Tycoon pays record for 'Truffle of Century'

0 Comments | AFP, December, 2007

HONG KONG (AFP) — Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho pipped a host of other celebrity bidders with a world-record 330,000 US dollars for one of the largest truffles ever discovered.

With his wife Angela taking his bids over the phone, Ho kept his nerve to take home the 1.5-kilo (3.3 pound) "Truffle of the Century" on Saturday night in an auction held at his Grand Lisboa casino.

The sale of the white truffle was conducted simultaneously in Italy and Britain, where -- according to the South China Morning Post -- one of the losing bidders was British artist Damien Hirst.

The fungus -- known as a tuber magnatum pico -- was found in Italy's Tuscany region last month.

The largest ever found was a 2.5 kilogramme truffle discovered in 1954 and presented to...