Hole drilled in Imperial Chinese vase costs owner £250K

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Think you’ve made a few costly DIY blunders in the past?

Well, spare a thought for the woman who drilled a hole in an old vase to make a lamp – only to find out it would have been worth £250,000.

The owner of the 250-year-old Chinese porcelain has now been told it will fetch only £20,000 at auction.

‘It is a tale of what might have been,’ said auctioneer Guy Schwinge. The Qing dynasty vase was thought to have been bought by its unnamed owner’s great-grandfather in the Far East in the early 1900s.

It had a sticker on the bottom saying ’14 dollars’ and was presumed to be worthless. It was passed down through the family until, 40 years ago, an ancestor drilled a small hole through it so it could be used as an electric lamp.

It was only when the porcelain was remarked upon by a family friend that its true value was discovered.

Experts told its woman owner, from south-west London, it would have been worth £250,000 without the hole and if it had been accompanied by its matching pair.

Comment From Admin – Don’t believe everything you read!

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