is an ancient art in China and finely worked pieces, whether elaborate depictions of traditional Buddhist scenes or more simple seals and chopsticks, are prized by collectors.
The shop did very little business and the pair appeared to have little understanding of the timber trade, the report said, citing other timber traders in the market. But the younger son was soon driving a new luxury car and bought a flat near the market. They uncovered almost 2,000 pieces of ivory and two rhino horns concealed inside custom-made wooden crates hidden in containers behind tight stacks of heavy timber planks.
“The Chen [group] used longer, more expensive shipping routes with multiple transit points, to re-export shipments with ‘new’ bills of lading and obscure the originating port in Africa,” the report said.