CITES mammoth ivory rules on hold
A proposal to regulate the trade of woolly mammoth ivory was withdrawn from the global CITES summit (Conference of the Parties) in Geneva last week. Delegates at the international conference on the trade of endangered species instead agreed to consider the question again in three years after gathering results from a study into the effect of the mammoth ivory trade on global ivory markets.
The proposal to regulate the trade in ivory from the extinct species had been put forward by Israel as many conservationists argue mammoth ivory is hard to distinguish from the elephant variety and has been used as a cover to sell the latter, helping to fuel modern elephant poaching.
The 1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) regulates the buying and selling of animal and plant species at risk of extinction around the world.
New joiners at two auction houses
Silas Currie has joined Dreweatts as a senior valuer to oversee the auction house’s online sales. He joins from Bellmans.
Currie previously worked with Dreweatts’ managing director Jonathan Pratt at both Phillips and Bellmans. Joining on September 9, he will work with Dreweatts’ valuation and specialist departments to focus on digital growth and Dreweatts’ online sales.
Asian art appointment
Grace Tu has joined Lyon & Turnbull as head of Asian art, operating out of its London office.
Grace Tu has joined Lyon & Turnbull.
She will lead its four annual Asian Works of Art auctions and specialist valuations services. Her first sale will be L&T’s Edinburgh auction of Asian Works of Art on October 15.
Green is good says new ATG survey
The results of a new survey highlighting the green and sustainable credentials of buying second-hand goods including antique and vintage items has been published by Antiques Trade Gazette’s parent company Auction Technology Group.
Among the findings, the survey revealed that although 40% of respondents buy second-hand items at least once a month, 45% of those surveyed were unaware that new furniture has a higher carbon footprint than second-hand items.
John-Paul Savant, CEO at ATG, said: “Brits have a healthy appetite for buying second-hand when the opportunity presents itself, which is good news. With the right information about the environmental benefits, too, that trend is only set to continue.”
ATG runs online auction marketplaces thesaleroom.com, i-bidder.com, BidSpotter.co.uk and lot-tissimo.com.
Happy ending for stolen medal tale
A medal made from the first silver mined on Sark has been returned to Guernsey almost half a century after it was stolen from the Lukis and Island Museum. Missing since 1970, it came to light in an old collection handled by numismatic auction house Baldwin’s of St James’s.
The Channel Islands medal returned to a Guernsey museum nearly 50 years after being stolen.
Consultant Daniel Fearon traced its history and arranged its return. “There are not enough ‘happy endings’ when it comes to the theft of small items, especially after a 50-year wait,” he said.
As detailed by a presentation inscription, the medal (hallmarked for Charles Eley, London, 1836) had been a gift from John Hunt, an English engineer who formed the Guernsey and Sark Mining Company, the Hope Copper Mine and the Herm Mining Company. The recipient was Charles de Jersey Esq, the King’s Procureur for the Island of Guernsey, whose great-grandson had given it to the museum in 1956.
The remainder of the collection will be sold by Baldwin’s as part of a Coinex auction on September 25-26.
Tiara trio stars in new Downton film
Three antique tiaras from jewellery dealer Bentley & Skinner will feature in the new Downton Abbey film released in cinemas on September 13.
This c.1900 Edwardian diamond tiara set with old brilliant-cut and rose-cut diamonds is estimated to weigh a total of 8cts. It is worn by Lady Cora, played by Elizabeth McGovern, in the new Downton Abbey film.
The Mayfair dealership supplied the pieces for the film of the historical drama which follows the lives of the Crawley family and their servants in the family’s Edwardian country house.
The items featured are a Victorian diamond foliate tiara worn by Dowager Countess played by Maggie Smith; a late Victorian diamond tiara worn by Lady Edith played by Laura Carmichael; and an Edwardian diamond tiara worn by Lady Cora played by Elizabeth McGovern.
Most read
The most viewed stories for week August 22-28 on antiquestradegazette.com
1 Viewers of Fake or Fortune? wait a year to discover Giacometti sculpture knocked over by a cat is the real thing at £500,000
2 Contents from Shropshire’s 18th century stately home Mawley Hall come fresh to the market at Cheffins
3 Bought for £1 in a charity shop, will Chinese vase be worth £80,000?
4 Emmerdale actor’s Modern art collection comes to auction
5 Arts & Crafts curtains, Chippendale-style chairs and a naval officer’s sword – five auction highlights that caught bidders’ eyes
In Numbers
$57
The price per share that Patrick Drahi will pay to acquire Sotheby’s if investors approve the deal to sell the company this week. This represents a premium of 61% to the share price on June 14, the day before the deal was announced.
