"He said because he was not a well-trained professional for authenticating cultural relics, he bought real and quality items, but sometimes he was cheated."

The way Zhang Naiqi became discerning was to learn from historians, scholars and senior collectors, such as Sun Yingzhou and Zhang Boju.

His exchanges with them in return helped enrich his collection.

He also befriended reliable antique dealers who would contact him when they found quality goods.

Zhang Lifan says his father ordered a lot of boxes to store the objects and together with them, he attached a note of the basic information, his views and sometimes the appraisal opinions of other collectors.

Zhang Naiqi once said: "These antiquities constitute an indispensable part of my spiritual life. They are the incarnations of Chinese art and culture. They are good teachers who help me improve cultural attainment."

Zhang Lifan says collecting is a process where people own something once, but not for ever.

"If you are lucky to have antique objects, you gain great pleasure in handling them, and that's all a collector can ask for."

If you go

9 am-5 pm, Mondays closed. 16 East Chang'an Avenue, Dongcheng district, Beijing. 010-6511-6400.