Among the tens of thousands of private collectors around the world, there are definitely only a few who can collect oil paintings worth more than ten million pounds. What's more, this Roysdahl landscape is only one of the oil paintings collected by the Eskenazi family.
A mid-range one!
In terms of value alone, the oil paintings by Caravaggio and Rubens next to them are obviously higher!
Moreover, Liu Dong personally likes the works of these two painters.
Like the two masters, Liu Dong also likes to emphasize light in oil paintings to express the three-dimensionality and appeal of his works.
"Mr. Liu liked it immediately. If Mr. Liu likes this Roysdahl work, I am willing to trade it with the oil painting that Mr. Liu got at noon today!"
Seeing the anticipation in Eskenazi's eyes, Liu Dong smiled secretly in his heart. He knew that facing Leonardo da Vinci's legacy, the other party would not give up so easily, and as expected, he threw it out again here.
"I'm very sorry, I just got that painting and I have no plans to sell it in a short time!"
Liu Dong's rejection was expected by Eskenazi, but he was not so easy to give up. The reason why he brought Liu Dong to his collection room was to seduce Liu Dong with this room full of treasures.
Agree to exchange!
"Mr. Liu, don't refuse in a hurry! If you agree to the exchange, you can choose any three antiques in my collection room!" Eskenazi said quickly.
"Choose three items at will?" After thinking for a while, Liu Dong released his relic Yuanguang and looked at the spiritual lights of different shades around him. After a moment of silence, a light flashed in his eyes.
"My painting is the legacy of Leonardo da Vinci. Does Mr. Eskenazi think the value of three works of art can be equal to it?" Liu Dong said bluntly.
"You know everything?" Eskenazi couldn't help blurting out with a look of surprise on his face.
Looking at the smile on Liu Dong's face, Eskenazi said with a bitter smile: "Actually, I should have understood that you knew the details of that painting, otherwise you wouldn't have refused so firmly in the store!"
After calming down his thoughts, looking at Liu Dong's smiling expression, Eskenazi said bluntly: "I wonder how Mr. Liu would transfer that Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece to me?"
"Then it depends on what conditions Mr. Eskenazi is willing to offer!"
"Dear...!" Mei Xue, who was next to her, quickly pulled Liu Dong's arm.
Although she only started to understand antique collecting because of Liu Dong's relationship. Now it is not even an introduction, but this does not hinder Mei Xue's understanding of the value of Leonardo da Vinci's paintings!
There is no doubt that in the hundreds of years of history from the Renaissance to modern times, among all the famous oil painters from various countries, almost none surpassed Leonardo da Vinci in oil painting, and at most they were equal to him.
More than four hundred years have passed, and now the value of his paintings has almost reached the peak among all painters. It takes hundreds of years for only one or two paintings to enter the market. Moreover, priceless national treasure-level works of art can only be obtained if there is no shortage of money.
You should keep it in your own hands. Otherwise, once it goes out and you want to get it back, it is not just a matter of money!
"It's okay, I know it well!" Liu Dong comforted.
Seeing the calm look on his face, Mei Xue didn't know what Liu Dong was thinking, but as his girlfriend, it was hard for her to say anything more.
After all, she still has to take care of Liu Dong's face in front of others! Moreover, based on her understanding of her lover, the other party has never been a person who will let her suffer.
At this moment, Eskenazi, who was extremely excited, said quickly: "If Mr. Liu has any conditions, please feel free to ask for them. Whether it is money or antiques, as long as the conditions are right, I can satisfy it!"
The temptation to acquire a Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece was simply too hard to refuse for Eskenazi, who was obsessed with collecting!
Seeing the look on his face, Liu Dong's mouth curved slightly. What he liked most was the feeling of me being a knife and others being a fish!
"First of all, I am not short of money. Like Mr. Eskenazi, I also like antiques! If I hadn't considered that I was going to build my own museum and lacked a large number of high-quality antiques, I would not have put this Leonardo da Vinci away.
These wonderful works were brought out in exchange!" Liu Dong said.
"I understand, if Mr. Liu is willing, I am willing to exchange all the Chinese art in my collection!" Eskenazi said quickly.
Although there are as many as a thousand pieces of art from China in his collection, and most of them are exquisite, the minimum value of a Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece is more than 200 million US dollars!
Converted into Chinese currency, it is nearly 1.7 billion!
Now in the auction houses, most of the high-quality Chinese cultural relics are priced in the millions, and those with more than 10 million are the best ones, and the national treasures only cost 30 to 40 million Chinese coins!
After all, Western culture still occupies the mainstream in this world. The price of Chinese artworks of the same level is far lower than that in the West.
In addition, Eskenazi himself is a Westerner, and of course he has more affection for oil paintings than Eastern artworks. If he really exchanged all the Chinese artworks here for Leonardo da Vinci's legacy, he would naturally be willing to do so.
Absolutely!
Of course, the total value of the Chinese artworks here in Eskenazi must exceed 200 million U.S. dollars. Not to mention anything else, Liu Dong found nearly 36 paintings and calligraphy from the Tang and Song Dynasties here.
There are more than 100 million pieces of pre-Qin bronzes, royal porcelain of all dynasties and other precious antiques!
However, equals are equals, and Liu Dong, who is now in a dominant position, cannot give up the opportunity to kill people so easily! Especially when he and Eskenazi have no deep friendship and are purely interested in each other.
"Mr. Eskenazi's conditions are indeed tempting, but they are not enough!" Liu Dong shook his head.
"Not enough? Liu, do you know how much these Chinese works of art are worth? Even at the market price, the value of them together is more than 200 million pounds! If they are auctioned, it will increase by at least a quarter, or even
There will be more!”
"No, no, dear Mr. Eskenazi, as a senior collector, you should understand that the value of antiques is not just measurable in money! It also brings huge influence! Owning one
A piece of Leonardo da Vinci's posthumous work will definitely elevate the reputation of the Eskenazi family to a higher level. It will also consolidate Mr. Eskenazi's status in the world of collections and appraisals. This is
Thousands of Chinese antiques cannot be brought!" Liu Dong said with a smile.
Liu Dong's words struck a chord in Dennis Eskenazi's heart.
Indeed! No matter how many Chinese antiques there are, they cannot match the impact of a Leonardo da Vinci oil painting.
But this does not mean that Dennis Eskenazi has to accept all Liu Dong’s conditions without any bottom line!
Noticing the change in the expression on the other party's face, Liu Dong smiled even more. He had the advantage and quickly took advantage of the victory. "Of course, as a friend, I don't want to make it too difficult for Mr. Eskenazi! In addition to everything here,
In addition to Chinese antiques, you only need to let me choose three pieces from your collection!"
"Pick any three?"
Recalling the conditions he proposed to Liu Dong when he first came in, Eskena smiled bitterly.
But looking at the calm smile on the face of the young man in front of him and the firm eyes, Eskenazi knew that he would definitely not survive if he didn't shed some blood this time!
"I can agree to your conditions, but the items on the innermost display shelf are not included!"
Following the direction of the other party's finger, Liu Dong also saw the innermost display shelf.
There are not many things on the steel display rack with the sky above the head and the feet on the ground, with a width of more than 5 meters and a depth of nearly 80 centimeters, but under the original light of the relics, almost every piece is shining with a rich aura.
Obviously they are what Eskenazi considers to be the best parts of his collection!
In fact, this is indeed the case. Although there are not many things on the last display shelf, among them are the last painter of the Florentine school of painting in the early Renaissance that the Eskenazi family has spent nearly a hundred years collecting with great pains.
Two oil paintings by Botticelli; and a bronze figure by Gulbetti, one of the most famous bronze sculptors of the early Italian Renaissance!
The stone statues of gods from ancient Greek temples are still extremely beautiful even though they have been damaged.
It can be said that any antique on this iron frame is of great significance and is worth at least more than 50 million U.S. dollars. It is a national treasure that is priceless but not marketable.
No wonder Dennis Eskenazi is so nervous!
Fortunately, although Liu Dong was greedy for these things, what he wanted was not on this iron frame. So when faced with Dennis Eskenazi's request, Liu Dong was silent for a while and then nodded.
If he wasn't afraid of agreeing too quickly and arousing suspicion from the other party, Liu Dong would definitely agree immediately!
"Looking at my relationship with Mr. Eskenazi, I can agree to this request, but...!"
Dennis Eskenazi's heart had just been relieved, but the last two words in Liu Dong's words raised his heart again.
After seeing the nervous expression on the other party's face, Liu Dong smiled and said: "However, this is my first time coming to the UK. I came to London and I am still staying in a hotel. And this time Mr. Eskenazi and I
The transaction cannot be completed in one day, so I hope you can help me buy a villa in London. By then, I will have room to put all these antiques, right?"
It just so happened that Liu Dong was planning to buy a house here when he discussed with Mei Xue. This antique transaction involved many precious products, whether they were traded with Eskenazi or passed the inspection by British Customs.
It is not something that can be accomplished in a short period of time, so having a villa of his own, both in public and private life, has become the most important thing for Liu Dong to solve now.
But choosing a suitable house is a bit difficult for Liu Dong, who is unfamiliar with the place, but for Dennis Eskenazi, a local snake, it is a piece of cake. (To be continued.)
ps: Thanks to book friend 'Warrior 81' 'Baby Chengcheng' '150227130435750' (two pieces) 'z516sz' [Gone with the Wind]' for monthly ticket support, and book friend 'Dragon Sheng Feng Xiang' 'Beichen Xiaoyue'