Bowl Bought For $35 at Yard Sale Could Sell for Half-a-Million

Feeling a budget pinch, this month?  You might want to double-check your closet or attic – do a little spring cleaning.

A small floral bowl, bought at a yard sale, near New Haven, Connecticut, for just $35, has been identified as a rare, 15th-century Chinese antique.  [It looks a bit like the one in this picture, from my house.  But the one, out east, is a lot prettier, and has a much more delicate floral design on the inside, as well…]

It’s now expected to sell for between $300,000 and $500,000 next month, according to Sotheby’s auction house.

Experts say the “lotus bowl” originated from the court of the Yongle Emperor, who ruled from 1403 to 1424.

Only six other similar bowls are known to have survived; one is housed at the National Palace Museum in Taipei.

[Have you ever sold something at a yard sale or given something away that you later found out was worth big money?  For me, it would have to be the Wedgwood pitcher I bought for 50 cents at Goodwill, then saw online for 50 bucks – because it had a little chip on the top.  ~ Mo ]