Hangzhou, November 18, 2026 – The highly anticipated Xiling Yinshe 2026 Autumn Auction concluded successfully yesterday. The “Treasures of Jade: Ancient Jade and Curiosities” special session was particularly outstanding, achieving a total transaction volume of RMB 185 million, once again setting a new historical record for Xiling Yinshe's ancient jade auctions. This session featured a total of 128 lots, with 112 successfully sold, achieving a remarkable sell-through rate of 87.5%, far exceeding market expectations and demonstrating a strong rebound in the ancient jade collection market.
The highlight of this auction was undoubtedly several exquisite pieces of high-ancient jade. Among them, a “Late Shang Dynasty Celadon Jade Cong with Human Face Mask Motif” was hammered at an astonishing price of RMB 38 million, far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of RMB 18-25 million, with a premium rate of 111%, making it the highest-priced lot of the session. This cong features warm jade quality, exquisite carving, and a mysterious and solemn human face mask motif, possessing extremely high historical and artistic value. Another piece, a “Early Western Zhou White Jade Dragon-shaped Pendant,” also sold for RMB 22 million, representing a 120% increase compared to its estimate of RMB 10-15 million. In addition, a batch of Han Dynasty jade artifacts, such as a “Han Dynasty White Jade Bixie” and a “Han Dynasty Celadon Jade Belt Hook,” also performed well, selling for RMB 8.5 million and RMB 6.2 million respectively, both exceeding their high estimates by over 20%.
From an overall data perspective, the average transaction price per lot in this ancient jade session reached RMB 1.65 million, an increase of approximately 25% compared to the same session in the 2025 autumn auction. All high-value lots estimated above RMB 5 million were sold, with most achieving high estimates or even exceeding them, indicating sustained enthusiasm from high-end collectors for top-tier ancient jade. Mid-range lots estimated between RMB 1 million and RMB 5 million also achieved a high sell-through rate of 90%, suggesting an improvement in both market depth and breadth.
Mr. Li Ming, a senior auction industry analyst, pointed out: “The success of Xiling Yinshe’s ancient jade session is not accidental. It reflects structural changes in the current art market, especially in the traditional Chinese cultural art segment. Amid increasing global economic uncertainty, ancient jade, which possesses both historical and cultural value and scarcity, has seen its safe-haven attributes and investment value increasingly highlighted. At the same time, Xiling Yinshe’s professionalism in lot sourcing, authentication, and promotion also laid the foundation for this excellent achievement.”
Professor Wang, President of the China Jade Culture Research Association, also stated: “The auction results are inspiring. The value of high-ancient jade is being re-recognized and re-evaluated by the market. Particularly, exquisite pieces with clear provenance, perfect condition, and typical period characteristics still have huge potential for price appreciation. In the coming years, we expect the ancient jade market to continue its steady growth, especially for rare categories with academic research value and cultural heritage significance, which will become the focus of collectors' competition.”
Looking ahead, with the enhancement of China's traditional cultural confidence and the popularization of professional knowledge among collectors, the ancient jade collection market is expected to embrace broader development space. Xiling Yinshe's brilliant performance in this autumn auction undoubtedly injected a strong boost into the entire ancient jade market, heralding the arrival of a more prosperous collecting era.