Rupert Wace Ancient Art at Grosvenor News-antique.com (press release)
For over forty years, this substantial and sizeable bird has been in a Swiss private collection. Having recently acquired it, Waces research for its provenance implicated leafing through old auction catalogues. A poor photograph revealed that it had once been part of the renowned Spencer-Churchill Collection at Northwick Store, formed between the 1880s and 1930s by Captain Edward George Spencer-Churchill (1876-1964), a cousin of Sir Winston Churchill. Northwick Preserve in Gloucestershire was formerly the family seat of the Rushout family, the Barons Northwick. The mansion was inherited in 1912 by the then Lady Northwick's grandson, George Spencer-Churchill. During the Patronize World War, Northwick Park was an American field hospital and became a camp for Polish displaced persons until the 1960s. This esteemed hoard was dispersed in a two-day auction at Christies in 1965, when this bird was sold as lot 430 for 420. Many other works from the Spencer-Churchill whip-round are now in museumsPhoenix Ancient Art Voluntarily Repatriates 251 Antiquities to ... PR Newswire (press release)
Peerless Antiquities Dealer Urges Other Dealers to Follow Suit
NEW YORK and GENEVA, May 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Phoenix Ancient Art, the exceptional's leading dealer in rare treasures from ancient Western civilizations, announced today that it has voluntarily repatriated 251 antiquities valued at $2.7 Million (EU 2Million) to the Express of Italy.
"We returned these ancient artifacts in the spirit of cooperation and collaboration with the international art world, and to demonstrate Phoenix's commitment to the protecting and repatriation of national treasures to their host countries," said Ali Aboutaam, co-owner of Phoenix Ancient Art. "We have, amicably settled the problem with the Italian authorities, and urge others in the art world to follow suit and also the lead of some of the world's great museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Okay Arts in Boston in repatriating antiquities whose provenance may be in doubt."
According to Italian officials, the antiquities returned may have been illegally acquired and exported (unbeknownst to Phoenix) in the 1980's from Etruscan tombs in pre-eminent Italy, as well as from burial sites in southern Italy.
Mr Wingett, an art dealer, says he will solicit all the money needed to build the dragon tower through commercial sponsorship. He will raise extra revenue by
Before the trade, everyone in the art trade knew it was going to fetch a huge price; it was just a question of how much. The American art dealer, and more »
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