皇冠体育app

Culture Minister Ed Vaizey has placed a temporary export bar on a North Italian Empire Athenienne.听 This will provide a last chance to raise the money to keep the piece in the UK.听

皇冠体育app Minister鈥檚 ruling follows a recommendation by the , administered by . 皇冠体育app Committee recommended that the export decision be deferred on the grounds that the athenienne is of outstanding aesthetic importance and of outstanding significance for the study of 19th Century furniture, the influence of antique design and听 the study of the rise of Milan as a centre of design and manufacture in the early 19th Century.

This ornate wash basin on stand, known as an athenienne, was designed by Luigi Manfredini and made in Milan in 1813. Produced when Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte ruled much of Europe, this highly decorative object may possibly have been given to the French Imperial Family by Napoleon鈥檚 stepson, Eugene de Beauharnais, Viceroy of Italy. Made in the Neo-classical style it is based upon a Roman tripod stand discovered at Herculaneum on 18 July 1748 and is decorated with ormolu mounts and the vibrant blue stone lapis lazuli. 皇冠体育app stand is topped by a finely chased sliver-gilt bowl depicting the gods 鈥楴eptune and Amphitrite鈥�.听听

Philippa Glanville, Reviewing Committee member, said:

鈥淭his exquisite and impressive object is a fascinating example of the influence of antique design on Italian furniture and metalwork in the early 19th Century.鈥�

皇冠体育app decision on the export licence application for the athenienne will be deferred for a period ending on 3 January 2012 inclusive. This period may be extended until 3 May 2012 inclusive if a serious intention to raise funds with a view to making an offer to purchase the athenienne at the recommended price of 拢632,940 (inclusive of VAT) is expressed.听

Anyone interested in making an offer to purchase the athenienne should contact the owner鈥檚 agent through:
听
皇冠体育app Secretary
皇冠体育app Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest
Arts Council England
14 Great Peter Street
London
SW1P 3NQ

Tel: 020 7973 5259

Anyone interested in making a matching offer who requires further information from the Champion about the athenienne should contact 皇冠体育app Secretary to the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest at the above address.

Notes to听Editors

1. For all media enquiries please contact Emma Russell, Media Relations Officer,听 Arts Council England on听 0207 973 6890, email: [email protected]

2. For enquiries on the operation of and casework arising from the work of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA) please contact Peter Rowlands, RCEWA Secretary, on 020 7973 5259, email [email protected]

3. 皇冠体育app Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest is an independent body, serviced by Arts Council England, which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on whether a cultural object, intended for export, is of national importance under specified criteria. Where the Committee finds that an object meets one or more of the criteria, it will normally recommend that the decision on the export licence application should be deferred for a specified period. An offer may then be made from within the United Kingdom at or above the recommended fair market price.

4. 皇冠体育app details of the athenienne are: * A North Italian Empire Ormolu, Silver-Gilt and Lapis Lazuli Athenienne * By Luigi Manfredini, Milan, dated 1813, the Silver-Gilt听 Basin marked for Milan, circa 1813 * 81 cm high * 42 cm wide (overall) * 37 cm diameter (bowl)

5. can be found in the Christie鈥檚听auction catalogue.

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