Law, crime and regulation

An art dealership that sold a portrait of Napoleon’s brother-in-law to The Frick Collection in New York has strongly criticised Italy’s decision to retrospectively rescind its export licence.

MADAM – Your news story (‘Ivory removed from Chippendale before sale’, ATG No 2356) draws attention to the deliberate and unforgivable removal of original ivory elements from an important commode by Thomas Chippendale, England’s most famous cabinet maker.

BADA and LAPADA have alerted their members that any business with an annual taxable turnover more than the VAT registration threshold (currently £85,000) should keep digital records.

Our story last week revealed that ivory elements of an important piece of Chippendale furniture, the Rowland Winn commode made c.1766, were removed for its appearance at a Christie’s auction earlier this year, the commode having been imported from the US.

Ivory elements of an important piece of Chippendale furniture were removed prior to its appearance at auction earlier this year, ATG has learned.

A leading US culture lawyer has testified at Washington, DC trade hearings about how a Chinese art import tariff would have a negative effect on small and medium-sized US dealers.

Trade associations have defended the current firearms laws in the UK amid accusations on a BBC Panorama programme of a ‘loophole’ in gun control.

MADAM – ATG letter correspondents Peter Cameron and Gavin Littaur (ATG Nos 2353, 2355) have hit the nail on the head in many ways.

Copyright can be a minefield for original works when others claim it was based on their initial creations

Silver dealer Michael Baggott is appealing to the trade to help in the documentation of antique ivory objects after the proposed legislation becomes law.

MADAM – A friend in the trade asked me over a year ago, ‘what will you do if antiques containing ivory are made illegal?’. Since then I’ve given it serious thought. What can any of us do?

MADAM – Peter Cameron writes in ATG No 2353 that only 691 people have signed the ivory petition [now at 1688 as we go to press], that a response from the government requires 10,000 signatures, and that 100,000 are needed to raise a parliamentary debate.