4. Jieshi Tie by Song Dynasty politician and scholar Zeng Gong, 207 million yuan

Works of modern ink masters continued to dominate auctions. Five were ranked among the top 10 classical Chinese painting and calligraphy sold at auction in 2016. Zhang Daqian produced three of them, showing his enduring popularity among collectors and dealers.

New buyers and entrepreneur collectors made noticeable purchases.

Jieshi Tie was sold to media mogul Wang Zhongjun who is known for collecting contemporary artworks and Western oil paintings.

Self-made Chinese real estate developer Zhang Guiping, 65, was revealed as the buyer of Ren's painting. Zhang, chairman of the Nanjing-based Suning Universal, has accumulated a collection of nearly 3,000 artworks over the past three decades, mostly classical Chinese paintings and calligraphy.

Hoi Kin Hong, chairman of Shanghai-based Powerlong Real Estate, acquired Qi Baishi's Album of Landscapes for 195.5 million yuan and Zhang Daqian's Snow-capped Mountains in Switzerland for 164.4 million yuan at a Beijing auction in December.

The three plan to build art museums to show their valuable collection.