Now more protected, ancient calligraphy soars at auction

A calligraphy masterpiece nearly 1,000 years old by poet and artist Huang Tingjian set a new record at a Chinese art auction in early June.

Sold for 436.8 million yuan at the Beijing Spring Auction, the 15-m-long scroll has two parts, with nearly 600 characters composed by Huang filling more than a half of the total scroll length and rest comprised of added comments.

The sale far surpassed the previous record of 169.12 million yuan set in 2009 for a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) painting and also broke the international auction record of 230 million yuan for a blue and white porcelain vase set in London five years ago.