Drilled vase gets £25,000 at sale :

A rare 250-year-old Chinese vase worth £50,000 in mint condition has sold for £25,000 after a hole was drilled in its base so it could be used as a lamp.
The porcelain, which dates from 1736 to 1796, was sold at a Dorset auctioneers to an anonymous private collector.
The seller's great-grandfather was believed to have bought the vase in the Far East in the early 20th Century.
The family, from south-west London, did not realise its value and made an 0.3in (8mm) hole to use it as a table lamp.
The vase was used as a lamp in the family's home for 40 years and the seller's great aunt carried on using it to light her West Country cottage.

It was also revealed that if its matching vase had not been lost, the undamaged pair would have had a value of £250,000.