Lim reports the two animal figural heads are among 700 works in the Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge Collection expected to raise as much as 300 million euros ($389 million), according to a Christie’s statement from September. The proceeds will help set up a foundation for AIDS research.
Lim reports “For each and every item in this collection there is a clear legal title,” Christie’s said in a statement e-mailed today in response to inquiries from Bloomberg News. “We strictly adhere to any and all local and international laws.”
Any lawsuit would be filed in the French courts, Liu said. The lawyers seek to block the sale first and ultimately to repatriate the items. The auction will be held at the Grand Palais.
The 1995 United Nations Unidroit Convention limits claims on stolen cultural artifacts to within 50 years of their theft.
All the bronze heads are among 12 zodiac animals from a water-clock fountain in Yuanmingyuan, or the Imperial Summer Palace. The palace was set ablaze and its treasures plundered and scattered by British and French troops in October 1860.
A previous sale in 2007 contained a tiger head from the same foundation and was purchased for $8.9 million and donated back to China. Given the statute of limitations appears to have past (50 years), it is interesting that in this case China is suing, instead of bidding.
To read the full article, click HERE.
No comments:
Post a Comment