Mao Zedong autograph on the inside cover of the 1942 book, The New Democracy that was auctioned off for $220,000 on Wednesday. (Photo: Alexander Historical Auctions)

A rare book, The New Democracy, inscribed and signed by Mao Zedong, was auctioned for $220,000 by a US auction house on Wednesday.

The book was auctioned off by the Alexander Historical Auctions in Chesapeake City, Maryland on Wednesday.

The book was inscribed at the height of World War II by Communist leader Mao Zedong, commonly known as Chairman Mao, which was presented to a French aristocrat fleeing the Japanese assault on Beijing.

Mao signed in Chinese characters with a calligraphy brush on the inside cover of the book, saying, "Let us unite with all democratic countries to conquer the Japanese-Italian-German fascism and build a new world of peace and democracy. MaoTse-Tung." The dedication was called "stunning" on the auctioneer's website.

According to the auctioneer's website, the piece was discovered buried in an English autograph collector's holdings, and was last seen publicly when it was sold 40 years ago by respected American dealer Paul Richards (1939-1993).

Auctioneer Bill Panagopulos, president of the auction house, describes the book as "impossibly rare" in an email sent to the Global Times on November 1. He said, "Pieces signed by Mao, especially his works and with inscriptions of this quality, appear on the market only a few times every decade. Nevertheless, the signed items of Mao, as one of the most important statesmen of all time, remain in great demand."