A glass vase that an American man bought for about 5,000 won at a second-hand store was later discovered to be the work of a famous artist, and was sold at an auction for about 140 million won.
According to the American daily New York Times (NYT) on the 17th (local time), a glass vase exhibited at Wright Auction House last week was sold to a European private collector for $107,000 (about 140 million won).
The bidder who put this vase up for auction was Jessica Vincent (43). While browsing a used goods store in Hanover County, Virginia, USA last June, he found a vase that caught his eye.
Vincent said, “When I saw the letter ‘M’, which stands for Murano Island, the home of Italian glass craft, stamped on the bottom of the vase, I got the feeling that it would be worth 1,000 to 2,000 dollars (approximately 1.3 to 2.6 million won),” adding, “$8.99.” “I was going to buy it if it was cheaper than (about 12,000 won), but the price happened to be $3.99 (about 5,180 won), so I bought it right away,” he explained.
Afterwards, Vincent learned more about this vase. Some forum members said that this vase looked like a piece by Carlo Scarpa, so they connected Vincent to Wright Auction House, and received an appraisal result that said this vase was one of the ‘Fenelate’ series designed by Scarpa in the 1940s.
An official from Wright Auction House said, “I had a very good feeling as soon as I saw the picture of the vase. “If the vase had any scratches, the winning bid would have been less than $10,000 (approximately 13 million won), but the vase that Vincent brought was in perfect condition,” he said.
Vincent said, “I received $83,500 (approximately 108.5 million won) from the winning bid, excluding auction fees,” and said he plans to use the money to repair the heater and fence of the farmhouse he purchased earlier this year and buy home appliances. .
Song Chi-hoon,
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.