The Chinese antique art collector who placed the winning bids on two highly controversial statues at a Christie’s auction in Paris last week is now refusing to pay out of protest.
The pieces in question are the bronze head sculptures of a rat and a rabbit – two out of twelve that were looted from Beijing’s Summer Palace in 1860 by Anglo-French forces during the Second Opium War.
Art aficionado Cai Mingchao, who won the sculptures with bids of $20.3 million each, is now withholding payment in an effort to spoil the sale of art that was essentially stolen from China.
The auction itself was publicly criticized by Chinese authorities who demanded that the national relics be returned to their proper owners.
Cai Mingchao’s actions have elicited mixed reactions amongst Chinese. Many consider him to be a patriot.
“Why should we be just if others are not? Cai Mingchao has performed a patriotic political act to strike back at an illegal auction,” said Wang Zhanyang, a professor at the Central Socialist Academy.
In contrast, some compatriots believe that Mingchao’s actions portray Chinese people in a negative light internationally.
“We come across as untrustworthy people, a bunch of conmen. Who wants to deal with that kind of people in the future?” said Liang, who is a blogger.