In a sign of the continuing strength of the Asian market, Sotheby’s series of October sales in Hong Kong netted a record-shattering $HK3.08 billion ($400 million) as serious competition for rare, museum-quality Chinese objects sent the auction tallies soaring. Buyers from China's mainland dominated the salesrooms to such an extent that some wondered whether there was enough supply to meet the spiking demand for historic Asian objects. Western art offered to test the market's embraciveness, however, was largely overlooked. 

><br>>

On Wednesday, a Qianlong imperial white jade "Xintian Zhuren" seal featuring a pair of dragons set a world record for white jade when it fetched HK$121.6 million ($16 million), over four times its high estimate of HK$30 million. Then Thursday’s sale saw its own new record for the most expensive Chinese art object ever sold at auction: a Qianlong yellow-ground famille-rose double-gourd vase from an English collection that sold for HK$253 million ($32.4 million), achieving over five times its high estimate of HK$50 million. It was purchased by Hong Kong collector Alice Cheng, who said that "as long you like something, even if it’s expensive, it’s worth it."

><br>>

Cheng also found something to like on Friday, engaging in a two-way bidding war for a Qing dynasty vase that she finally acquired for HK$80 million ($10.3 million), according to the Global Times. The Qianlong period continued to inspire bidders’ passion, with an exquisite famille-rose floral medallion bottle vase from the imperial era fetching close to HK$141 million ($18.1 million), over twice its low estimate of HK$60 million.

><br>>

According to Reuters, half the series' top lots were bought by mainland Chinese, due to what Sotheby’s Asia CEO Kevin Ching described as "desperate, desperate hunger for objects of great quality." Traditional Chinese paintings also achieved stunning results, reflecting the shortage of Chinese classical works available on the market. Strong performance from sales of jewels, watches, and fine wine showed Asian collectors’ wide interests and their ongoing search for ways to display — and invest — their wealth.

The demand is so intense that some sellers worry about running out of stock in traditional art, according to the Wall Street Journal. One art dealer told the paper that the "Chinese appetite for Chinese art is totally unprecedented... remorseless, relentless," adding that gallerists "have to be extremely astute and clever to find works" of the level buyers have demonstrated interest in.

><br>>

While Sotheby’s set records for traditional Chinese art and objects, just next door, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, newcomer Seoul Auctions achieved the highest price ever for the sale of a work of Western modern art in China when a late Chagall painting fetched HK$28.5 million ($3.7 million), despite lackluster performances by other works in the auction. While some Chinese collectors have decided to test the waters of Western works of art, it is clear that objects attesting to the long tradition of the country's imperial past — and more recent economic ascent — continue to command the most attention from buyers.