Sanya's first auction after the customs closure concluded successfully! Both auctions achieve a total sales volume exceeding ten million yuan

On the first day of the Hainan Free Trade Port's island-wide customs closure operation, Sanya's cultural relics and art auctions enjoyed a resounding success. On December 18th, Chengdu Bayi and Yamei Auction respectively held auctions at the Sanya CBD Cultural Relics and Art Center and Haitang Bay, both achieving impressive results. The "Chengdu Bayi & Hainan Sanya 2025 First Cultural Relics and Art Auction" achieved a total transaction volume of 23.8536 million yuan; Yamei Auction's "Treasures in Time" winter auction also surpassed 10 million yuan in total transaction volume, demonstrating the Free Trade Port's agglomeration effect on cultural relics and art market resources.

1. Leveraging the Free Trade Port, enterprises are establishing a presence in Sanya.

The "Chengdu Bayi & Hainan Sanya 2025 First Cultural Relics and Art Auction," themed "Treasures from the Vast Ocean, Benefiting Each Other from Customs Closure", featured two sections: "Selected Masterpieces from the Vast Ocean – Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Masterpieces" and "Exquisite Beauty – Ancient Chinese Art Treasures", offering a total of 266 works, encompassing masterpieces of painting and calligraphy from various dynasties and exquisite Ming and Qing dynasty crafts. The auction utilized simultaneous online and offline channels, achieving an average sell-through rate of 72.8%. Online bidding was particularly active, contributing 28% of the total sales, showcasing a new auction ecosystem that integrates cross-regional and multi-platform collaboration.

Four lots were sold for over one million yuan (including commission), demonstrating the market's continued focus on high-quality artworks. The auction's highlight came from the Chinese painting and calligraphy section—Pan Tianshou's ink painting masterpiece, "Looking at the Pine Tree in the Twilight", sold for 3 million yuan after multiple rounds of bidding, taking the top spot in the auction.

Chengdu Bayi Auction is a leading auction house for cultural relics and artworks in Southwest China. This auction is its first auction held in Sanya and is also one of the investment promotion achievements of the Chengdu Promotion Conference of the National Base for International Cultural Trade (Sanya) in 2025. It has become a vivid practice of promoting cultural and artistic exchanges and responding to the strategy of building a culturally strong country.

“Our parent company, Bayi Furniture Group, has grown rapidly thanks to the reform and opening-up policy. Holding the auction on the day of island-wide customs closure is also a way to start a new journey in Sanya,” said Guo Haining, General Manager of Chengdu Bayi Cultural Industry Development Co., Ltd. and Chengdu Bayi Auction Co., Ltd. He added that the policy advantages of the Hainan Free Trade Port, Sanya's location advantages, and the support provided by key projects such as the China Hainan International Cultural Relics and Artworks Trading Center and the Hainan International Cultural Exchange Center (hereinafter referred to as the “dual centers”) are all important reasons why the company chose to locate there. The company initially plans to establish a branch in Sanya, create the Bayi Art space, and set up an antique shop.

2. Exploring the "Art + Cultural Tourism" Model

On the same day, Yamei Auction held its "Treasures in Time" 2025 Winter Auction at the Moutai Resort in Haitang Bay. The auction featured 75 exquisite pieces across categories including Chinese painting and calligraphy, porcelain and jade, huanghuali furniture, Hainan agarwood, and contemporary art, achieving a total sales volume exceeding ten million yuan. The auction actively explored an innovative "art + cultural tourism" model, deeply integrating art appreciation with high-end resort experiences, injecting more cultural depth and experiential layers into Sanya's development as an international tourism consumption center.

As an auction house located in the Sanya CBD Cultural Relics and Art Center, a representative from Yamei Auction stated that they will continue to leverage the policy dividends and locational advantages of the Hainan Free Trade Port to deeply cultivate the field of cultural relics and art transactions, promote the landing of more high-quality cultural resources in Hainan, help the cultural industry of the Free Trade Port achieve high-quality development, and contribute Hainan's strength to the innovation and upgrading of the national cultural market.

3. Building a new international hub for cultural relics and art transactions

Supported by the National Base for International Cultural Trade (Sanya), the two auction houses jointly achieved remarkable results. This is also the first batch of auction activities supported by the Sanya Central Business District after the establishment of the "China Association of Auctioneers Hainan International Auction Demonstration Zone", injecting strong momentum into the Hainan cultural and artistic products trading market.

Currently, the Sanya Central Business District has attracted 31 enterprises in the cultural relics and art industry chain, including 7 antique shops and 3 local auction houses, and has created the "Winter Auction Season" brand. As a pioneering demonstration, the Sanya CBD Cultural Relics and Art Center has introduced foreign-funded galleries, auction houses and appraisal and restoration institutions, and has held more than 30 exhibitions and auctions, attracting more than 330,000 visitors. Among them, the total transaction volume of 7 large-scale cultural relics auctions exceeded 300 million yuan.

A relevant official from the Sanya Central Business District stated that they will seize the opportunity presented by the customs closure, deepen cooperation with industries and enterprises, actively introduce international auction resources and high-end exhibitions, continuously improve the level of professional services, perfect the industrial ecosystem, support the "dual centers" in playing their platform functions, and help Sanya build a new highland for international cultural relics and art transactions.