A guqin recently fetched 58 million yuan (approx. US$8.71 million) making it the world’s most expensive guqin.
It was sold by the Suzhou Wumen Auction Company and swept past the previous record price for a guqin of just over 21.8 million yuan which was set in 2009. A guqin is a plucked seven-stringed Chinese musical instrument that has been played for centuries.
The one in question belonged to the Emperor Qianlong and was also housed in the Confucius Family Mansion in Shangdong Province. Measuring 128 centimeters In length, its surface is made of fir wood while its bottom is hollow.
On its inner belly two red dragons are inscribed between which you’ll find the three Chinese characters “Yu Shu Tang”, a reference to an ancient architectural complex in the Confucius Family Mansion.
(Source: Peopledaily)