2013

Statute of limitations laws may prevent previous owners successfully reclaiming art acquired during the Nazi purge of the late 1930s that was hoarded in a Munich flat.

LAPADA have secured Sir Stuart Rose, former chairman and chief executive of Marks & Spencer and current chairman of Ocado, as the keynote speaker at their next conference on February 24.

An extremely rare 1700-year-old Roman gold coin discovered by a metal detecting enthusiast in South Wiltshire is expected to fetch up to £30,000 at an auction in London.

Jewellery worth between £10,000 and £15,000 has been stolen from Harrogate Antiques Centre.

Even before the latest Russian art sales in London started this week, the enormous sums of money being spent in this sector became evident when Sotheby’s announced the private sale of their two star lots in advance of their auctions.

The most expensive printed book sold at auction will go on display to the public after the buyer pledged to lend it to libraries across the US before putting it on permanent loan at one of them.

Oliver Barker is to take over responsibility for evening Contemporary art sales for Sotheby’s in New York and London following the departure of Tobias Meyer.

This cased Austro-Hungarian gold and enamel brooch/pendant with a diamond-set monogram and coronet was the gift of Archduke Franz Ferdinand to Mary Marshall, the head housekeeper at Welbeck Abbey, country residence of the Dukes of Portland, from the 1890s until her retirement in 1923.

‘The Pink Star’ – a 59.60-carat oval cut pink diamond – sold for $83m (£55m) at Sotheby’s Geneva on November 13, an auction record for any gemstone or jewel.

When, in 1854, William Holman Hunt decided to leave England to further his religious painting in Syria, John Everett Millais was distraught at the prospect of losing the only friend he entirely trusted.

Talks have begun once more on creating a national stolen property database to tackle the £300m problem of heritage and cultural property crime.

EDITOR’S COMMENT – In 2001, I had the privilege of being the first journalist to quiz the then arts minister, Alan Howarth, on recommendations submitted by an expert panel investigating measures for tackling the illicit trade in cultural goods.

Cheshire auctioneers Adam Partridge set a house record when this newly discovered copy of the Passover Haggadah written and illuminated by the celebrated 18th century scribe Aaron Wolf Herlingen sold for £210,000.

The entire contents of a West Yorkshire bookshop containing over 30,000 books are to go under the hammer with the bidding opening at just £1.

From November 28 to December 1 Sotheby’s will hold the series of private and public sales they have dubbed ‘Beijing Art Week’. It is the largest event Sotheby’s have held in China.

Spink have decided to give up their retail coins operation in order to focus all efforts on auctions and private treaty sales.

The Royal Academy has outlined its masterplan for what it is calling the most significant revamp since it moved to Piccadilly in 1869.

The Stanley Gibbons Group have successfully completed their acquisition of Noble Investments (UK) PLC.

The sale by Christie’s of 24 items of Chinese ceramics from Croydon’s Riesco Collection will go ahead after a legal challenge failed through lack of funds.

An auction record was set at Christie’s last week when Sir Stanley Spencer's (1891-1959) 'Christ Preaching at Cookham Regatta: Conversation Between Punts' sold at £5.3m.