A traditional Chinese painting sells for record $42 mn

A traditional Chinese painting has sold for a record $42 million. It portrayed three farmers cultivating their land with an ox.

Beijing: A traditional Chinese painting has sold for a record $42 million, smashing previous records for painter Xu Beihong, also known as the father of modern Chinese painting.

The painting portrays three farmers cultivating their land with an ox, Xinhua reported. The previous top price for a work by Xu, who died in 1953 and is best known for his ink painting of horses, was 171 million yuan (around $27 million). The painting, which measures 150 cm by 250 cm, was completed in 1951. It was initially sent to Guo Moruo, a Chinese literary and cultural celebrity and close friend of Xu, as a gift, and was later purchased by a collector. In December 2010, another work by Xu, depicting a group of Chinese residents drawing water from a river, sold for 171 million yuan, which at the time set a world record for modern Chinese paintings and calligraphy. IANS