Sotheby’s officially dismisses doubts from experts over authenticity of ancient calligraphy

On Monday, Sotheby's officially responded to questions from researchers with the Shanghai museum about the authenticity of the famous Gong Fu Tie calligraphy by Su Shi (1037-1101, a Chinese writer, poet and calligrapher in the Northern Song Dynasty).

In its 14-page report, Sotheby's confirmed various aspects of the authenticity of this work.

In September last year, the piece was bought by Chinese collector Liu Yiqian at the price of $8.23 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York.

Liu plans to exhibit the ancient treasure this year in his Long Museum in Shanghai.

But on December 21, three researchers-, Shan Guolin, Zhong Yinlan and Ling Lizhong, from the Shanghai Museum, pointed out that the auctioned calligraphy might be a forgery.

They claimed that they have conducted deep research into the history of fake calligraphy works in certain parts of China, and the one purchased by Liu might be such an example made during the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Responding to their questioning, Sotheby's- issued a statement the next day, saying they stood by their stance that it was a Gong Fu Tie piece.

On December 23, Liu declared that he would remain neutral on the case until conclusions were released. He also urged an early release of related academic reports.

Then on the first day of 2014, the three researchers published two 14,000-word articles, in which they elaborated on the reasons why they believed the piece to be fake.

The publication of these two articles pushed the debate to new heights and more experts weighed in to share their views.

On January 6, Zhu Shaoliang, an expert in the evaluation of Chinese paintings- and calligraphy, said he insisted the work was authentic, and he would like to purchase it if the original buyer was willing to give it up.

Meanwhile the public are not sure which side to believe, as neither has made a totally convincing case.

"The evaluation of ancient Chinese paintings and calligraphy is essentially very complicated and requires deep professional skills," said Pan Baoqing, an expert on the evaluation of cultural relics.

Members of the public who wish to see and judge for themselves will need to wait until the work is exhibited at the Long Museum later this year.

If proved authentic, Gong Fu Tie is a farewell letter from Su Shi to his friend Guo Gongfu.