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Auctions

Auctions
Reporting on the latest auctions of luxury goods, including watches, handbags, high jewellery and fine art
Labubu toys are a phenomenon and now Pharrell Williams’ Joopiter site will auction a Sacai-dressed special edition in collaboration with K-pop band Seventeen. Photo: EPA-EFE
Fashion

Labubu mania is hitting new heights, fuelled by auctions of special editions

Manufactured in China by Pop Mart, the figures have made waves the world over, with a four-foot-high model sold in Beijing for over one million yuan.

Art Basel

Art auctions see millennials, Gen-Z, snap up Asian art, blue-chip artists

Art

Record prices at auction for Hong Kong-designed Labubu figurines

Fashion

Bidding frenzy likely at auction of the first ever Hermès Birkin bag

Designed for actress Jane Birkin by Hermès, the first Birkin bag will be auctioned by Sotheby’s in July. No reserve price has been announced.

The original Birkin bag created for actress Jane Birkin by Hermès. Photo: Sotheby’s
Hong Kong society

‘L1KE’ beats ‘L0VE’? Hong Kong romantics pay top dollar for prized number plates

Auction also sees ‘2 P00R’ number plate sold for a couple thousand dollars more than ‘WEALTHY’.

High Jewellery

Why auction houses are curating their jewellery collections for investment value

Storied brands and rare gems that blend heritage with vibrant aesthetics are enticing collectors on the hunt for solid investments.

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Masterpieces

In the world of coloured gemstones, pink is the new must-have

Rare pink gemstones are fast becoming the darlings of luxury jewellery as the colour is linked to spirituality and creativity, something that resonates with consumers seeking deeper meaning.

The Fortune Pink – an exceptionally rare 18.18-carat gemstone – sold to a private Asian collector for US$28.8 million at Christie’s Geneva in November 2022. Photo: AFP
Architecture and design

Scotch whisky brand The Dalmore redefines culture through art and design

Foster and Partners’ Ben Dobbin, who led the redevelopment of San Francisco’s famed Transamerica Pyramid, was the designer behind The Dalmore’s sculptural project this year.

Timepieces

7 timepiece moments from March and April 2025

Despite the industry entering uncertain territory amid Trump’s swingeing tariffs, watch aficionados can still count on stylish new pieces from Audemars Piguet, Breguet, MB&F and more.

Art

Q&A | How this artist transforms historical Chinese symbolism into paintings

New York-based Dominique Fung speaks about her creative journey, Empress Dowager Cixi, and why she wants audiences to leave her show feeling expansive.

Artist Dominique Fung at the Massimo de Carlo gallery in Tai Kwun, Hong Kong. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
Hong Kong property

Chinese actress Zhao Wei’s former Hong Kong home fails to sell at an auction

Zhao and her husband bought a 3,494 sq ft duplex at The Westminster Terrace in Tsuen Wan in 2012 for HK$72 million.

The Westminster Terrace in Tsuen Wan, where Chinese actress Vicki Zhao Wei and her former husband Huang Youlong owned a duplex flat. Photo: Google Maps
Hong Kong

Sotheby’s calls last-minute halt to Hong Kong auction of Buddha relics

Sale by family of 19th century British engineer of ‘duplicates’ of sacred relics he found in India called illegal by Indian government.

Art

Liu Dan’s Chinese ink art with Western influences on show in Hong Kong

Known for his paintings of rocks, 72-year-old who fuses Chinese and Western artistic practices presents 26 works at Phillips auction house.

France

Napoleon’s sword to be sold at auction in Paris

The sabre, which the French emperor kept throughout his reign, is expected to fetch up to US$1.1 million when it goes under the hammer.

This photograph taken in Paris on Friday shows details of the last sword that belonged to French Emperor Napoleon. Photo: AFP
Books and literature

To buy or not to buy? Sotheby’s puts Shakespeare’s folios under the hammer

For the first time since 1898, Shakespeare’s First, Second, Third and Fourth Folios will be auctioned in a single lot – by Sotheby’s London on May 23.

For the first time since 1898, Shakespeare’s First, Second, Third and Fourth Folios will be auctioned in a single lot – by Sotheby’s London on May 23. The auction house estimates the sale price at up to US$6 million. Photo: Sotheby’s via AP
History

Titanic passenger’s pocket watch tipped for US$66,000 sale

Recovered from the icy North Atlantic after the 1912 disaster, the ladies’ timepiece is going under the hammer in the UK.

Art

Korean golden seal smashes presale estimate, sells for US$13.9 million

Record-setting price paid for seal given by China’s Jin dynasty to a nobleman of Korea’s Goguryeo kingdom in China Guardian’s Hong Kong sale.

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Art

Christie’s and Sotheby’s Hong Kong auctions underwhelm as sales hit 6-year low

The world’s leading auction houses made a combined US$89.2 million, the lowest since autumn 2018, according to data from ArtTactic.

“Grotto” by Nicholas Party is shown during the media preview on March 20, ahead of Sotheby’s Hong Kong auction. Photo: Nora Tam
Art Basel

Seeing double: Picasso’s works at 2 major exhibitions in Hong Kong

Explore the Spanish artist’s influence on Asian art at M+ with works like Portrait of Dora Maar on show, while Phillips offers the rare opportunity to buy a piece such as Taureau this Arts Month.

Art Basel

Beyond Art Basel 2025: 5 events to check out during Hong Kong Art Week

The city’s art fans are spoiled for choice this Art Months: as well as Art Basel, there’s Art Central and 1880 Hong Kong, plus events at Sotheby’s, Pacific Place, The Upper House and Hong Kong Arts Centre.

Law

23andMe’s bankruptcy puts 15 million users’ DNA data on auction block

23andMe has proposed an auction in May for the sale of its assets, which include the genetic data of more than 15 million customers.

The 23andMe headquarters in Sunnyvale, California. Photo: AFP
Art

Art sold at auction hits 15-year low, led by plunge in China market

A 63 per cent drop in art auction proceeds in China contributed to a one-third fall in global sales in 2024, to the lowest total since 2009.

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The value of Picassos auctioned in 2024, a bellwether of the art market, was US$223 million compared to US$597 million a year earlier, when one of the big-ticket sales was of the Spanish artist’s Femme á la montre (above) at Sotheby’s. Photo: AFP
Art

Rare Banksy painting, owned by blink-182’s Mark Hoppus, heads to London auction

Crude Oil (Vettriano) is Banksy’s reimagining of 1992 painting The Singing Butler by Scottish artist Jack Vettriano, who died on Monday.

Technology

Opinion | Rather than resist AI art, Asia is embracing its future

While protests rage from New York to London, artists from China and Japan to India and Singapore are using AI to better their craft.

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Art

This sculpture was lost for a century – then auctioned for millions

Camille Claudel, a lover and muse of French sculptor Auguste Rodin, created the sculpture in the late 19th century – it was recently discovered in an abandoned flat.

A bronze sculpture by French artist Camille Claudel sold at auction for over US$3.2 million in mid-February. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong economy

Buyers quick off mark as Hong Kong car plates ‘S’ and ‘88’ go for millions

‘S’ plate, a rare single-letter registration mark, fetches HK$14.2 million while “88” makes HK$11.4 million.

The single letter “S” plate had an opening price of just HK$5,000. Photo: Handout
Classical music

Stradivarius violin could become most expensive music instrument ever sold

‘Joachim-Ma Stradivarius’ – which could fetch up to US$18 million – is named for two famed owners including late Chinese virtuoso Ma Si-Hon.

Special Report - Jewellery

High time: it takes savoir faire to make a true haute joaillerie watch

Haute joaillerie timepieces blend watchmaking prowess with fine jewellery artistry, setting such exemplars apart from more everyday gem-set pieces.

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