At China Auction Group's 2005 large scale painting and calligraphy auction held on July 29, a huge landscape painting named Jiangshan Wanli Tu created by Zhang Daqian (1899-1983), a master of contemporary Chinese calligraphy and painting, closed business at a high price of 73 million yuan (US$9 million), the highest price for a single piece of work in China's painting and calligraphy auction history.

This rare splashed-ink and splashed-color scroll is 34.56 meters (113.4ft) in length and 1 meter in width. Some experts believe that Zhang Daqian had started working on this painting in 1952 when he was living in Hong Kong and did not finish it until 1956 when he was in Argentina.

Zhang Daqian was a talented painter. After several major changes in his style, he originated the splashed-ink and splashed-color painting when he was 57 years old.

This Jiangshan Wanli Tu was sold to a middle-aged collector from mainland China. Price started at 48 million yuan for this painting at the auction.

(Chinanews.cn August 1, 2005)