Imagine: A 1,000-year-old carved rock crystal ewer, one of only seven known surviving examples, will be offered Christie's Islamic art sale next month. It's expected to bring over $5 million (U.S.)

Made for the court of the Fatimid rulers of Cairo in the late 10th or early 11th century, carved out of a single piece of hollowed-out rock crystal and later embellished in enameled gold mounts (1854) by a French silversmith.

The last time this ewer was bid on, it reached more than 1000 times its presale estimate. Well, the estimate is set pretty high this time, due to the more accurate description, I'm sure. This is truly a historic treasure.