The auction of a landscape painting called Jiangnan Spring by celebrated Chinese painter Qiu Ying (1498-1552), with a starting price of 88 million yuan (US$12.6m), was canceled in May 2025 after the descendants of noted art collector Pang Laichen protested. Pang Shuling, the collector’s great-granddaughter, claimed that the painting for auction was donated by Pang’s family in 1959 to Nanjing Museum, Jiangsu Province, among a collection of 137 pieces. Pang Shuling sued the museum, which replied that five paintings in their donation, including Jiangnan Spring, had been identified as forged in 1960s and were no longer in the museum’s possession. The Pang family insists none of the donated works were fake, and wants the museum to provide information about the missing items and how Jiangnan Spring ended up in a sale. Experts hope it will prompt more transparent management of national museums and treasures to avoid covert deals.
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