Richmond Hill, ON – 888 Auctions concluded a very successful 2011 calendar year with a bang as its evening auction Imperial Chinese Jades and Works of Art brought in $302,579. Bidders from over 18 countries competed feverishly over the offering of 576 lots comprising Chinese ceramics, jade and shoushan stone carvings, and bronze-cast deities.

Although most of the focus was fixed on the important finely carved jades in the auction, bidders did not have to wait long to whet their appetite for Asian art with a group of exceptional paintings starting the evening. In a sign of good things to come, the paintings category alone had brought in over $22,000. Most notably, lot 34, a signed Chinese watercolour on paper paintings exceeded its estimate high and soared to $3,933.

From the wonderful collection of jade carvings, there were some very pleasant surprises. Coincidence or not, the number eight had quite a role to play as lot 179, a set of eight spinach green jade tablets marked with an incised reign mark of Qianlong, shattered its high estimate of $1,000 realizing $6,655 while lot 183, a set of eight Chinese spinach green square seals with the mark of Qianlong, brought in $3,327. Both lot 188, an important 18th Century Qing Dynasty imperial white jade seal and lot 189, four fine Chinese Hetian imperial jade pieces found their sale value at $7,260.

Many bidders have come to expect amazing value for a stunning collection of ceramics from 888 Auctions and the November auction was no exception. Starting modestly at $1,000, it quickly became apparent that for lot 295, a bidder war was to ensue. With the fall of the hammer, the large 19th Century Chinese jardinière painted in deep cobalt blue hues brought in $9,680.

Prominently displayed in the showroom during previews, lot 444 generated a great deal of excitement at the intricate and detailed cast figure of Amitayus. The rare and important Chinese gilt bronze figure was won by a regular bidder online finding its sale value at $33,880.

With a sell-through rate of over 60%, connoisseurs of Chinese art have realized they do not need to pay an arm and a leg for an authentic piece of Chinese art and antique at 888 Auctions.

888 Auctions is proud to announce its first auction of 2012, taking place on Thursday, January 12th, 2012. Preview in Richmond Hill begins Monday, January 9th – 12th. For consignment inquiries or additional information, please contact 888 Auctions at 905.763.7201 or by email at info@888auctions.com. For detailed post-auction results and hammer prices, please visit us at www.888auctions.com.