In 2010, a family clearing an ordinary London-area home found an 18th-century Chinese vase in the attic; it later stunned the auction world at £53 million

In 2010, a family clearing an ordinary London-area home found an 18th-century Chinese vase in the attic; it later stunned the auction world at £53 million. The discovery involved a brother and sister who were clearing their parents' home in Pinner, North West London. What appeared to be an old piece of porcelain turned out to be a Qianlong-era Chinese vase. It had a history that included a television appearance, a mistaken valuation, decades of storage and a major auction. The vase later became linked to the highest auction price recorded for a Chinese artwork at the time.

A vase that spent decades unnoticed

The story of the Pinner Qing Dynasty Vase began long before the 2010 auction. The porcelain vase had been in the family home for decades. Its owners had once shown it on a BBC antique programme during the 1970s.


The programme was Going for a Song, which came before the BBC's Antiques Roadshow. The vase was examined during the show, but the expert reportedly considered it a reproduction.

The family was told that the object was worth about £800. The assessment meant that the owners did not treat it as a valuable Chinese antique. Instead, the vase remained in the home. Over time, it was placed on a bookcase and later moved to the attic. It stayed there for about 40 years.

This part of the story became important after the 2010 discovery because the vase had already been examined publicly but was not identified correctly at that time.

In 2010, a family clearing an ordinary London-area home found an 18th-century Chinese vase in the attic; it later stunned the auction world at £53 million

The vase came back into focus after the original owners died. Their relatives began clearing the Pinner property. During the process, the brother and sister decided to ask local auctioneers to examine objects that had been left in the house. The Chinese vase immediately attracted attention from specialists.

Experts determined that it was not a reproduction. They identified it as an imperial porcelain piece from the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, dating to around 1740. The difference between the old valuation and the new assessment was significant. The earlier television valuation had placed its worth at about £800.

Bainbridges Auction House later estimated it at between £800,000 and £1.2 million. Specialists identified it as a Qianlong-period imperial Chinese vase. Its final auction price reached £43 million before additional costs. With fees and taxes, the reported total reached £53.1 million, or about $83 million. The discovery turned the Pinner vase into a major auction story.

Why the Chinese porcelain was difficult to make?

The vase was not an ordinary porcelain object. It had a double-walled structure. The outside featured a reticulated lattice pattern. Through the openings in the outer layer, viewers could see a separate inner vase. The inner section was decorated with fish motifs. This construction required a complex manufacturing process.

Both the outer and inner sections had to be fired in the imperial kilns. They needed to remain separate during firing. If the two sections fused together, the piece could not be completed as intended. The process also carried a high risk of failure. The construction is one reason experts regarded the vase as an important example of Qing Dynasty porcelain production.

The Qianlong period is associated with porcelain made for the Chinese imperial court. Objects produced during this period included pieces that required specialist skills and complex kiln techniques. The Pinner vase therefore had value not only because of its age but also because of its construction, decoration and connection to the imperial kilns.

The auction estimate was only the beginning

Bainbridges Auction House placed an estimate of £800,000 to £1.2 million on the vase before the sale. That figure was already far above the £800 valuation given decades earlier. However, the auction produced a result that went far beyond the estimate. The sale took place in November 2010. Bidding continued for about 30 minutes.

A number of wealthy Chinese buyers had been seeking Chinese artworks and objects that had left China. This demand was linked to efforts by collectors to acquire and repatriate Chinese national treasures.

The Pinner vase became part of this market. The bidding eventually reached £43 million at the hammer. After auction fees and taxes were included, the reported amount reached £53.1 million, equal to about $83 million. The result was reported as a record price for a Chinese artwork sold at auction at the time.

The brother and sister who had offered the vase for sale were present for the dramatic auction. The scale of the bidding reportedly overwhelmed the sister, who left the room to get some fresh air.

The £53.1 million sale did not end the story

The auction result appeared to be the end of the story, but the transaction later became complicated. The Chinese billionaire who had won the auction reportedly refused to pay the buyer's premium. The buyer's premium was reported at £8.6 million. Because the additional payment was not made, the sale did not proceed as expected. The vase was then kept in a secure vault for more than two years.

The development changed the nature of the record-breaking sale. Although the auction had produced a hammer price of £43 million and a reported total of £53.1 million, the original winning bidder did not complete the transaction under the expected terms. The vase later became the subject of another deal.

A private sale followed years after the auction

The Independent later reported that another buyer from the Far East acquired the vase. The second transaction was completed through a private treaty deal rather than another public auction. The reported price was estimated at between £20 million and £25 million.

The identity of the buyer was not publicly disclosed in the reports supplied about the sale. This meant the vase had two separate chapters after its discovery. The first was the 2010 auction, where bidding reached £43 million. The second was the later private transaction after the original buyer failed to complete the purchase.

What made the Pinner discovery unusual?

The story combined several elements that rarely appear together in the antique market.

• First, the object had spent decades inside a private home.
• Second, it had already appeared on television but had been identified as a reproduction.
• Third, the family had kept it for years without knowing its potential value.
• Fourth, experts later identified its connection to the Qianlong period and imperial Chinese porcelain.
• Finally, the object attracted international buyers when it was offered at auction.

Key facts about the vase

• Location of discovery: Pinner, North West London
• Discovery: During a family house clearance
• Period: Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty
• Approximate date: Around 1740
• Material: Porcelain
• Structure: Double-walled vase
• Outer design: Reticulated lattice
• Inner decoration: Fish motifs
• Earlier valuation: About £800
• 2010 auction estimate: £800,000 to £1.2 million
• Hammer price: £43 million
• Reported total with fees and taxes: £53.1 million
• Later reported private sale: About £20 million to £25 million

Why the story still draws attention?

The Pinner vase became an example of how an object kept in an ordinary house can later attract attention from the international art market. Its journey began with a television assessment in the 1970s. It then spent decades inside a family home before being placed in an attic.

The discovery in 2010 changed its status. Specialists identified its period and construction, and the vase was sent to auction. The £53.1 million reported auction total made the Chinese vase a subject of international interest. The later dispute over the buyer's premium added another chapter.

The eventual private treaty sale meant that the vase continued to attract interest even after the original auction transaction failed. The story of this Chinese vase, Qianlong vase, and Pinner auction remains associated with the wider history of valuable objects found in private homes.