Chen Qiang really knows nothing about antiques. Although he had a car, house, food and clothing, he was still far from playing with antiques. People who played with antiques were either rich and rich, and went directly to auction millions and tens of millions without blinking. Or they were real experts who could distinguish between genuine products and fakes, and were shopping around the country.

However, the twelve zodiac beast heads in the Old Summer Palace are so famous that even Jackie Chan made a movie with the twelve zodiac beast heads. As a Chinese, how could Chen Qiang not know about the twelve zodiac beast heads?

Although Chen Qiang has never seen the authentic products of the head of the twelve zodiac animals, he has seen many pictures of imitations online, so Chen Qiang recognized it at a glance that the dog head placed on the shelves was the "Xu Dog", one of the heads of the twelve zodiac animals.

In the future, eight of the top animals in the twelve zodiac animals have returned to China, namely the rat, the ox, the tiger, the rabbit, the dragon, the horse, the monkey and the pig. Except for the dragon in Taipei, the other seven are collected in the Poly Art Museum. The whereabouts of the snake, the sheep, the rooster and the dog are unknown.

In 2009, some American media reported that someone spent $1,000 to buy a bronze statue of dogs. Judging from the appearance, size and material, it is likely that it is the Xu Dog among the twelve beasts, but the news was not confirmed in the end.

Due to the age of time and the heads of the twelve zodiac animals, no video materials were left behind. Later generations of the twelve zodiac animals were only recorded in the text. It was not until the authentic cultural relics appeared that people saw the true face of the twelve zodiac animals.

Because the Xu dog has never appeared before, when you search for bronze statues of Xu dogs on the Internet, there will be many pictures of different styles. Some Xu dogs have strong ears hanging, while others have slightly drooping ears, some have long mouths, some have short mouths, and some even have bronze statues of Xu dogs that look like a Labrador in length.

Perhaps because the twelve zodiac beasts in the Old Summer Palace are so famous that there are many copied fakes. Because everyone does not know what the real Xu Dog’s avatar looks like, there are many strange "Xu Dogs".

In the 1940s, the head of the twelve zodiac animals was not that famous, and no one would copy this kind of thing, so Chen Qiang was almost certain that the avatar of the dog he saw now was probably real.

This is a lost cultural relic in China. Chen Qiang naturally did not intend to let this thing fall into the hands of foreigners, so Chen Qiang walked forward and asked, "How much does this bronze statue with a dog head cost?"

"Sir, you really have a vision. This bronze statue is a good thing." A middle-aged man wearing glasses came over, and he was responsible for the sale of antiques in this area.

Chen Qiang smiled slightly, then said, "Can you introduce me to this dog-headed bronze statue?"

"Of course, sir, this dog-headed bronze statue comes from a distant China. I think you should be a Chinese, so you are interested in this bronze statue." The middle-aged man said.

Chen Qiang nodded: "Yes, I'm Chinese."

"Sir, your country has a very long history, so many exquisite works of art have been born. This bronze statue of dog head is one of them. When we bought this piece of art, the seller told me that this bronze statue of dog head has a history of one thousand years, which is even longer than the art left over from the European Renaissance! And you only need to spend 500 US dollars to take away this precious work of art with a thousand years of history." The middle-aged man wearing glasses said with a smile.

Chen Qiang is not short of the $500, and from the perspective of future generations, it is quite cost-effective to buy the Dog's avatar for 500 US dollars. However, Chen Qiang could feel that this middle-aged man probably regarded himself as a sucker!

This is how those who sell antiques will deliberately exaggerate their products and then quote a very high price. If the customer doesn't understand, he will get a lot of money.

Chen Qiang saw the middle-aged man's routine and said, "This thing comes from a building called the Old Summer Palace in China. The Old Summer Palace was built in the 18th century, and it is only more than a hundred years away! You should be able to easily find something from a hundred years ago when you go to some old houses now."

"Haha..." The middle-aged man wearing glasses smiled awkwardly, and then continued without blushing, "This gentleman is right. Although the seller told us that this dog-head bronze statue has a history of one thousand years, our appraiser soon discovered that this dog-head bronze statue was just a work from more than a hundred years ago."

"So you plan to sell this bronze statue of dog heads from more than a hundred years ago to me for $500?" Chen asked jokingly.

"Of course not. What I mean just now is that if this dog-headed bronze statue really has a history of one thousand years, it will be worth $500, while this dog-headed bronze statue only has a history of more than a hundred years, so you only need to spend $100 to take it away. We can also give you a beautiful gift box." The middle-aged man with glasses said immediately.

The price has dropped to one-fifth of the original price, but Chen Qiang can still feel that the 100 US dollars is also full of moisture, and the price will definitely be reduced again.

Chen Qiang picked up the avatar of the dog and carefully observed it. This thing was made of copper and it was quite heavy in his hand.

Then Chen Qiang continued to ask, "Do you know what this dog-headed bronze statue is used for?"

"This is of course a great work of art! This dog-head bronze statue uses the best materials and the most exquisite craftsmanship. This is definitely the pinnacle of oriental bronze casting. Such artwork is the most suitable for home decoration!" The middle-aged man in glasses immediately boasted.

The twelve zodiac animals in the Summer Palace are red copper like bronze statues of the Summer Palace. The appearance is deep and the inside is bright. Even if it lasts for a hundred or two years, it will not rust. This is definitely the pinnacle of copper smelting technology at that time. The casting process of the twelve zodiac animals is indeed very exquisite. The wrinkles and fluff on the zodiac animals are carefully forged one by one, and it is very clear and realistic. Therefore, the material and craftsmanship of this Xu Dog avatar is indeed worth bragging about.

However, Chen Qiang did not care about the bragging of the middle-aged man with glasses. How could Chen Qiang know nothing about the Chinese people’s own things? Is it necessary for this foreigner to brag about it?

Chen Qiang pointed to the water hole on the bronze statue and said, "Will home decoration make a special hole like this?"

"This is to hang or install holes." The middle-aged man with glasses said immediately.

"Do you need to connect the holes for hanging and installing to the mouth? Are you planning to use a rope to pass it from behind, put it out of the dog's mouth, and then hang it on the wall? Are you sure this is the way to hang decorations?" Chen Qiang said with a smile.

"Well..." The middle-aged man with glasses suddenly had nothing to say. Chen Qiang's problem was really unresolved.

The twelve zodiac animals in the Old Summer Palace were originally the outlet of the fountain, so water was naturally inlet and sprayed from the mouth, so there were holes underneath and the mouth, and it was connected. It was indeed impossible to explain this design simply by using the excuse of hanging installation.

Seeing the middle-aged man with glasses having nothing to say, Chen Qiang then explained: "The reason for this design is that this thing is not a home decoration, but is used for spraying water. Water goes in from the back and sprays out from the dog's mouth."

Chen Qiang said, gestured on the bronze statue of Xu Dog with his hands.

"So that's it. Thank you for your advice. If it weren't for you, I would have always thought it was a home decoration." The middle-aged man in glasses said.

"So, this thing is just a shower head that sprays water. Are you planning to sell a shower head to me for $100?" Chen Qiang asked with a smile.

"Okay, sir, how much are you planning to pay?" asked the middle-aged man with glasses in compromise.

"I can give you $30. This is just a showerhead!" Chen Qiang replied.

"No, no, no, absolutely impossible, at least $70! This is made of copper!"

"40 USD! You can't let me put a shower head at home as a decoration, right? The guests will laugh at me."

"60 US dollars! Although this is a shower head, the craftsmanship of this dog-head statue is really good."

"50 USD, a fixed price! I think no one except me would be interested in a showerhead."

"Okay, deal, sir, you really know how to bargain. I'll find someone to pack it for you."

Chen Qiang talked about the price of $50. Although Chen Qiang is not short of the price difference of $450, this does not mean that he wants to be cheated. And when buying antiques or artworks, bargaining is actually a happy process.

The middle-aged man with glasses asked his men to pack the dog's avatar, while Chen Qiang continued to look at other antiques. When the middle-aged man with glasses saw that there was still a follow-up business to do, he followed Chen Qiang directly.

"You have any Chinese artworks here?" Chen Qiang asked.

"Sir, please look here. These two pieces are Chinese works of art, and there is also this one here, and there is a second one below." The middle-aged man with glasses said and introduced.

What he introduced to Chen Qiang was a large blue and white porcelain bowl, a porcelain vase with peonies, and a bronze kettle.

Chen Qiang didn't know what antique identification was. He didn't know what age the porcelain was from, nor did he know what kiln it was made. After all, in ancient times, some people imitated fakes from official kilns. The water of antiques in porcelain was too deep, so they had to find professionals to identify the value of antiques.

However, the bronze kettle surprised Chen Qiang again. Chen Qiang in his previous life once saw a cultural relic with almost the same bronze kettle shape at an exhibition, but that thing was not called a kettle, but "王".

"生" is a kind of bronze ware. Some studies believe that unlike the bronze ware that is generally used as sacrifices, in the Zhou Dynasty, "生" was a practical utensil used to hold water, similar to today's water bottles. In the future, there were only seven "生" in the world! There is no doubt that this thing is a genuine civil and military product of the level of national treasures passed down from generation to generation.

"This thing should be a pill, so I have to buy it!" Chen Qiang said in his heart.

...

Chen Qiang bought several items in this hall, mostly bronze. As for pottery, porcelain or jade, although there are also them here, Chen Qiang did not buy them because he didn't understand this.

Chen Qiang plans to go to Chinatown in Los Angeles to see if there are any experts in antiques, and then bring experts to identify the authenticity of antiques. Chen Qiang is rich now, so he will collect these Chinese antiques that are revealed overseas as much as possible.

Then Chen Qiang came to the hall on the left, which was the exhibition area for auction items. Each item was introduced, and it was marked with the auction base price. The lowest price was also a four-digit dollar price. It was obvious that the antiques here were much higher than those in the hall on the right.

Chen Qiang saw precious cultural relics from all over the world here, and some of them were even considered national treasures in the future, but now they are all for sale. Looking around the world, probably only the UK can have such ability to sell national treasures from all over the world.

"The portrait of the Egyptian pharaoh was made of gold, and I don't know which pyramid was dug out."

"Nigeria's sculptured stone slabs are made from Africa. It's a big stone, so it's quite troublesome to carry it!"

"The golden gloves of the Arab Empire were brought by a caliph! This thing can be used as a holy object in the future Arab countries!"

"The pure gold bull pattern container of the Persian Empire has its horns that stand out, so it must be very troublesome to cast."

"This is the statue of a god of a certain Indian god? Although I wear a little, the workmanship is really exquisite."

"This is from China, such a big bronze horse! It's two thousand years old and should be a cultural relic from the Western Han Dynasty!"

Chen Qiang stared at the bronze horse in front of him. Although this horse is not as big as a real horse, it is still one meter high. The most important thing is that it is preserved in full. If such a large antique cultural relic is really something preserved in the Western Han Dynasty, it is definitely a top national treasure.

"I have to take a picture of this horse! Such a large object is probably not much smaller than the Si Muwu square tripod. It can be placed in a position C in any museum." Chen Qiang said in his heart.

Then Chen Qiang saw many precious Chinese cultural relics in this hall again.

A large part of these cultural relics were snatched by the Eight-Nation Alliance in China, and some were even snatched from the Old Summer Palace. After all, the Old Summer Palace is a royal garden. The things collected by the Emperor Laozi are naturally all fine products, and each one is a rare national treasure in the world.

The Eight-Nation Alliance was also very purposeful when robbing the Old Summer Palace. First of all, gold and silver utensils would definitely not be spared. The thing was valuable, and then there were antique cultural relics such as bronzes, Tang Sancai, porcelain, etc. In the eyes of foreigners, exquisite Chinese porcelain was also very valuable. The best products produced by the official kilns of the Song Dynasty and Ming Dynasty collected in the Old Summer Palace were also stolen by the Eight-Nation Alliance.

As for famous calligraphy and paintings, they are not very popular with these robbers. Foreigners are playing oil paintings. They do not understand the art of Chinese ink painting and painting, and do not know that this thing is valuable. Therefore, most of the calligraphy and paintings collected in the Old Summer Palace were destroyed by fire, and only a small part survived the world. In the future, ancient Chinese calligraphy and paintings were also uncommon in cultural relics auctions held in Europe and the United States, but in Hong Kong, more were sold.

The same is true for today's auction site. Most of the cultural relics in China are exquisite porcelain, and there is no calligraphy and painting.

Looking at these Chinese cultural relics stolen by the British, Chen Qiang suddenly had a new goal.

Chen Qiang plans to acquire Chinese antiques that have been wandering overseas. Not only those that appear in today's auction, but also those Chinese national treasures in the entire United States and even in distant Europe!

China's national treasures should not be placed in the Louvre Museum in France or the British Museum! The treasures left by Chinese ancestors should be returned to China!

Please guaranteed monthly tickets, thank you.
Chapter completed!