A collection of 12 calligraphy landscape paintings produced by Qi Baishi (1864-1957), the ink-brush master artist of modern China, fetched 931.5 million yuan (144 million US dollars) at a Beijing auction on Sunday night. /Chinanews Photo

The price set a new global record for Chinese artworks sold at auction, and it also made Qi the first Chinese artist whose work has been sold for more than 100 million US dollars at auction. /Weibo Photo

Titled "Twelve Landscape Screens", the masterpiece was created in 1925. Each of the paintings is framed separately in a 1.8-meter-long vertical frame and uses an elegant palette to show a lively natural scene. /Weibo Photo

The initial bidding price was set at 450 million yuan but after 57 rounds of fierce bidding, a telephone buyer ended the call with 810 million yuan, and the final price was settled at 931.5 million yuan with commission fees. The buyer's identity has not yet been revealed. /Weibo Photo