Tiny China porcelain bowl sells at $25.3M

A tiny porcelain bowl sold for $25.3 million during a bumper week of Chinese art sales in Hong Kong.

The ancient delicate bowl measured under 4.5 inches (11.4 centimeters) in diameter was described by the London-based auction house Sotheby’s as “highly important,” .

CNN said the antique bowl hailed from a rare group of ceramics decorated at Beijing’s imperial workshops in the 18th century. “It was produced during the time of the Yongzheng Emperor, who ruled China from 1722 to 1735 (though the enamel was likely painted shortly after his death),” according to CNN.

“It is part of a tradition known as ‘falangcai,’ or ‘foreign colors,’ a name given to porcelain originating from the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen but enameled by artisans in Beijing’s Forbidden City,” CNN added.

Fetching 198.2 million Hong Kong dollars ($25.3 million) on Saturday, the bowl depicts two swallows, a blooming apricot tree and a willow.

The design also features an excerpt from a poem thought to have been commissioned by Yongzheng’s Ming dynasty predecessor, the Wanli Emperor.