At the “Chinese Oil Painting and Photography” sale, nearly one-third of the 143 lots went unsold, including Luo Zhongli’s Old Man and contemporary works by Ding Yi and Wu Shanzhuan, among others.

Some artists, such as Chen Yifei, had mixed results, with buyers driving up the price of his Reclining Nude (est. $849,000-$996,000), which ultimately fetched $2,512,294, while passing on two of Chen’s other canvases, Whispering, and Hudson River Valley.

This year, China Guardian presented 17 auctions in various categories with a total of more than 6600 lots, ranging from important calligraphy works from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties and porcelain handicrafts to 20th century ink and wash paintings and modern and contemporary works. The more traditional works among the modern and contemporary selections had the best performances.

Fang Lijun’s market strength was affirmed by the sale of his black-and-white, five-panel work 1998.11.15, which brought in $311,619, far exceeding its estimate of $100,000-$129,000.

But the real surprises came when collectors seized on revolutionary-themed works, such as the sprawling, horizontal painting The Battle of Taking Over Power at Shanghai Station. Depicting workers and soldiers in a sea of red banners and Mao posters, the work sold for $295,157 — over eight times its high estimate of $36,600. Similarly, the more modestly scaled Production Brigade Training, done in a flat, simplified painting style, went for $47,549, soaring above its modest $4,400-$7,300 estimate.

It seems that rather than gambling on contemporary works, many patriotic buyers are now looking for a piece of their country’s history to keep for posterity.