday auction is shown in this file photo published on Thursday. [Photo: China News Service]

While the demand for Chinese contemporary art and 20th century art items has decreased due to the global financial crisis, the appetite for historical Chinese art remained strong at Sotheby's biannual auction in Hong Kong on Wednesday.

The highlight of the "Legacies of Imperial Power" auction was a white jade seal from the court of Emperor Qianlong, who ruled China for 60 years from 1736 to 1795. The seal is engraved with two coiled dragons with flaring nostrils and horns symbolizing power and vigor, and bearing the words "Qianlong yubi" (in the imperial hand of Qianlong). The piece was sold for a record HK$63.4 million.

The seal, removed from the 'Hall of Imperial Longevity' in Beijing's Forbidden City in 1900, was one of eight jade seals from the estate of French industrialist Emile Guimet, and all found buyers.

Another highlight was a 15-metre hand scroll commissioned by Emperor Qianlong to show him leading 16,000 troops in a parade. The scroll went for HK$67.86 million, a world record for a Qing painting, but well shy of a pre-sale estimate of US$HK80 million.

Due to the impact the global financial crisis on the Chinese art market, numerous categories of artworks including jewelry, Chinese imperial ceramics, Chinese contemporary art and 20th century paintings, remained unsold as global buyers and collectors sat on the sidelines.

Nicolas Chow, Sotheby's global head of Chinese ceramics and art works said the results "illustrate the growing interest in unique historical works of art and are a testament to the demand for objects which reflect ... the Chinese imperial past."

Sotheby said it sold HK$1.1 billion (US$141.6 million) worth of Asian art in its biannual sales in Hong Kong, around half the expected total.