CHARTRES (AFP).- An 18th century table screen likely from the heart of Imperial China sold for more than one million euros ($1.3 million) in a French auction house, an official said Monday.

The decorative wooden item, measuring 26 cm (10.2 inches) high by 18 cm (7 inches) long, features a white jade disc at its centre, said Pascal Maiche from the auction house in Chartes, near Paris.

A Taiwanese couple, who decided to fly to France for the auction, won the piece Sunday by paying a total of 1.2 million euros with fees.

Also used for meditation, the table screen has "a poem by Emperor Qianlong on the back," and its probable origin from the heart of Imperial China makes it extremely rare, Maiche said.

Originally valued between 50-80,000 euros ($64-100,000), the seller decided to part with the piece because he was moving. He "thought it could be worth something" because it had been in his family since 1860, the auctioneer said.

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