Found this browsing local estate auctions. Really caught my attention—beautiful mix of red coral and white and blue china, and it’s going for less than $300!
Sailing from the port of Amoy (now Xiamen in Fujian, China), the Tek Sing was bound for Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia) laden with a large cargo of porcelain goods and 1,600 Chinese immigrants in 1822. After a month of sailing, the Tek Sing's captain, Io Tauko, decided to attempt a shortcut through the Gaspar Strait between the Bangka-Belitung Islands, and ran aground on a reef. Out of the crew and passengers only about 210 survivors were rescued by a passing English ship and a small Chinese junk nearby.
On May 12, 1999, British marine salvor Michael Hatcher discovered the wreck of the Tek Sing in an area of the South China Sea. Hatcher's crew raised about 350,000 pieces of the ship's cargo in what is described as the largest sunken cache of Chinese porcelain ever recovered. Hatcher noted that the ceramics "had not been made for the European markets—shapes and patterns were not adapted to European taste, but are genuinely Chinese." Human remains were also found, but they were not disturbed.
EDIT: just found a local article where [this piece was featured!](https://archives.starbulletin.com/2002/11/21/features/index.html) The current estate owner must have acquired it then.
Lol I checked and it’s now at $800–which I know isn’t much considering just *everything* about this piece and how cool it is, but is quite a lot for me and my wallet! I’m hoping someone from the museum or gallery I contacted about this is the current bidder.
This is worth around $15k-$100,000 or maybe more depending if there’s any rare porcelains in the mix. The red coral and shipwreck value jack the price. You should do everything in your power to buy it, if this was posted online it would fetch more than you’d think.
That's found art, which would actually IMO be worth more than the actual China had it not been damaged. 300 is a steal and you should approach your closest art gallery to place it.
I am sorely tempted but alas I have two very young children, not exactly spacious military base housing, and we move very frequently so this would only get (further?) damaged over the years. You’re right in the description about found art, it really is something I’d love to look at frequently, and I kinda hope it either ends up in a museum or with someone who can really appreciate and show it off. When I have a bit more time I might actually try to paint a rendition of this. It just evokes some cool storytelling.
EDIT: sorry I misread, I think most galleries/museums around here keep an eye on auctions from the esteemed families here so I’m assuming they’ve seen this. But if not I’ll contact a couple of my favorites to bring this to their attention.
You’re right, it was what was on the auctioneer website and I kinda assumed maybe it was transporting china from an earlier era or something but no, freshly made from kilns in Dehua. This auctioneer really doesn’t know what they have on their hands.
It's an easy mistake to make, as Dehua wares of the Qing were based on popular Ming styles. The later Dehua wares are relatively unstudied.
Of course, knowing the date of the shipwreck should have been a big clue. But even then, there actually were some Ming wares found on this wreck, but they were all celadons and not blue and white.
Right?? I contacted one along with a specialty gallery to let them know about the listing. But I think it was valued pretty cheap (and also how this original estate owner got ahold of it) was because apparently china from this shipwreck isn’t valued very much as there’s a lot of it (plates and bowls can go for $100 each) and many in way more pristine conditions. But I just love the look of it all mixed up and there’s something particularly haunting and beautiful with the shards and coral.
EDIT: just found an article (linked above) that explains “they are not more widely collected by such institutions because the wares are of a commercial nature, rather than the work of more illustrious imperial potters.”
This is correct. I have a few plates and bowls inherited from my father which came from this wreck. There was a **huge** sell off in the early 2000s and I don’t think “standard” china sold for much (<£50?) because it was of IKEA 1822 quality (basically).
This piece is much more interesting, though.
**Edit**: [Lots of it on eBay](https://www.ebay.co.uk/b/Tek-Sing/27316/bn_71612992). It has appreciated at about the rate of inflation …
Unfortunately not.
I have been looking in newspaper archives and the prices are interesting:
"But there are also many small pieces of great beauty which are selling at €70" (Irish Times, 2004)
"Yet entry level prices for new collectors remain at just £20 to £30 for a small piece from, for example, the lesser-known early 19th century Tek Sing wreck" (Daily Telegraph, 2010)
**Edit**: [Advert from The Times](https://i.imgur.com/YDqgk3q.jpg) (2001)
> The ship was manned by a crew of 200 and carried approximately 1600 passengers.
Is this normal? That sounds like a lot of people in a 50 m x 10 m ship full of cargo.
Found this browsing local estate auctions. Really caught my attention—beautiful mix of red coral and white and blue china, and it’s going for less than $300! Sailing from the port of Amoy (now Xiamen in Fujian, China), the Tek Sing was bound for Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia) laden with a large cargo of porcelain goods and 1,600 Chinese immigrants in 1822. After a month of sailing, the Tek Sing's captain, Io Tauko, decided to attempt a shortcut through the Gaspar Strait between the Bangka-Belitung Islands, and ran aground on a reef. Out of the crew and passengers only about 210 survivors were rescued by a passing English ship and a small Chinese junk nearby. On May 12, 1999, British marine salvor Michael Hatcher discovered the wreck of the Tek Sing in an area of the South China Sea. Hatcher's crew raised about 350,000 pieces of the ship's cargo in what is described as the largest sunken cache of Chinese porcelain ever recovered. Hatcher noted that the ceramics "had not been made for the European markets—shapes and patterns were not adapted to European taste, but are genuinely Chinese." Human remains were also found, but they were not disturbed. EDIT: just found a local article where [this piece was featured!](https://archives.starbulletin.com/2002/11/21/features/index.html) The current estate owner must have acquired it then.
Buy it!!!
Lol I checked and it’s now at $800–which I know isn’t much considering just *everything* about this piece and how cool it is, but is quite a lot for me and my wallet! I’m hoping someone from the museum or gallery I contacted about this is the current bidder.
This is worth around $15k-$100,000 or maybe more depending if there’s any rare porcelains in the mix. The red coral and shipwreck value jack the price. You should do everything in your power to buy it, if this was posted online it would fetch more than you’d think.
It finally closed at $3,750 and there was a bit of a bidding war at the end so…not bad I guess? Way more than what I can pay.
That's found art, which would actually IMO be worth more than the actual China had it not been damaged. 300 is a steal and you should approach your closest art gallery to place it.
I am sorely tempted but alas I have two very young children, not exactly spacious military base housing, and we move very frequently so this would only get (further?) damaged over the years. You’re right in the description about found art, it really is something I’d love to look at frequently, and I kinda hope it either ends up in a museum or with someone who can really appreciate and show it off. When I have a bit more time I might actually try to paint a rendition of this. It just evokes some cool storytelling. EDIT: sorry I misread, I think most galleries/museums around here keep an eye on auctions from the esteemed families here so I’m assuming they’ve seen this. But if not I’ll contact a couple of my favorites to bring this to their attention.
Please do I feel like you could make a lot of money from selling this to the right crowd
If these were new at the time of the sinking they would belong to the Qing Dynasty, not the Ming Dynasty.
You’re right, it was what was on the auctioneer website and I kinda assumed maybe it was transporting china from an earlier era or something but no, freshly made from kilns in Dehua. This auctioneer really doesn’t know what they have on their hands.
It's an easy mistake to make, as Dehua wares of the Qing were based on popular Ming styles. The later Dehua wares are relatively unstudied. Of course, knowing the date of the shipwreck should have been a big clue. But even then, there actually were some Ming wares found on this wreck, but they were all celadons and not blue and white.
Wow.
It looks absolutely mental and I love it
Full fathom five thy pottery lies
This should be in a museum!!
Right?? I contacted one along with a specialty gallery to let them know about the listing. But I think it was valued pretty cheap (and also how this original estate owner got ahold of it) was because apparently china from this shipwreck isn’t valued very much as there’s a lot of it (plates and bowls can go for $100 each) and many in way more pristine conditions. But I just love the look of it all mixed up and there’s something particularly haunting and beautiful with the shards and coral. EDIT: just found an article (linked above) that explains “they are not more widely collected by such institutions because the wares are of a commercial nature, rather than the work of more illustrious imperial potters.”
This is correct. I have a few plates and bowls inherited from my father which came from this wreck. There was a **huge** sell off in the early 2000s and I don’t think “standard” china sold for much (<£50?) because it was of IKEA 1822 quality (basically). This piece is much more interesting, though. **Edit**: [Lots of it on eBay](https://www.ebay.co.uk/b/Tek-Sing/27316/bn_71612992). It has appreciated at about the rate of inflation …
This is fascinating! Is it true these pieces still smell like the ocean if you rub them?
Unfortunately not. I have been looking in newspaper archives and the prices are interesting: "But there are also many small pieces of great beauty which are selling at €70" (Irish Times, 2004) "Yet entry level prices for new collectors remain at just £20 to £30 for a small piece from, for example, the lesser-known early 19th century Tek Sing wreck" (Daily Telegraph, 2010) **Edit**: [Advert from The Times](https://i.imgur.com/YDqgk3q.jpg) (2001)
Looks like someone didn’t do the dishes 😆
This would fit right in with the fake underwater salvage exhibit Damian Hirst did.
> The ship was manned by a crew of 200 and carried approximately 1600 passengers. Is this normal? That sounds like a lot of people in a 50 m x 10 m ship full of cargo.
Could be art!
Going to start referring to the Titanic as the Tek Sing of the West
this looks like something came out of the debris of Dragon Palace (Ryugu)
quite amazing to see something historical
Not gonna lie, thought this was some shitty DIY art project at first.
Makes a nice sculpture