May 2013 - Page 19 of 19 - Auction Central News

Protestors rally against looting ancient Egyptian necropolis

Snofru's Bent Pyramid lies just beyond the disputed cemetery. Image by Michael Hoefner. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.

Pharaoh Sneferu's Bent Pyramid, Dahshur. Photo by Michael Hoefner, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license. — Pharaoh Sneferu’s Bent Pyramid, Dahshur. Photo by Michael Hoefner, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.

DAHSHUR, Egypt (AP) – Egyptian youths protested Monday at a key historic site, demanding that authorities put a stop to looting and construction that threatens one of the nation’s oldest pyramids and burial grounds.

Illegal construction of a new cemetery has been going on for months in part of a 4,500-year-old pharaonic necropolis. The expansion has encroached on the largely unexplored complex of Dahshur, where Pharaoh Sneferu experimented with the first smooth-sided pyramids that his son Khufu, also known as Cheops, employed at the more famous Giza Plateau nearby, when he built the Great Pyramid.

Authorities issued an order in January to remove the construction equipment, instructing the Interior Ministry’s police to implement it, but no action has been taken.

Also, a security vacuum that followed Egypt’s 2011 popular uprising has encouraged looters to step up their illegal digs, clashing with guards at the site.

On Monday, dozens of young protesters at the site about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Cairo held up a sign that read: “God does not bless a nation that gives up its heritage.”

Ramadan Mohammed, a 20-year old student from the nearby village of Mansheyet Dahshur, said he witnessed looting himself. He said he wanted to show that Dahshur residents were not responsible and should not to be blamed.

“I’m here to see the government’s response,” Mohammed said, with the shadow of Pharaoh Sneferu’s Bent Pyramid looming in the background. “The military was in control of the country all this past period, they should have protected the site and caught the looters. Instead, they stood there doing nothing,” he complained.

Antiquities experts warn that construction of the new cemetery also endangers the ancient complex.

Villagers say their cemeteries are full, but authorities do not give permits or land for new ones, so they grabbed what they insist is empty desert land to erect family tombs.

The area, designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage site, also includes the adjacent Valley Temple and the 3,800-year-old Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III.

Nearby is Sneferu’s Bent Pyramid, some 700 years older, with its distinctive bent sides believed to have been caused when the builders had to correct the angle halfway through construction. Farther away is the Red Pyramid, where Sneferu’s builders got the angles right, producing the first smooth-sided pyramid, evolving from the stepped structures built by earlier dynasties.

Antiquity restoration specialist Marwa el-Zeini, who was at the protest, blamed authorities for failing to stop the cemetery construction.

Mohamed Youssef, head of antiquities for Dahshur, dismissed the protest as a media stunt.

Monica Hanna, an independent archaeologist who has worked at Dahshur, praised the local initiative.

“It’s the first time the local community is taking a step forward, rather than the academics,” Hanna said. “Previously, it would always appear that the academics were against the residents.”

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ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Reading the Streets: ‘Inside Out’ by JR

‘Inside Out’ by JR, New York, Photo by Ilana Novick.

NEW YORK – For those who have entertained Broadway dreams but lacked the skills or the nerve to get on stage, Inside Out, a large-scale participatory art project from French street artist JR might be the next best thing.

JR installed a specially made photo booth truck smack in the middle of pedestrian-friendly Duffy Square, allowing the countless people who pass through the busy Broadway area every day to be a little less anonymous, at least through May 10 when the exhibit ends.

The booth produces a 3-by-4 poster-size portrait. The black-and-white posters are then overlaid on a backdrop designed by JR, creating an all-photo plaza. If a recent Wednesday evening visit was any indication, is a hit with visitors and residents alike, with lines extending the length of the plaza. The photo booth does great work; everyone in the pictures—whether serious or silly—looked very good.

The project, which has been done in cities around the world before coming to New York, was a result of JR winning the TED prize in 2011. He used the prize money to arrange an exhibit where the visitors become the artists, and he more of the curator, providing a canvas and some structure for the viewers, but ultimately allowing them to become both artist and subject, with some help from the photo booth truck.

The New York debut of Inside Out also follows the Tribeca Film Festival premier of a documentary, Inside Out: The People’s Art Project, on JR’s experience bringing the exhibit around the world. Those who can’t make it to Duffy Square or to the festival can watch documentary on HBO on May 20 at 9 p.m.

ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE

‘Inside Out’ by JR, New York, Photo via Insideoutproject.net/en.

‘Inside Out’ by JR, Nablus, West Bank. Photo by JR via http://www.minispace.com/en_us/magazine/article/JR_magician/662/

Intriguing paintings highlight Roland auction May 4

A. Carrier, cherub sculpture. Roland Auction image.

NEW YORK – Roland Auction of New York City will conduct their May Estate Auction on Saturday, May 4, at 11 a.m. EDT, (8 a.m. Pacific). LiveAuctioneer.com will provide Internet live bidding.

The sale features a fine selection of fine and decorative arts from many New York City as well as surrounding area estates. “We’ve seen a wide variety of antiques and modern design come in for this sale,” said co-owner Robert Roland, “and we’re particularly excited about the exceptional art we’ll be selling on the fourth.”

Some highlights from the outstanding fine art collection include a large Isador Verheyden oil on canvas, lot 301, titled Lisiere de Foret (Automne), painted in a particularly lovely and serene palette. In contrast, a bold and colorful Lawrence Lebduska painting, lot 491, of horses at a watering hole panicking at the sight of a coiled snake offers a very different experience to the viewer. Another intriguing scene is the oil on board composition by Louis Elshemius, lot 411, which depicts a group of mystical nudes floating in a surreal landscape. In addition to these interesting works is a collection of Old Master oil paintings signed or attributed to David Teniers, Koekkoek, Jan Brueghel the Elder and other noteworthy artists. Fine sculpture will also be highlighted and the A. Carrier cherubic figural group, lot 516, is already getting lots of attention.

Several pieces of stylish mid-century modern furniture are in the highly anticipated sale along with fine antique offerings, such as the G. Durand ormolu mounted tulipwood parquetry table, lot 401.

There is a host of fine and costume jewelry, silver and wonderful decorations to choose from and it looks like another memorable auction at the popular family owned Roland Auction.

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Isidoor Verheyden, oil on canvas, 'Lisiere de Foret (Automne).' Roland Auction image. — Isidoor Verheyden, oil on canvas, ‘Lisiere de Foret (Automne).’ Roland Auction image.

G. Durand ormolu mounted writing table. Roland Auction image.

First Australian banknote offered privately for $3.6 million

The first banknote of the Commonwealth of Australia, Serial Number M000001, issued May 1, 1913. Image courtesy of Coinworks.

SYDNEY (AFP) – Australia’s first banknote, printed 100 years ago and found in a letter in England in 1999, has gone on sale for Aus$3.5 million (US$3.6 million), auctioneers said Wednesday.

The 10-shilling note, with the serial number M000001, was issued on May 1, 1913 and presented by Prime Minister Andrew Fisher to Judith Denman, the five-year-old daughter of the governor-general at the time, Lord Denman.

It was discovered in 1999, nearly 12 years after Denman died when her effects were being sorted out, and acquired by a private collector in Sydney for Aus$1 million in 2000.

It then sold at auction in 2008 for Aus$1.9 million.

Melbourne dealer Coinworks, which is handling the sale, said the note symbolised one of the most important periods in the country’s history — the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901.

Coinworks chief executive Belinda Downie said that after consulting with experts, her expectation was that it would sell for at least Aus$3.5 million, which would be the highest price paid for an Australian coin or banknote.

“It would be by far the highest price paid,” she told AFP, adding that private collectors and institutions were expected to show interest.

“I would love it to be on permanent display somewhere as it is a great piece of Australian history and everyone should savor it. It is unique,” she said.

The note was the initiative of the prime minister of the day, Fisher, and his Labor government who wanted post-colonial Australia to have a better sense of national identity.

Fisher’s other nation-building initiatives included the establishment of a government-owned bank, the Commonwealth Bank, the introduction of Commonwealth postage, and the founding of the capital Canberra.

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