Two lost folios from the ‘Yongle Dadian’, the Ming dynasty encyclopaedia that has assumed national treasure status in China, surfaced for sale in Paris last week.
(13 Jul 2020) Estimated at €5000-7000, they sold for a massive €6.4m (£5.82m) or €8.13m once the 27% buyer’s premium was added.
Completed at the behest of the third Ming emperor, the Yongle Dadian (or Great Canon of Yongle) remained the largest encyclopedia in the world until the growth of Wikipedia in 2007.
More details can be found from the original news here.