States have the right to act in preventing the sale of an object of doubtful origin without the risk of being sued for commercial damages.
Figurine of a horse, geometric period, c. 8th century BC.
Howard and Saretta Barnet collection, Monday 14 May 2018, Sotheby’s New York.
The archaeology market could suffer from the ramifications of a court case Sotheby's recently lost in New York. The company had to withdraw an 8 th -century Corinthian bronze horse (estimated at $150,000/250,000) from the Barnet collection sale, advertised on May 14, 2018. Three days earlier, Greece had sent a letter claiming restitution. The piece did not have an impeccable record, it is true, because it came from Robyn Simes. This elegant London dealer was the linchpin of a network involved in serious looting in the Mediterranean during the last quarter of the 20 th century, along with his companion Christo Michaelides and the traffickers Gianfranco Becchina and Giacomo Medici. Sotheby’s acknowledged the facts, but countered that Howard Barnet had bought…
com.dsi.gazette.Article : 15463
This article is for subscribers only
You still have 85% left to read.
Print the article
