There has been a great deal of controversy in the news in the past week with regards to three unrelated auction house events, including Christie’s auction of “national treasures” originally looted from Beijing in 1860, India’s attempt to halt the sale of Mohandas Gandhi memorabilia scheduled for auction today by Antiquorum, and Julien’s Auctions upcoming sale of Michael Jackson memorabilia (which today Jackson is threatening with lawsuit). None of the efforts have deterred the auction houses from proceeding with the sales.
Christie’s & China: “Illegal” Auction of Stolen Artifacts
Last week Christie’s held their “Collection of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé at the Grand Palais“, on February 23-25. Including in the offering were two bronze statues which each realized more than $20 million dollars at auction:
Lot 677 | Sale 1209 “TRES RARE ET IMPORTANTE TETE DE RAT”
Lot 678 | Sale 1209 “TRES RARE ET IMPORTANTE TETE DE LAPIN”
The BBC has provided excellent reporting on the conflict and controversy in the auctioning of these artifacts.
February 20, 2009: China tries to stop Paris auction
The BBC reported that China applied for an injunction with a Paris court to stop the sale of the two 18th Century bronze statues – a rabbit’s head and a rat’s head – which were owned by fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent who died last year. Beijing claims that the artifacts were stolen from the Old Summer Palace in 1860 along with 10 other pieces during the Second Opium War with French and British armies. China contends that they should be returned and kept with five of the other statues which have been recovered and placed on exhibit in a museum in Beijing.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said selling the two heads “offends the Chinese people and undermines their cultural rights”.
Christie’s has said that Yves Saint Laurent acquired the items legally and insisted earlier this month that the sale would go ahead.
February 26, 2009: China condemns Christie’s auction
The BBC reported that China’s “State Administration of Cultural Heritage resolutely opposes and condemns all auctions of artefacts illegally taken abroad,” the agency said in a statement posted on its website. “Christie’s must take responsibility for the consequences created by this auction.”
The cultural heritage agency said it had “pressed for the withdrawal of these Summer Palace relics”.
“But Christie’s took its own course and insisted on auctioning the relics looted from the Summer Palace in breach of the spirit of international pacts and the consensus on the return of such artefacts to their original countries,” it said.
The Chinese heritage administration said the auction would bring repercussions as it had “harmed the cultural rights and national feeling of the Chinese people”.
“This will have a serious impact on its development in China,” it said in the statement to the official newspaper of the ruling Communist Party.
In a separate statement, it said new limits would be imposed on what Christie’s could take in or out of China.
Christie’s said it regretted Beijing’s “reprisal measures”.
“We continue to believe that sale by public auction offers the best opportunity for items to be repatriated as a result of worldwide exposure.”
March 2, 2009: China ‘patriot’ sabotages auction
The BBC reported this week that Cai Mingchao, the Chinese man who won both auctions for the two stolen artifacts claimed by China, states that he will not pay for them. Mingchao is an adviser to China’s National Treasures Fund that has made efforts to retrieve the looted artwork.
Christie’s maintains that the sale was legal, which was reinforced by the French court.
“As a matter of policy, we do not comment on the identity of our consignors or buyers, nor do we comment or speculate on the next steps that we might take in this instance,” it said in a statement.
The BBC articles states that Yves Saint Laurent’s partner, Pierre Berge, would keep the statues if Mingchao does not pay.
“I’ll keep them at my place,” he told French radio. “We will continue to live together in my home.”
Antiquorum & India: Delhi High Court Orders Halt to Sale of Mohandas Gandhi Memorabilia
The L.A. Times reported yesterday that India made a last-minute attempt to halt the sale of Mohandas Gandhi memorabilia scheduled for sale by Antiquorum in New York yesterday and today. India argues that the pieces are part of the nation’s heritage, but the auction house has elected to proceed with the sale of the items, noting the controversy could result in record prices.
The L. A. Times offers full coverage of the story (India’s attempt to stop Gandhi auction rejected):
The pieces at auction include Gandhi’s Zenith pocket watch, his steel-rimmed glasses, sandals, and a brass bowl and plate, which are owned and consigned by James Otis, a documentary filmmaker. The Times reports that he bought the items from the Gandhi family or at auctions, selling them now in part because he hoped publicity surrounding the sale would inspire the Obama administration and others to pursue nonviolence.
The owner states that officials at the Indian Consulate in New York threatened to seek a court order for his arrest, give his name to Interpol or bar him from visiting India if he proceeded with the auction. “The implication was if I went [to India] I would be thrown in jail,” he said. “I’m following Gandhi’s footsteps.” Otis has pledged to give most of the proceeds to groups espousing nonviolence.
The L.A. Times reports that Tushar Gandhi, Gandhi’s great-grandson, has led the campaign to return the items to India and called the auction “reprehensible”; he has tried to raise money to buy the collection.
The modest estimate on the collection is $20,000 – $30,000, but it is expected to sell for much more.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Julian Schaerer, Antiquorum’s watch expert and auctioneer. “Of course, as is always the case with news, when people talk about it, it generates more interest.”
The Delhi High Court ordered a halt to the auction, although it’s not clear what jurisdiction it has over commercial activities in New York and it did not give a public explanation for its actions.
Antiquorum Auction 212 | Lot 364 “Mahatma Gandhi’s Pocketwatch Formely owned by Mahatma Gandhi…”
Julien’s Auctions & Michael Jackson: Lawsuit Over “Neverland” Memorabilia Sale
Today, TMZ.com broke news today about Michael Jackson threatening lawsuit over the Julien’s Auction event in April offering more than 2,000 items personally owned by the pop star from his Neverland Ranch.
FoxNews.com offers more coverage of the story (Jacko’s Final Curtain Call?):
Fox News speculates that the prospects of Jackson raising money from his pending performances has prompted the threat of lawsuit against Julien’s Auction to stop the sale of his memorabilia that was arranged by Jackson’s advisor when he has suffering financial difficulties. Fox reports Jackson now claims he never authorized the sale and that he was “conned and lied to by Darren Julien”.
Fox quoted Darren Julien from this morning: “We can’t believe this happened. We have a contract with Michael, and I’ve spoken to him directly. We’ve provided him with several inventories of the items removed from Neverland – at his request. Any time he’s asked for anything back or removed from the auction, we’ve sent it right back.”
When Mr. Julien was contacted by Jackson’s adviser, who explained that Neverland had to have all contents removed, Julien sent 10 semi’s to the ranch and the auction house staff inventoried the collection, sent copies to Jackson, and began work on the catalogs, which are currently online and should be available in hardcopy form shortly for the sale April 22-25, 2009.
Fox reports that Julien is not concerned about the lawsuit, which has been filed but not served, and that he plans to proceed with the auction.
Prevailing Auction House Trend: The Sale Will Go On
Though all three stories are entirely unrelated and involve three independent auction houses, the one trend that emerges from all of the controversy is that, at least in these cases, no legal, moral, or political action or argument appears to have had an impact on the sale/attempted sale of these items.
Jason De Bord
Jason DeBord, Original Prop Blog