Lacquered Fengshi-style Jingtao qin

Auctioned by Bonhams in Hong Kong for HK$9.9 million

This Jingtao qin instrument, which is estimated to date back to the 10th century or earlier, was highlighted as an important lot at Bonhams’ Elegant Gatherings - The Social Art of Chinese Scholars sale due to its provenance and unique lacquerwork. Once the property of Li Zizhao – the most respected qin musician of the 1920s and 1930s – it was probably one of the only two known instruments he owned and played often, and his only antique instrument. The qin’s complex network of crackle lacquering, ranging from snake-belly crackles and ice crackles across its surface, can rarely be found on qin later than the Song dynasty.