FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE 29 November 2021
L&H AUCTION CONCLUDED ITS AUTUMN
SALE 2021 ON 27 NOV
VINTAGE PU’ER TEA AND PREMIUM
TEA AUCTION
Quintessential Hao- and Yin-Grade Pu’er
Tea Cake Led the Sale
Unprecedented and Extremely Rare-
A Stack of ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake, before 1917
Hammer price: HKD 13,800,000
(Estimate: HKD 6,800,000 - 12,800,000)
Set the
auction record for the most expensive ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake
L&H
Auction, the pioneering international premium pu’er tea auction house, concluded
its Autumn Sale 2021 on 27 November. Thanks
to the support from seasoned and new collectors, the selections of the sales
were well-responded, of which the sale of Vintage Pu’er Tea and Premium Tea saw particularly
active bidding in the room, on the telephone and online. Pre-eminent Hao-
and Yin-grade pu’er tea cakes led the sale – A Stack of ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake, Before 1917
sold for a hammer price of HKD13.8 million* above the high estimate, while Eight
Pieces of Blue Mark Pu-er Tea Cake, Circa 1950s sold for a hammer price of HKD3.2
million. Teas from the 1970s to 1980s also achieved impressive results Two Stacks of 8582 Pu-er Tea Cake in Thick Wrapping, Circa
Late Mid 1980s sold for a hammer price of HKD2.3 million, and A Stack of 7572
Pu-er Tea Cake from The First Batch, Circa Mid 1970s sold for a hammer price of
HKD1.2 million. The sales of Teawares and Agarwood and Delicacies and
Moutai Wine were also held on the same day.
Mr Henry Chau, CEO
and Founder of L&H Auction says, “I am grateful for the participation and support from collectors
and tea lovers. Without their active
bidding in the room, over the telephone and online, we would not have completed
this season with flying colours. The
highlight of this season, A Stack of ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake, sold for a
hammer price of HKD13.8 million above the high estimate. The price was a new high
for ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake, and set the auction record for the most
expensive ‘Song Pin Hao’ Pu-er Tea Cake.
We are also proud to see that our meticulously-selected offerings were
welcomed by the market, which is a testament to the continued demand for
premium vintage pu’er tea cakes, and collectors’ trust in L&H. Going
forward, we will continue to amass an even wider varieties of premium Chinese
teas with high investment value; and we also invite collectors in the region to
consign with us for the seasons to come.”
*Prices do not include buyer’s premium
Sales Highlights
Lot 129 A Stack of Unprecedented and Extremely Rare
'SONG PIN HAO' Pu-er Tea Cake, Before 1917
Weight: 2,335g
Est: HKD 6,800,000 -
12,800,000
Hammer price: 13,800,000
This ‘Song Pin Hao’ as known as ‘Emperor of Tea” was first seen in the market. After aging for over a century, this stack of pu-er tea cakes are in the perfect condition and wrapped in the original bamboo shells. they are scented with the natural wood aroma with a fragrance of herbal medicine.
Lot 162 Eight Pieces of Blue Mark Pu-er Tea
Cake, Circa 1950s
The Blue Mark Pu-er tea cakes are commonly wrapped in handmade Yunnan cotton paper, inscribed with its categorical characters but its trademark ticket does not specify its production location. The raw materials used to produce the limited Blue Mark Pu-er tea cakes were harvested from the six great tea mountains in the Menghai County of Xishuangbanna. This category of tea is generally believed to be a product of the Xiaguan Tea Factory around the 1950s. The surface of the tea cake is slightly curved, reminiscence of the shape of a bowl and exhibits the color of a dark luminosity. This lot is preserved in the traditional storage of Hong Kong.
Lot 130 Ten Pieces of Blue Mark Pu-er Tea
Cake, Circa 1950s/1960s
Lot 125 Seven Pieces of Green Mark Pu-er Tea Cake, Circa 1950s
These seven pieces of tea cake are the Green Mark Pu-er Tea cakes, sharing the similar marks with the Red and Blue Marks, aged for over seventy years and preserved in the perfect condition. The Green Mark Pu-er Tea Cakes are the highlight of pu-er tea produced by Menghai Tea Factory in the 1950s. These tea cakes are composed of wide range of tea leaves, in order to create diverse flavors, including aromas of orchid and camphor.
Lot 119 Two Stacks of 8582 Pu-er Tea Cake in Thick Wrapping, Circa Late Mid
1980s
Weight: around 2,438g
Est: HKD 700,000
- 1,200,000
Hammer price: 2,300,000
Lot 126 Two Pieces of Red Mark Pu-er Tea Cake, Circa 1950s
Weight: around 321g,
341g
Est: HKD 1,200,000 - 2,000,000
The shape of the tea leaf appears to be plumped with fullness and inhibits a shiny exterior, the brewed tea delicately fragranced and of a precious golden tone in color. The Red Mark Pu-er Tea Cake has been through over six decades of the naturalistic aging process, the rarity of which is well-documented with the passage of time.
Lot 122 A Stack of 7572 Pu-er Tea Cake from
The First Batch, Circa Mid 1970s
Weight: around 2,282g
Est: HKD 900,000 - 1,500,000
Hammer price: 1,200,000
The
first and only batch of 7572 Pu-er Tea Cakes is experimental. However, after
aging of several decades, the aged 7572 Pu-er Tea Cakes taste sweet and soft
with a slight medicine fragrance. This lot is preserved in the natural but
partially dry storage.
Lot 326 A Japanese Gold Teapot with Taotie Pattern
This teapot is crafted with pure gold, with a flat teapot mouth, a narrow neck, broad shoulders, a bulging belly, and an arched lid with a mushroom-cap-shaped finial. The main body of the teapot is fully carved with the pattern of Taotie in low relief from the body up to the finial. Underneath the decoration of Taotie, the artisan carved the dense ground pattern, while the rim of the lid is adorned with a circle of thunder pattern of ancient bronze wares, which is adding another layer of majesty to the Taotie pattern.
H: 20.5cm; W: 16.5cm;
Weight: around 1,220g
Est：HKD 1,000,000-1,800,000
Hammer price: 1,200,000
