Shanghai Daily news

Bargains are waiting to be discovered and haggled over at Shanghai’s Dongtai Road Antique Market, writes Ayesha de Kretser.

Lined with all kinds of antique shops, Dongtai Road is a must-see for those who are looking for antique furnishings.

The old wooden chest of drawers is priced at 2,800 yuan.

A pair of the stone scholars, warriors or other figures cost 40,000 yuan. — Ayesha de Kretser

From the weird to the wonderful to the completely unexplainable, Dongtai Road Antique Market has the lot.
If you’re looking for antique furnishings for your home, Dongtai Road is a must-see. While the articles on offer are certainly not the real deal, some are quite smart and, if chosen carefully, can add a touch of Asian style to your home.
The rambling lane of stalls is not organized particularly well and shopping in such mayhem can at times be overwhelming (particularly on weekends) but going during weekdays is much better and highly recommended.
A good proportion of what is offered is junk, but as the old saying goes, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Some of the creations, like a porcelain statue of the late Chairman Mao Zedong with a fluorescent flower-shaped windmill spinning behind it leaves the mind boggling as to who might possibly treasure — or pay the asked 850 yuan (US$104.9) for —such an item.
Other things, like a set of old wooden doors, scream with promise if used correctly and with a little creativity can make a stunning feature in any home.
The stall keeper started at 1,200 yuan but was quick to drop his price to 750 yuan, suggesting room for further discounting depending on the state of the wood in question.
There is also an impressive range of chests and wooden furniture available.
We didn’t bother bargaining for items for fear of offending the shop keepers when we didn’t buy anything, but on a couple of occasions the asking price was reduced before any attempt could be made to protest the exorbitant initial request. The guy selling the porcelain Mao statues, however, would not budge.
Memorabilia such as posters are in abundant supply, and can be bought for around 10 yuan. Badges and trinkets and silk-shaded lamps also litter the street and cost very little.
Other interesting items on display were the old wooden birdcages. If keeping birds in cages is not your thing, these can be adapted into lamps or even left empty can look very effective. The prices asked for the birdcages we saw were around 1,200 yuan, but we didn’t bother pointing out that the “ivory” and “silver” were unlikely to be real.
On the sides of the street behind the stalls are some haphazardly organized shops, and one of them houses a massive array of warrior and Buddha statues. We were amazed at the price of a pair of stone warriors — 40,000 yuan — but the shop keeper again refused to budge. He also asked if we’d like to pay for the monstrosities in US dollars.
An old wooden chest of drawers with small cupboards was more reasonably priced at 2,800 yuan (before any attempt at bargaining) and would make a nice addition to any home short of storage space. Shopping in an area like Dongtai Road Antique Market takes a great deal of patience and effort but with the right eye for design and a creative flair, it is possible to furnish your home quite cheaply and elegantly with items carefully selected from this incredible assortment of goods.