A collection of ceramics produced especially for Chairman Mao has sold at Poly Auction's Materpieces of Hunan Embroidery and Ceramics sale, which was held on June 20 in Hong Kong.

The bowls were produced in Liling, Hunan, which is famous for its porcelain

The collection of five bowls brought an impressive $1.5m. They were created to commemorate Mao's 81st birthday in 1974.

Decorated with lotus flowers, chrysanthemums and plum blossoms, the bowls are of unrivalled quality. With the thickness being less than one millimetre, they are translucent in direct light.

Chairman Mao memorabilia sells strongly in Asia, with a photograph of the leader taken by his wife selling with a 682% increase on estimate in May. However, his popularity is not so great in the rest of the world, with sales often seeing lacklustre results.

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