A stolen calligraphy album by ancient Chinese philosopher Zhu Xi has finally been recovered and three people arrested on suspicion of theft, Beijing police announced on Wednesday.

The album, which was set to go under the hammer for a base price of 3 million yuan (US$360,000) in December last year, disappeared as it was being shown at the Asian Hotel a couple of days before the auction.

Local police did not immediately release news of the incident, but word got out when its absence was noticed among the 1,880 lots, which included curios, ancient writings and paintings. Known as "Master Zhu," Zhu was the considered the most important person in Confucianism after Confucius and Mencius in ancient China. His interpretations were considered orthodox Confucian thinking during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties (1279-1911).

The stolen work is a poem written by Zhu in 1182 to celebrate two of his followers passing imperial civil examinations.

Yi Suhao, general manager of Zhongmao Shengjia International Auction Co Ltd, said there are only two copies of the poem still in existence. The other is in the Taipei Palace Museum collection.

"The album was in the possession of a collector in Hong Kong. He wants it to go back to the mainland by auction," said Yi.

Liu Ruibin, head of the Dongcheng Branch of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, said local police had questioned more than 100 people at the hotel on the day it was stolen.

Beijinger Diao Chongjing was arrested after allegedly admitting he took the work while guards were not looking.

On December 15, Diao and an accomplice allegedly hid the volume in a church in downtown Beijing.

(China Daily January 6, 2005)