Debt-burdened Texas town puts its prison on the market
By SOMMER INGRAM
The Dallas Morning News
Newly renovated complex on 30 acres. Almost 95,000 square feet. Concrete block housing, with brick veneer and pitch-seamed metal roofs. Includes a gymnasium and armory, along with furniture, computers, kitchen supplies. And complete with plenty of bars.
Prison bars.
Billed by the auction house as a "unique opportunity to acquire a turn-key medium security detention center," the facility in Littlefield, Texas - empty but with room for 373 inmates - will go to the highest bidder above the $5 million minimum.
While a jail auction is rare and has raised eyebrows, Littlefield's effort to free itself of the Bill Clayton Denton Center is a tale of speculation and ideas gone wrong.
The farming town northwest of Lubbock got into the jail business with expectations that states would pay to store their prisoners in the privately run jail, giving the economy a much-needed boost.
What they got was a slew of operational and financial headaches. The jail was built with an $11 million bond on which the city still owes millions that it is struggling to pay.
Littlefield is just one of a dozen towns across the state under financial duress because the hopeful predictions about bond-financed prisons fell short.
The best thing for Littlefield, said City Manager Danny Davis, "is to get out from under this debt so we can get back to some sort of normalcy."
And it's been a lesson learned, he said.
"Anytime we are signing up for a long-term agreement that looks good right now, we'll know we need to look further down the road," he said.
The market for a 30-acre prison might seem limited, but Jeff Conn, a Lubbock realtor who specializes in detention center facilities, said there is interest from other municipalities needing more space for inmates as well as private detention centers.
He said he knows of about six potential buyers and is confident the city will get the money it needs.
The property is posted on the website of the auctioneers, Williams & Williams Worldwide Real Estate Auctions based in Tulsa.
If the prison goes for $5 million, Littlefield will still owe about $4 million on the property. Davis said that would cut the city's annual bond payments by more than half.
Littlefield officials, hoping to bring jobs and revenue to the area, used bonds in 2000 to build the prison in an old cotton field just outside of town. They hired a private company, GEO Group, to run the jail and find prisoners, believing those contracts would repay the bonds and provide the city with extra revenue.
The center originally was built for juvenile offenders but converted to an adult facility with out-of-state inmates. But trouble abounded over the years, with guards helping prisoners escape and riots resulting in a facility lockdown. Then an inmate suicide two years ago was followed by a lawsuit.
The largest client - the state of Idaho - had enough. It pulled all of its inmates out, citing a budget crunch back home.
Not long after, the GEO Group announced it was leaving. With the prison population declining nationwide, the city wasn't able to find any inmates to fill the cells of the 5-pod detention center.
Since then, the city's bond rating has plunged, and it faces a $65,000-a-month payment. The cotton-growing town has raised property taxes, cut jobs and is running the city on a "bare bones budget" to get some of the money needed, Davis said.
"Nobody's happy when you have to cut services and raise taxes," he said. "It's not a good situation to be in."
Littlefield is not alone. Several other Texas towns that build prisons to be run by private companies have found the prisons to be financial drains.
Grassroots Leadership, a group that works to end for-profit private incarceration, said the Littlefield situation is another sign that for-profit prisons don't work.
Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/07/27/3041245/debt-burdened-texas-town-puts.html#ixzz1TVoRxvWl
Friday, 29 July 2011
Saturday, 23 July 2011
Hirohito's cigarette box turns up for sale in Cork
AN unusual gift presented to the wife of an American general by the Emperor of Japan after the second World War has unexpectedly turned up at an auction house in West Cork.
Hegarty’s fine art auctioneers in Bandon will tomorrow auction the oriental collection of the late Georgette Ellison, wife of a US General during post-war tours of duty in Asia. The most intriguing lot is a three-piece smoker’s set in silver and lacquer presented to Mrs Ellison by Hirohito who reigned from 1926 to 1989 and is known, since his death in Japan, as the Emperor Showa.
Japan fell under American military occupation following the war but the Emperor was allowed to remain on the throne although his divine status was annulled.
Auctioneer Margaret Hegarty said the smoker’s set, which consists of an ashtray and cigarette box on a matching tray, is estimated at €1,500-€2,500.
Other items from the collection – to be sold with low or no reserves – include Japanese netsuke (miniature sculptures), Satsuma pottery and jade pieces from the Chinese Qing and Han dynasties.
The auction also includes antique furniture, Irish silver and paintings and gets underway to-day, Sunday July 25th, at 4pm at Hegarty’s Auction Rooms, Parnell Business Park, the Bypass, Bandon, Co. Cork.
Hegarty’s fine art auctioneers in Bandon will tomorrow auction the oriental collection of the late Georgette Ellison, wife of a US General during post-war tours of duty in Asia. The most intriguing lot is a three-piece smoker’s set in silver and lacquer presented to Mrs Ellison by Hirohito who reigned from 1926 to 1989 and is known, since his death in Japan, as the Emperor Showa.
Japan fell under American military occupation following the war but the Emperor was allowed to remain on the throne although his divine status was annulled.
Auctioneer Margaret Hegarty said the smoker’s set, which consists of an ashtray and cigarette box on a matching tray, is estimated at €1,500-€2,500.
Other items from the collection – to be sold with low or no reserves – include Japanese netsuke (miniature sculptures), Satsuma pottery and jade pieces from the Chinese Qing and Han dynasties.
The auction also includes antique furniture, Irish silver and paintings and gets underway to-day, Sunday July 25th, at 4pm at Hegarty’s Auction Rooms, Parnell Business Park, the Bypass, Bandon, Co. Cork.
Wednesday, 20 July 2011
Historic Ibrox seat going up for auction
A seat from Ibrox stadium believed to date from the 1920s is being auctioned in Glasgow this week.
The oak and cast-iron seat was retrieved when the Glasgow Rangers' ground was being upgraded in the 1970s.
McTear's Auctioneers said it was hoped seat No 258 could fetch up to £300 on Thursday.
The lot has been put in by an anonymous seller. Valuers at the auction house said they quickly realised it was a rare piece of club memorabilia.
Brian Clements, from the auctioneers, said: "Over the years we have sold some fantastic pieces of sports memorabilia, including signed shirts, footballs and even Faberge eggs.
"But I can safely say this is the first time a stadium seat has come to auction.
"When the seller, who has asked to remain anonymous, brought it in, we quickly realised that this was a rare piece of memorabilia from a very important era in Rangers' history.
"I have no doubt it will attract a fair bit of interest at auction."
The furniture and collectables sale will be held at McTear's on Thursday.
The oak and cast-iron seat was retrieved when the Glasgow Rangers' ground was being upgraded in the 1970s.
McTear's Auctioneers said it was hoped seat No 258 could fetch up to £300 on Thursday.
The lot has been put in by an anonymous seller. Valuers at the auction house said they quickly realised it was a rare piece of club memorabilia.
Brian Clements, from the auctioneers, said: "Over the years we have sold some fantastic pieces of sports memorabilia, including signed shirts, footballs and even Faberge eggs.
"But I can safely say this is the first time a stadium seat has come to auction.
"When the seller, who has asked to remain anonymous, brought it in, we quickly realised that this was a rare piece of memorabilia from a very important era in Rangers' history.
"I have no doubt it will attract a fair bit of interest at auction."
The furniture and collectables sale will be held at McTear's on Thursday.
The diaries of Nazi war criminal Josef Mengele, are to be sold by auction in the US.
The diaries, written after the end of the Second World War when Mengele had fled to Latin America, contain his philosophical reflections, autobiographical stories and poems written between 1960 and 1975.
Thursday's auction will include some 3,500 pages from "hidden journals" written by the doctor who carried out terrible medical experiments on prisoners at Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
The items, mostly small, spiral-bound notebooks, are expected to fetch between £185,000 and £247,000 when they go under the hammer at Connecticut-based auctioneers Alexander Autographs.
The company, which specialises in historical manuscripts, said the auction would include an "historically important" lot of 31 manuscripts in various forms, including bound journals.
"All writings are penned in ink in a legible hand, in generally excellent condition," an auction house spokesman said.
"They were seized in 2004 by the police at the home of a German couple with whom he was living in Sao Paulo."
He added they were then given to Mengele's son, Rolf, who only saw his father twice in his life.
About 40% of the writings are autobiographical, tracing Mengele's flight across Europe in the aftermath of the war.
He talks of himself in the third person, referring to himself as "Andreas".
In one commentary, Mengele complains that sexual promiscuity has led "to a dreadful mixing of the races with the northern Europeans... when you start mixing the races, there is a decline in civilisation".
Mengele was a member of the Nazis' elite SS, which ran death camps across occupied Europe.
Based at Auschwitz from 1943, he helped supervise the selection of prisoners on arrival to death camps, sending those considered unfit for slave labour to be gassed with deadly Zyklon B.
He gained his notorious reputation due to his pseudo-medical experiments in the camp.
He fled Europe at the end of the war after Germany's defeat, reaching Argentina at the start of the 1950s.
He then moved to Paraguay in 1961 and then went on to Brazil, where he lived in Sao Paulo and remained uncaptured despite Interpol's best efforts, dying in 1979 at the age of 67.
His death was only confirmed in 1985, after his body was exhumed.
The diaries appeared some time after that.
Thursday's auction will include some 3,500 pages from "hidden journals" written by the doctor who carried out terrible medical experiments on prisoners at Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
The items, mostly small, spiral-bound notebooks, are expected to fetch between £185,000 and £247,000 when they go under the hammer at Connecticut-based auctioneers Alexander Autographs.
The company, which specialises in historical manuscripts, said the auction would include an "historically important" lot of 31 manuscripts in various forms, including bound journals.
"All writings are penned in ink in a legible hand, in generally excellent condition," an auction house spokesman said.
"They were seized in 2004 by the police at the home of a German couple with whom he was living in Sao Paulo."
He added they were then given to Mengele's son, Rolf, who only saw his father twice in his life.
About 40% of the writings are autobiographical, tracing Mengele's flight across Europe in the aftermath of the war.
He talks of himself in the third person, referring to himself as "Andreas".
In one commentary, Mengele complains that sexual promiscuity has led "to a dreadful mixing of the races with the northern Europeans... when you start mixing the races, there is a decline in civilisation".
Mengele was a member of the Nazis' elite SS, which ran death camps across occupied Europe.
Based at Auschwitz from 1943, he helped supervise the selection of prisoners on arrival to death camps, sending those considered unfit for slave labour to be gassed with deadly Zyklon B.
He gained his notorious reputation due to his pseudo-medical experiments in the camp.
He fled Europe at the end of the war after Germany's defeat, reaching Argentina at the start of the 1950s.
He then moved to Paraguay in 1961 and then went on to Brazil, where he lived in Sao Paulo and remained uncaptured despite Interpol's best efforts, dying in 1979 at the age of 67.
His death was only confirmed in 1985, after his body was exhumed.
The diaries appeared some time after that.
Saturday, 9 July 2011
40p glasses make £19,000 at auction.
From the Daily Mail:
When a bargain hunter spotted these unusual glasses at a boot sale for 40p each, she bought them on a ‘hunch’. It certainly turned out to be a good one.
For the trio were rare 18th-century examples of work by revered glassmaker William Beilby – and they have just sold at auction for £18,880.
After the boot sale in Portsmouth, the woman, who has not been named, took the glasses to a sale room in Chichester, West Sussex, for an expert opinion.
The anonymous woman apologised to staff if she was about to waste their time, but when they saw what she had brought they soon realised they had a precious load before them.
Dealers and collectors clamoured for the find and after a furious bidding session at Stride and Son auction house saw them go under the hammer for £16,000 pounds.
The winning bidder, who deals in glass, paid a total of £18,880 after all the extra fees were added on.
Mark Hewitt, from auctioneers Stride and Son, said: 'The lady was at a car boot sale and just bought them on a hunch.
'She didn't haggle or anything, she just paid what the person was asking - which was 40p each.
'Then she brought the glasses to us and was a bit embarrassed and said she didn't want to waste our time.
'When I saw them I made sure I put them in a locked cabinet. The lady said that last time she had had a "touch" she had made £800.
'Before the sale she was trying to gauge how excited I was but I didn't give anything away and I think she was a bit shocked when I opened the bidding at £500.
'Then within just a few minutes the bidding got up to 16,000 pounds.
'After we put it on the website it was clear that collectors and dealers thought they were "right".
'They are rare Beilby glass - which is a famous name - and were made at the workshop in Newcastle.
'The person who bought them said afterwards that because they come up so rarely he had to have all three.
'They are museum quality pieces and it just shows that you can pick things up at car boot sales and make money.'
The items were made in about 1765 and fewer than 100 of these armorial glasses are recorded.
His workshop in Newcastle-upon-Tyne produced these three examples with the arms of John Thomas, a churchman from Cumberland.
At the time the glasses were made he was a vicar of St Bride's in London's Fleet Street.
It is thought that the set originally consisted of a set of five - and two others have sold at auction in recent years.
When a bargain hunter spotted these unusual glasses at a boot sale for 40p each, she bought them on a ‘hunch’. It certainly turned out to be a good one.
For the trio were rare 18th-century examples of work by revered glassmaker William Beilby – and they have just sold at auction for £18,880.
After the boot sale in Portsmouth, the woman, who has not been named, took the glasses to a sale room in Chichester, West Sussex, for an expert opinion.
The anonymous woman apologised to staff if she was about to waste their time, but when they saw what she had brought they soon realised they had a precious load before them.
Dealers and collectors clamoured for the find and after a furious bidding session at Stride and Son auction house saw them go under the hammer for £16,000 pounds.
The winning bidder, who deals in glass, paid a total of £18,880 after all the extra fees were added on.
Mark Hewitt, from auctioneers Stride and Son, said: 'The lady was at a car boot sale and just bought them on a hunch.
'She didn't haggle or anything, she just paid what the person was asking - which was 40p each.
'Then she brought the glasses to us and was a bit embarrassed and said she didn't want to waste our time.
'When I saw them I made sure I put them in a locked cabinet. The lady said that last time she had had a "touch" she had made £800.
'Before the sale she was trying to gauge how excited I was but I didn't give anything away and I think she was a bit shocked when I opened the bidding at £500.
'Then within just a few minutes the bidding got up to 16,000 pounds.
'After we put it on the website it was clear that collectors and dealers thought they were "right".
'They are rare Beilby glass - which is a famous name - and were made at the workshop in Newcastle.
'The person who bought them said afterwards that because they come up so rarely he had to have all three.
'They are museum quality pieces and it just shows that you can pick things up at car boot sales and make money.'
The items were made in about 1765 and fewer than 100 of these armorial glasses are recorded.
His workshop in Newcastle-upon-Tyne produced these three examples with the arms of John Thomas, a churchman from Cumberland.
At the time the glasses were made he was a vicar of St Bride's in London's Fleet Street.
It is thought that the set originally consisted of a set of five - and two others have sold at auction in recent years.
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
Diamond gavel for auction.
From The Telegraph
By Jeffrey Archer
Everyone should have a hobby. It can be anything from collecting matchbooks to Manet, from bird watching to bee-keeping, from marathon running to horse riding – but whatever it is, make sure it’s fun.
My hobby for the past 30 years has been as a conductor, not of orchestras, or on buses, but of auctions. My passion for the auction hammer began in the most unlikely way.
Norma Major had invited my wife, Mary, and myself to an opera evening in aid of Mencap, when her husband John was the backbench MP for Huntingdon. We took a table, and were looking forward to a pleasant and not too demanding evening. It was when pudding was being served, that Norma came across to our table to tell me that her auctioneer, a local pro, had fallen out at the last minute, and she wondered if I’d be willing to take his place.
“But I’ve never done an auction in my life,” I protested. “Surely John can do it?”
“No,” said Norma firmly, “he’s giving the vote of thanks, and in any case, he thinks you’d be ideal for the job.”
I don’t remember how much was raised on that occasion, but I do remember how much I enjoyed the whole experience, and when, a few weeks later, another charity asked me to perform the same task, I happily accepted.
Having found, by mistake, an alternative career – it was Proust who reminded us we all end up doing the thing we are second best at – I set about the task with a vengeance.
I became a regular attendee at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Bonhams and Phillips sales, in an effort to learn my new trade at the feet of the professionals. I have to admit that this also had a side benefit, because a major Impressionist sale at one of the great auction houses is as exciting and dramatic as any opening night in the West End.
Fast forward 30 years, with over a thousand charity auctions behind me, I have been invited to conduct an auction at Christie's King Street headquarters. And it’s an auction with a difference.
I asked 16 of my friends to donate an item, and even I was surprised by the enthusiastic response. Most wealthy or well-known individuals get overwhelmed by how many people approach them for money each week, even when it’s for a worthwhile cause. But the clincher for this particular charity event was that the money raised would go to the charity of their choice.
I have ended up with some strange and wonderful objects that will come under the hammer on June 27, to benefit 21 different causes.
Margaret Thatcher has presented me with a handbag (Lot 216), that has been in her possession for the past 35 years, and can be seen in the sale catalogue in a picture of her walking in the grounds of Camp David with the then-US President Ronald Reagan.
The legendary Tom Jones will host a dinner party for 10 in the Dorchester’s Krug Room with executive chef Henry Brosi, overseeing the evening (Lot 202), and Eric Clapton has given us a signed Fender Telecaster guitar that he played in concert at the Grosvenor House hotel only a few weeks ago (Lot 215).
Bernie Ecclestone has invited two people to join him as his personal guests for next year’s Monte Carlo Grand Prix (Lot 212), with paddock club tickets, starting grid access, pit passes, and four nights in a sea-view room in the Hotel de Paris. Lawrence Dallaglio has parted with the match ball from the 2003 Rugby World Cup final (Lot 210), signed by the referee, with personal, hand-written messages from Clive Woodward, Martin Johnson, Johnny Wilkinson and Lawrence himself. Michael Parkinson has given up his treasured Ashes cricket bat from the 2005 series, signed by every player from both the victorious English and defeated Australian sides (I couldn’t resist that), plus scorecards from all five Tests (Lot 201).
Ian Botham has invited three people to join him for lunch at Sunningdale before a round of golf on the famous course, followed by dinner at the Hotel du Vin in Henley-on-Thames (Lot 208). Freddie Flintoff offers two of you the chance to be caddie to Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen at this year’s Scottish Open (Lot 213) and also to join Freddie for lunch in the club house, while my wife Mary has sacrificed her Warhol drawing of Diana, Princess of Wales together with a signed copy of the Christie’s catalogue from her famous Dresses Sale in New York (Lot 211).
I’m letting go of the Chief Timekeeper’s stopwatch that recorded the first sub-four minute mile by Roger Bannister at Iffley Road, Oxford on May 6, 1954, (Lot 214), which will benefit Oxford University Athletics Club, and my collection of Winston Churchill speeches, produced by the Decca Record Company, signed by Churchill with a personal message from President Johnson (Lot 203) will go to Oxfam.
The final item (Lot 218) will be the auctioneer’s hammer. But it’s no ordinary hammer, because Laurence Graff has adorned it with over 200 of the finest diamonds, with a carat weight of 5.66cts.
Now, you may well ask if I’m nervous about conducting an auction at Christie’s. You bet. Wouldn’t you be nervous if you were singing an opera at Covent Garden, opening the batting for England at Lord’s, or making your maiden speech to a packed House of Commons?
I may have conducted over a thousand auctions during the past 30 years (with, I must admit, two fallow years), but for an amateur like myself, this is my solo performance at La Scala, Lord’s or Wembley.
The British people are a generous lot, not only when it comes to parting with their hard-earned cash, but also giving up hours of their time for causes they believe in. Over the years, I have extracted from them, everything from the widow’s mite to the millionaire’s yacht, from a trip down a coalmine in Wales, to a week’s wine tasting in Cape Town, from a session in the nets with Shane Warne, to a walk-on part in the Morecombe and Wise Christmas show – the proceeds always going to worthwhile causes. But on June 27, I’m going one better, and hoping to raise £1 million in one evening for the first time. In my amateur auctioneering career, my previous record is £620,000. So if you want to join me at Christie’s on June 27, you’d be most welcome – but be prepared to be fleeced.
Jeffrey Archer’s Charity Sale begins at 7.30pm on Monday June 27 at Christie’s, St James’s, London SW1. www.christies.com
By Jeffrey Archer
Everyone should have a hobby. It can be anything from collecting matchbooks to Manet, from bird watching to bee-keeping, from marathon running to horse riding – but whatever it is, make sure it’s fun.
My hobby for the past 30 years has been as a conductor, not of orchestras, or on buses, but of auctions. My passion for the auction hammer began in the most unlikely way.
Norma Major had invited my wife, Mary, and myself to an opera evening in aid of Mencap, when her husband John was the backbench MP for Huntingdon. We took a table, and were looking forward to a pleasant and not too demanding evening. It was when pudding was being served, that Norma came across to our table to tell me that her auctioneer, a local pro, had fallen out at the last minute, and she wondered if I’d be willing to take his place.
“But I’ve never done an auction in my life,” I protested. “Surely John can do it?”
“No,” said Norma firmly, “he’s giving the vote of thanks, and in any case, he thinks you’d be ideal for the job.”
I don’t remember how much was raised on that occasion, but I do remember how much I enjoyed the whole experience, and when, a few weeks later, another charity asked me to perform the same task, I happily accepted.
Having found, by mistake, an alternative career – it was Proust who reminded us we all end up doing the thing we are second best at – I set about the task with a vengeance.
I became a regular attendee at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Bonhams and Phillips sales, in an effort to learn my new trade at the feet of the professionals. I have to admit that this also had a side benefit, because a major Impressionist sale at one of the great auction houses is as exciting and dramatic as any opening night in the West End.
Fast forward 30 years, with over a thousand charity auctions behind me, I have been invited to conduct an auction at Christie's King Street headquarters. And it’s an auction with a difference.
I asked 16 of my friends to donate an item, and even I was surprised by the enthusiastic response. Most wealthy or well-known individuals get overwhelmed by how many people approach them for money each week, even when it’s for a worthwhile cause. But the clincher for this particular charity event was that the money raised would go to the charity of their choice.
I have ended up with some strange and wonderful objects that will come under the hammer on June 27, to benefit 21 different causes.
Margaret Thatcher has presented me with a handbag (Lot 216), that has been in her possession for the past 35 years, and can be seen in the sale catalogue in a picture of her walking in the grounds of Camp David with the then-US President Ronald Reagan.
The legendary Tom Jones will host a dinner party for 10 in the Dorchester’s Krug Room with executive chef Henry Brosi, overseeing the evening (Lot 202), and Eric Clapton has given us a signed Fender Telecaster guitar that he played in concert at the Grosvenor House hotel only a few weeks ago (Lot 215).
Bernie Ecclestone has invited two people to join him as his personal guests for next year’s Monte Carlo Grand Prix (Lot 212), with paddock club tickets, starting grid access, pit passes, and four nights in a sea-view room in the Hotel de Paris. Lawrence Dallaglio has parted with the match ball from the 2003 Rugby World Cup final (Lot 210), signed by the referee, with personal, hand-written messages from Clive Woodward, Martin Johnson, Johnny Wilkinson and Lawrence himself. Michael Parkinson has given up his treasured Ashes cricket bat from the 2005 series, signed by every player from both the victorious English and defeated Australian sides (I couldn’t resist that), plus scorecards from all five Tests (Lot 201).
Ian Botham has invited three people to join him for lunch at Sunningdale before a round of golf on the famous course, followed by dinner at the Hotel du Vin in Henley-on-Thames (Lot 208). Freddie Flintoff offers two of you the chance to be caddie to Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen at this year’s Scottish Open (Lot 213) and also to join Freddie for lunch in the club house, while my wife Mary has sacrificed her Warhol drawing of Diana, Princess of Wales together with a signed copy of the Christie’s catalogue from her famous Dresses Sale in New York (Lot 211).
I’m letting go of the Chief Timekeeper’s stopwatch that recorded the first sub-four minute mile by Roger Bannister at Iffley Road, Oxford on May 6, 1954, (Lot 214), which will benefit Oxford University Athletics Club, and my collection of Winston Churchill speeches, produced by the Decca Record Company, signed by Churchill with a personal message from President Johnson (Lot 203) will go to Oxfam.
The final item (Lot 218) will be the auctioneer’s hammer. But it’s no ordinary hammer, because Laurence Graff has adorned it with over 200 of the finest diamonds, with a carat weight of 5.66cts.
Now, you may well ask if I’m nervous about conducting an auction at Christie’s. You bet. Wouldn’t you be nervous if you were singing an opera at Covent Garden, opening the batting for England at Lord’s, or making your maiden speech to a packed House of Commons?
I may have conducted over a thousand auctions during the past 30 years (with, I must admit, two fallow years), but for an amateur like myself, this is my solo performance at La Scala, Lord’s or Wembley.
The British people are a generous lot, not only when it comes to parting with their hard-earned cash, but also giving up hours of their time for causes they believe in. Over the years, I have extracted from them, everything from the widow’s mite to the millionaire’s yacht, from a trip down a coalmine in Wales, to a week’s wine tasting in Cape Town, from a session in the nets with Shane Warne, to a walk-on part in the Morecombe and Wise Christmas show – the proceeds always going to worthwhile causes. But on June 27, I’m going one better, and hoping to raise £1 million in one evening for the first time. In my amateur auctioneering career, my previous record is £620,000. So if you want to join me at Christie’s on June 27, you’d be most welcome – but be prepared to be fleeced.
Jeffrey Archer’s Charity Sale begins at 7.30pm on Monday June 27 at Christie’s, St James’s, London SW1. www.christies.com
Sunday, 5 June 2011
Painting makes 36,000 euros, nine weeks after being sold for 7K in an English auctionrooms
Reminds me of the advice of a famous English statesman “Invest in Old Masters, they bring a better return than old mistresses”:
The Irish Times - Saturday, June 4, 2011
Solvency not a problem for Irish art auction buyers
MICHAEL PARSONS
AN ENGLISH auctioneer has expressed amazement at the amount of money being spent on art in Ireland, following the sale of a painting, titled Insolvent, for €36,000 in Dublin this week. He had sold the painting nine weeks ago for a fraction of the price.
Clifford Lansberry of fine art auctioneers Gorringes in Sussex claimed the result “belies the fact that there is no money in Ireland”. “Somebody’s got it,” he said.
In March, the 150-year-old oil painting went under the hammer at his saleroom in Lewes and made £6,500 (€7,297). On Wednesday night though, the same painting was resold at Adam’s Sale of Important Irish Art for €36,000 – a fivefold increase.
When told about the result yesterday, Mr Lansberry was “amazed” and said: “Clearly there aren’t as many insolvent people in Ireland as we had been led to believe”. He had been under the impression the Irish art market was in difficulty because of the economic and fiscal crises here.
The painting dates from 1862 and was first exhibited at the Royal Academy in London the following year. It shows a man – clearly broke – desperately trying to get a drink of whiskey from a stern-faced landlady in an Irish shebeen. According to the catalogue note: “He is trying to get a drink, but clearly she is tired of him having insufficient funds.”
The artist was Scottish-born Erskine Nicol who moved to Ireland in the mid-19th century, set up a studio in Co Westmeath and specialised in painting scenes of misery in post-Famine Ireland.
Mr Lansberry said the painting had been sold by a private collector and had been bought by a “very canny” buyer who had, apparently, subsequently spotted a chance to resell it in Dublin.
Consigned for sale to Adam’s, it was assigned a new pre-sale estimate of €25,000-€35,000.
Bidders at the sale, where over €1 million was spent on art in two hours, were happy to talk to The Irish Times on condition of anonymity. One “medical professional” spent tens of thousands of euros on a painting, saying it was a good investment and better than putting the money into an AIB deposit account.
He feared that “the Government might raid savings accounts” as it had “already dipped into pensions”.
The Irish Times - Saturday, June 4, 2011
Solvency not a problem for Irish art auction buyers
MICHAEL PARSONS
AN ENGLISH auctioneer has expressed amazement at the amount of money being spent on art in Ireland, following the sale of a painting, titled Insolvent, for €36,000 in Dublin this week. He had sold the painting nine weeks ago for a fraction of the price.
Clifford Lansberry of fine art auctioneers Gorringes in Sussex claimed the result “belies the fact that there is no money in Ireland”. “Somebody’s got it,” he said.
In March, the 150-year-old oil painting went under the hammer at his saleroom in Lewes and made £6,500 (€7,297). On Wednesday night though, the same painting was resold at Adam’s Sale of Important Irish Art for €36,000 – a fivefold increase.
When told about the result yesterday, Mr Lansberry was “amazed” and said: “Clearly there aren’t as many insolvent people in Ireland as we had been led to believe”. He had been under the impression the Irish art market was in difficulty because of the economic and fiscal crises here.
The painting dates from 1862 and was first exhibited at the Royal Academy in London the following year. It shows a man – clearly broke – desperately trying to get a drink of whiskey from a stern-faced landlady in an Irish shebeen. According to the catalogue note: “He is trying to get a drink, but clearly she is tired of him having insufficient funds.”
The artist was Scottish-born Erskine Nicol who moved to Ireland in the mid-19th century, set up a studio in Co Westmeath and specialised in painting scenes of misery in post-Famine Ireland.
Mr Lansberry said the painting had been sold by a private collector and had been bought by a “very canny” buyer who had, apparently, subsequently spotted a chance to resell it in Dublin.
Consigned for sale to Adam’s, it was assigned a new pre-sale estimate of €25,000-€35,000.
Bidders at the sale, where over €1 million was spent on art in two hours, were happy to talk to The Irish Times on condition of anonymity. One “medical professional” spent tens of thousands of euros on a painting, saying it was a good investment and better than putting the money into an AIB deposit account.
He feared that “the Government might raid savings accounts” as it had “already dipped into pensions”.
Sunday, 29 May 2011
A basket of dates fetches 240 Omani riyals
Muscat: At the beginning of the date harvest season, a basket of the fruit has fetched 240 Omani riyals (Dh2,292) at an auction held at Afi village in Wadi Al Maawel in north of Oman.
The vendors and traders said that the price so far was the highest in the Batinah region, which sees early season for dates.
Auctioneers predict that the price of dates will come down with the rise in supply, especially with mercury climbing resulting in dates ripening faster, According to a report in Arabic daily Al Watan.
The harvest season has just started, the Minaz date palm trees are laden with fruits, and farmers are jubilant as the harvest this year seems to be even better than what they had anticipated.
The Minaz palm tree is one of the best-known trees in Oman. It gives its scarlet sweet date early in the season.
The vendors and traders said that the price so far was the highest in the Batinah region, which sees early season for dates.
Auctioneers predict that the price of dates will come down with the rise in supply, especially with mercury climbing resulting in dates ripening faster, According to a report in Arabic daily Al Watan.
The harvest season has just started, the Minaz date palm trees are laden with fruits, and farmers are jubilant as the harvest this year seems to be even better than what they had anticipated.
The Minaz palm tree is one of the best-known trees in Oman. It gives its scarlet sweet date early in the season.
Old camers makes $1.89 million
A CAMERA from 1923 has been sold at auction for a world record 1.32 million euros ($1.89 million).
The Leica camera's final price shattered pre-sale estimates.
The purchaser was a private collector from Asia who wants to remain anonymous, said Vienna's WestLicht gallery, which organised the auction.
The camera was one of about 25 prototypes made in 1923, two years before the celebrated German brand went into commercial production. It had been valued ahead of the auction at about one quarter of what it eventually went for.
The previous world record was set last year when a collector paid 732,000 euros for a daguerreotype, the world's first commercially produced camera, which bore the rare signature of its French inventor.
The Leica camera's final price shattered pre-sale estimates.
The purchaser was a private collector from Asia who wants to remain anonymous, said Vienna's WestLicht gallery, which organised the auction.
The camera was one of about 25 prototypes made in 1923, two years before the celebrated German brand went into commercial production. It had been valued ahead of the auction at about one quarter of what it eventually went for.
The previous world record was set last year when a collector paid 732,000 euros for a daguerreotype, the world's first commercially produced camera, which bore the rare signature of its French inventor.
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
Rare survival of Carolean silver takes £74,000
From The Antiques Trade Gazette:
18 April 2011
THEY may look plain and simple, but this pair of silver wall-hanging candle scones had private and trade bidders clamouring to buy when they came up for sale last week at Colchester auction rooms Reeman Dansie.
The 11¾in (30cm) high sconces, which the auctioneers had dated to c.1680, carried a double-struck maker's mark IR, and had been discovered by auctioneer James Grinter in a local house in Stratford St Mary, where he had been asked to value some contents for the vendor. The sconces had been attached to the wall to serve as electric wall lights.
Carolean silver of the type is a rare survival, but these had the added attraction of a contemporary armorial prominently engraved to the backplate for the North Family of Kirtling Tower, Cambridge, a baronetcy created in 1554, while the reverse was engraved Henry Francis North and R&G.
There were several prominent members of the family in the 17th century, including Francis North, 1st Baron Guilford, who held the important positions of Attorney General in 1673 and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal in 1683.
The auctioneers had guided the pair at an attractive £6000-8000 for the sale on April 12, only to see them contested by six bidders to £74,000 plus 17.5 per cent premium, with the hammer falling to a member of the London trade on the phone.
18 April 2011
THEY may look plain and simple, but this pair of silver wall-hanging candle scones had private and trade bidders clamouring to buy when they came up for sale last week at Colchester auction rooms Reeman Dansie.
The 11¾in (30cm) high sconces, which the auctioneers had dated to c.1680, carried a double-struck maker's mark IR, and had been discovered by auctioneer James Grinter in a local house in Stratford St Mary, where he had been asked to value some contents for the vendor. The sconces had been attached to the wall to serve as electric wall lights.
Carolean silver of the type is a rare survival, but these had the added attraction of a contemporary armorial prominently engraved to the backplate for the North Family of Kirtling Tower, Cambridge, a baronetcy created in 1554, while the reverse was engraved Henry Francis North and R&G.
There were several prominent members of the family in the 17th century, including Francis North, 1st Baron Guilford, who held the important positions of Attorney General in 1673 and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal in 1683.
The auctioneers had guided the pair at an attractive £6000-8000 for the sale on April 12, only to see them contested by six bidders to £74,000 plus 17.5 per cent premium, with the hammer falling to a member of the London trade on the phone.
Saturday, 2 April 2011
Brighton auction
Enjoyable fundraising auction and reception, last night for Brighton Green Party.
Here are a few of the results:
Trip to Brussels + lunch and a tour of the European Parliament....£350
Hamper......£50
Lush Spa treatement......£120
Hot stone massage......£80
Painting........£100
Photograph of Parliament......£150
Stained Glass bowl......£60
Here are a few of the results:
Trip to Brussels + lunch and a tour of the European Parliament....£350
Hamper......£50
Lush Spa treatement......£120
Hot stone massage......£80
Painting........£100
Photograph of Parliament......£150
Stained Glass bowl......£60
Friday, 1 April 2011
Charity auctions
Did an interesting and enjoyable fundraising auction ,last night, for Martin School, East Finchley PTA. It was billed as Chips & Bids and included fish and chips (or a veggi burger) as part of the entry price. We raised over £5,000. I'm now off to do a fundraising auction for Brighton Green Party at Lush, East Street. Starting 7pm. Then I'm doing a talk for Kensington Ladies on Monday morning on 'Auctions through the ages, 500 BC to Internet Auctions' Some of last night's prices: Signed Arsenal photo..........£70. Tour of the House of Lords......£115. Portrait of your child......£105. Be the head teacher for a day......£145. Grazia Beauty Products bundle......£180. Work in the school office for a day......£135. Original Noel Fielding (The Mighty Boosh comedian) painting.......£450 Interior Mural......£300. Handmade silk quilt......£150.
Thursday, 31 March 2011
An Evening for the Eco-Glitterati
By LESLIE KAUFMAN New York Times On the one hand, the event had the trappings of a society gorging itself at full tilt: a roaring room of Rolex-wearing men and women in five-inch heels and tight spangly dresses. On the other hand, the purpose was to raise money for the Natural Resources Defense Council, Oceana, Conservation International and the Central Park Conservancy. The evening, the second annual “Bid to Save the Earth,” was hosted by Christie’s and was partly a live auction. Bidders battled energetically to win a day with former President Bill Clinton; guests were told he would accompany them on any outing they wanted, even tag along to do laundry. (That sold for $100,000). They also bid enthusiastically for a chance to fly with the actor Harrison Ford to Los Angeles aboard one of his private planes. (Yes, private planes add significantly to your carbon footprint.) The auction raised more than $1 million. An online auction for the rest of the lots (meet Lady Gaga in Miami, anyone?) continues at charitybuzz.com until April 7. There was even a fashion show (new this year) where a new collection called Runway to Green was introduced, with severely coiffed models emerging from a rotating cube decorated in a jungle green vine motif. The proceeds from the sales of the clothing, by a mix of designers, will go to environmental causes like planting trees. “The designers have all made a commitment to investigate the sustainable manufacturing practices,” Runway to Green’s Web site states. Which is better, one supposes, than not investigating.
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Aircraft carrier for auction.
Mar 29 2011 Ben Mitchell, Scottish Daily Record Ministry of Defence chiefs have put the aircraft carrier Ark Royal up for sale - on an eBay-style auction website. The Royal Navy's old flagship - which was decommissioned just two weeks ago after 25 years of service - is currently being advertised on edisposals.com Sister ship HMS Invincible was towed to a scrapyard in Turkey last week after being sold on the same site. Although the Ark Royal could also be sold for scrap, it may end up as a commercial heliport in London or as a base for special forces security at next year's Olympic Games. And a move could be made to turn it into a nightclub or school in China. Bidders have until 10am on June 13 to put offers forward - with special viewing days arranged for May. They must also tell the MoD what they plan to do with it. The website edisposals.com is run by the Defence Equipment and Support arm of the MoD, who have a budget of £14billion to equip the UK's armed forces. Also up for sale on the site are three Type-42 destroyers, HMS Exeter, HMS Southampton and HMS Nottingham. The current Ark Royal is the fifth vessel to carry the name - the first saw battle in 1588 against the Spanish Armada.
Thursday, 10 February 2011
For sale: One disused Tube station, slightly soiled
Got a couple of hundred grand spare? Good at cleaning off graffiti? Want to own a special piece of London Undergound history?
Then get yourself over to Andrews & Robertson auctioneers, who are selling off the old Shoreditch station later this month.
Shoreditch saw its last train in 2006 when work began on extending the old East London Line up to Dalston. The revamped railway now rises up to a new station at Shoreditch High Street, leaving its 135-year-old predecessor isolated and surplus to requirements in its little side street off Brick Lane.
The old station has seen more spray cans than commuters over the past five years, and don’t expect to be able to wander down to the platforms looking out for ghost trains to New Cross – much of the old line has been filled in and grassed over, and the stairs removed.
But what you’ll get for your money is a cosy little building which has played a big role in London railway history, which once saw steam trains from Liverpool Street to the south coast as well as Tube trains.
You could even compare notes worth the owners of the other Old Shoreditch Station – a bar beneath another long-gone rail line.
Whether it becomes a bar, a curry house, an office or the ultimate Tube geek’s crash pad – or even gets redeveloped entirely – whoever buys it will have to find at least £180,000. A bargain, perhaps, but after being abandoned for nearly five years, restoring it to its former glory will cost a bit, too.
The sale takes place at the Connaught Rooms in Covent Garden on 16 February.
By Darryl Chamberlain in The Scoop
Then get yourself over to Andrews & Robertson auctioneers, who are selling off the old Shoreditch station later this month.
Shoreditch saw its last train in 2006 when work began on extending the old East London Line up to Dalston. The revamped railway now rises up to a new station at Shoreditch High Street, leaving its 135-year-old predecessor isolated and surplus to requirements in its little side street off Brick Lane.
The old station has seen more spray cans than commuters over the past five years, and don’t expect to be able to wander down to the platforms looking out for ghost trains to New Cross – much of the old line has been filled in and grassed over, and the stairs removed.
But what you’ll get for your money is a cosy little building which has played a big role in London railway history, which once saw steam trains from Liverpool Street to the south coast as well as Tube trains.
You could even compare notes worth the owners of the other Old Shoreditch Station – a bar beneath another long-gone rail line.
Whether it becomes a bar, a curry house, an office or the ultimate Tube geek’s crash pad – or even gets redeveloped entirely – whoever buys it will have to find at least £180,000. A bargain, perhaps, but after being abandoned for nearly five years, restoring it to its former glory will cost a bit, too.
The sale takes place at the Connaught Rooms in Covent Garden on 16 February.
By Darryl Chamberlain in The Scoop
Saturday, 5 February 2011
Historic Gay Auction in London
One of the UK’s leading auction houses is set to sell off a special piece of gay history to the highest bidder.
A complete set of the first 150 editions of Gay News which belonged to its editor, Denis Lemon, is coming up for auction at Bonhams in London on 22 March.
Gay News first appeared in June 1972. Founded by ex-members of the Gay Liberation Front and the Campaign for Homosexual Equality, it provided a forum for debate as well as campaigning journalism, information on cultural issues and personal contact ads which were, at the time, unlawful.
The paper courted controversy. In 1974 it successfully fought off a charge of obscenity for publishing a photograph of two men kissing on the cover (issue 35).
A more serious prosecution followed in 1976. The morality campaigner, Mary Whitehouse, successfully brought a private action for blasphemy – the first of its kind in 50 years – against Denis Lemon for publishing James Kirkup’s poem ‘The Love that Dares to Speak its Name’, which attributed homo-erotic thoughts to Jesus on the Cross (issue 96).
Lemon was fined and given a suspended nine month prison sentence. The stress affected his health and he stepped down as editor in 1982.
Gay News pitched itself consciously as a campaigning paper with roots in the counter-culture of the 1960s and ‘70s. By the early 1980s, however, demand was growing for gay publications with less overt political content and more life-style appeal. Gay News was purchased by Millivres in 1984 and subsequently incorporated into Gay Times.
Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world’s oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques.
A complete set of the first 150 editions of Gay News which belonged to its editor, Denis Lemon, is coming up for auction at Bonhams in London on 22 March.
Gay News first appeared in June 1972. Founded by ex-members of the Gay Liberation Front and the Campaign for Homosexual Equality, it provided a forum for debate as well as campaigning journalism, information on cultural issues and personal contact ads which were, at the time, unlawful.
The paper courted controversy. In 1974 it successfully fought off a charge of obscenity for publishing a photograph of two men kissing on the cover (issue 35).
A more serious prosecution followed in 1976. The morality campaigner, Mary Whitehouse, successfully brought a private action for blasphemy – the first of its kind in 50 years – against Denis Lemon for publishing James Kirkup’s poem ‘The Love that Dares to Speak its Name’, which attributed homo-erotic thoughts to Jesus on the Cross (issue 96).
Lemon was fined and given a suspended nine month prison sentence. The stress affected his health and he stepped down as editor in 1982.
Gay News pitched itself consciously as a campaigning paper with roots in the counter-culture of the 1960s and ‘70s. By the early 1980s, however, demand was growing for gay publications with less overt political content and more life-style appeal. Gay News was purchased by Millivres in 1984 and subsequently incorporated into Gay Times.
Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world’s oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques.
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Queen Mother's prototype wedding dress sold in Bristol
A prototype of the dress worn by the Queen Mother at her wedding in 1923 has been sold for £3,500 at auction in Bristol.
The garment was made by the Queen Mother's dressmaker, Madame Handley Seymour.
It had been estimated to fetch between £500 and £700 in the sale of vintage fashion and textiles at fine art auctioneers Dreweatts.
The example was one of three suggested, and was used for the final design.
Malcolm Claridge, valuer at Dreweatts' Apsley Road site, said he was amazed at how "very slight" the dress was when he first saw it.
"It did not really strike me as a Royal wedding dress," Mr Claridge added.
"Although the workmanship is beautiful, it's very much a 1920s flapper style and at the time considered to be very unflattering dress.
"However I think it works really well. One of the girls here recently modelled it and it looked very current."
The dress selling for about five times its original estimation did not surprise Mr Claridge.
"It was the right place at the right time," he said.
"With the interest with The King's Speech and Kate and William's wedding, it had to be the right time for it and it has created quite a media frenzy."
The Queen Mother, or Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon as she was before she wed, became engaged to Prince Albert, Duke of York in January 1923.
In a break with tradition, it was decided their wedding would be a public affair at Westminster Abbey instead of at a royal chapel.
It is believed this decision was taken to lift the spirits of the nation following the ravages of the Great War (1914 - 1918).
The wedding took place on 26 April and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was attended by eight bridesmaids.
The garment was made by the Queen Mother's dressmaker, Madame Handley Seymour.
It had been estimated to fetch between £500 and £700 in the sale of vintage fashion and textiles at fine art auctioneers Dreweatts.
The example was one of three suggested, and was used for the final design.
Malcolm Claridge, valuer at Dreweatts' Apsley Road site, said he was amazed at how "very slight" the dress was when he first saw it.
"It did not really strike me as a Royal wedding dress," Mr Claridge added.
"Although the workmanship is beautiful, it's very much a 1920s flapper style and at the time considered to be very unflattering dress.
"However I think it works really well. One of the girls here recently modelled it and it looked very current."
The dress selling for about five times its original estimation did not surprise Mr Claridge.
"It was the right place at the right time," he said.
"With the interest with The King's Speech and Kate and William's wedding, it had to be the right time for it and it has created quite a media frenzy."
The Queen Mother, or Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon as she was before she wed, became engaged to Prince Albert, Duke of York in January 1923.
In a break with tradition, it was decided their wedding would be a public affair at Westminster Abbey instead of at a royal chapel.
It is believed this decision was taken to lift the spirits of the nation following the ravages of the Great War (1914 - 1918).
The wedding took place on 26 April and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was attended by eight bridesmaids.
Tuesday, 1 February 2011
Special oil greases China's alternative mechanism
February 1, 2011 (Sydney Morning Herald)
The art of guanxi functions to break down the legal and other barriers to corrupt transactions.
THE art of building ''guanxi'' and the rituals of giving and soliciting bribes are not always the same thing in China, but they often are.
One reason Rio Tinto's Stern Hu is in jail is because he was no good at it. Only an amateur would receive a bag of cash and store it in his household safe.
The wheels of Chinese business and officialdom are usually greased by more experienced players. They know how to embed their favours within intricate, personalised guanxi performances which break down the moral and cognitive barriers to bribery, and also minimise the risks of being caught. They channel transactions through multiple layers and stretch them out over years and even decades.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Hu Gang, who ran an auction house in Changsha in central China, is such a professional. And he has written two unmatched exposes - or instruction manuals - on how to do it. But even professionals can run into trouble. Hu prefers not to talk explicitly about how exactly he bribed a judge who later gave him up in a confession in an unrelated investigation.
Hu has never talked to a foreign journalist before. But he does say his first book Qingci (or Celadon, written under the pseudonym Fushi), a story about an auctioneer who bribes a judge, is uncannily similar to the events that led to him spending a year in jail.
Hu's auctioneer-protagonist makes the acquaintance of Judge Hou after learning of his drinking habit. He personally lugged a case of health-preserving liquor (containing a exotic aphrodisiac) up six flights of stairs to Judge Hou's apartment. After demonstrating his personal exertion, auctioneer Zhang explained the liquor as a gift from another friend which he did not want because he did not drink, and which had a value that was great but also deniable because it had not yet been put on the market.
Zhang cemented the relationship when he noticed Judge Hou's concern about his son's calligraphy, and quietly arranged a famous calligrapher to be his tutor. He discreetly auctioned the son's calligraphy at a friend's auction house and instructed his friend to bid for it. Zhang handed a cash envelope to Judge Hou and reassured him that he had even subtracted an auction commission fee.
''It can stand any investigation,'' he said.
It was only then, after Judge Hou was squarely in his debt and had been assured of Zhang's sensitivity and discretion, that the auctioneer broached the favour that he wanted.
Li Ling, a law lecturer at Northwest University in Xian and researcher at New York University, has broken new ground by mapping how guanxi works in China for her recently completed doctorate. She has investigated dozens of first-person accounts (including Hu Gang's) and hundreds of court cases and investigation reports.
''As experienced guanxi practitioners often say, 'the thing is half-done once the gift is accepted','' writes Li Ling in ''Performing Bribery in China'', in the current edition of the Journal of Contemporary China.
Gifts need to demonstrate personalised care and ''sincerity'' and this usually requires careful investigation of the target's golfing, artistic or other hobbies. So prices at China's art auctions are inflated by bribers paying officials for artworks at multiples of the market price, luxury golf courses are full of members who did not pay for membership, shopping centres are full of officials' relatives using shopping cards that were given to them, and Macau is full of officials who do not pay for their gambling chips.
Choice of language is important, with a whole lexicon of euphemisms like ''doing guanxi'' available in place of vulgar words like ''bribe''.
Li writes that the art of guanxi can function as an ''alternative operating mechanism'' to break down the legal, moral and cognitive barriers to corrupt transactions.
'''Guanxi practise' is not only 'fuelling' corruption, but it is a necessary and integral part of corruption in China,'' she writes.
Hu Gang says not all transactions involve bribery, even in his court-based auction trade. He says commissions can be won by your good reputation in the industry, or paying a lot to a person you don't know, or making a long emotional investment in a judge.
''Generally, one plays the emotion card to someone from whom he or she needs help, to draw their relationship closer,'' explains Hu, who has now written a new book, Building Guanxi. ''Only gradually, after that foundation has been laid, one will explain the help that is needed … One will provide reassurances about the safety of such a deal. The other side will think, 'OK, I've been eating and drinking on your account, and generally using you, and feel sorry about that'. So, when being asked for an ostensibly legitimate favour, he or she may offer a helping hand.''
The art of guanxi functions to break down the legal and other barriers to corrupt transactions.
THE art of building ''guanxi'' and the rituals of giving and soliciting bribes are not always the same thing in China, but they often are.
One reason Rio Tinto's Stern Hu is in jail is because he was no good at it. Only an amateur would receive a bag of cash and store it in his household safe.
The wheels of Chinese business and officialdom are usually greased by more experienced players. They know how to embed their favours within intricate, personalised guanxi performances which break down the moral and cognitive barriers to bribery, and also minimise the risks of being caught. They channel transactions through multiple layers and stretch them out over years and even decades.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Hu Gang, who ran an auction house in Changsha in central China, is such a professional. And he has written two unmatched exposes - or instruction manuals - on how to do it. But even professionals can run into trouble. Hu prefers not to talk explicitly about how exactly he bribed a judge who later gave him up in a confession in an unrelated investigation.
Hu has never talked to a foreign journalist before. But he does say his first book Qingci (or Celadon, written under the pseudonym Fushi), a story about an auctioneer who bribes a judge, is uncannily similar to the events that led to him spending a year in jail.
Hu's auctioneer-protagonist makes the acquaintance of Judge Hou after learning of his drinking habit. He personally lugged a case of health-preserving liquor (containing a exotic aphrodisiac) up six flights of stairs to Judge Hou's apartment. After demonstrating his personal exertion, auctioneer Zhang explained the liquor as a gift from another friend which he did not want because he did not drink, and which had a value that was great but also deniable because it had not yet been put on the market.
Zhang cemented the relationship when he noticed Judge Hou's concern about his son's calligraphy, and quietly arranged a famous calligrapher to be his tutor. He discreetly auctioned the son's calligraphy at a friend's auction house and instructed his friend to bid for it. Zhang handed a cash envelope to Judge Hou and reassured him that he had even subtracted an auction commission fee.
''It can stand any investigation,'' he said.
It was only then, after Judge Hou was squarely in his debt and had been assured of Zhang's sensitivity and discretion, that the auctioneer broached the favour that he wanted.
Li Ling, a law lecturer at Northwest University in Xian and researcher at New York University, has broken new ground by mapping how guanxi works in China for her recently completed doctorate. She has investigated dozens of first-person accounts (including Hu Gang's) and hundreds of court cases and investigation reports.
''As experienced guanxi practitioners often say, 'the thing is half-done once the gift is accepted','' writes Li Ling in ''Performing Bribery in China'', in the current edition of the Journal of Contemporary China.
Gifts need to demonstrate personalised care and ''sincerity'' and this usually requires careful investigation of the target's golfing, artistic or other hobbies. So prices at China's art auctions are inflated by bribers paying officials for artworks at multiples of the market price, luxury golf courses are full of members who did not pay for membership, shopping centres are full of officials' relatives using shopping cards that were given to them, and Macau is full of officials who do not pay for their gambling chips.
Choice of language is important, with a whole lexicon of euphemisms like ''doing guanxi'' available in place of vulgar words like ''bribe''.
Li writes that the art of guanxi can function as an ''alternative operating mechanism'' to break down the legal, moral and cognitive barriers to corrupt transactions.
'''Guanxi practise' is not only 'fuelling' corruption, but it is a necessary and integral part of corruption in China,'' she writes.
Hu Gang says not all transactions involve bribery, even in his court-based auction trade. He says commissions can be won by your good reputation in the industry, or paying a lot to a person you don't know, or making a long emotional investment in a judge.
''Generally, one plays the emotion card to someone from whom he or she needs help, to draw their relationship closer,'' explains Hu, who has now written a new book, Building Guanxi. ''Only gradually, after that foundation has been laid, one will explain the help that is needed … One will provide reassurances about the safety of such a deal. The other side will think, 'OK, I've been eating and drinking on your account, and generally using you, and feel sorry about that'. So, when being asked for an ostensibly legitimate favour, he or she may offer a helping hand.''
Friday, 28 January 2011
Signed Michael Jackson cement slab up for auction
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – For the Michael Jackson collector with superhuman strength: a 375-pound (170 kg) slab of concrete featuring the pop star's hand and foot impressions along with his signature will go on the block in Los Angeles next month, its auctioneer said.
The item is dubbed the "Broken Heart Stone," said auction house Nate D. Sanders, because a surface crack runs through a heart design within Jackson's left palm print.
The online auction, to be held at http://www.natedsanders.com, will end on February 15.
The slab dates from 1984 when Jackson made the impression for a Las Vegas Walk of Fame project that never materialized. It was discovered in the Riviera Hotel basement in 2006 and raffled-off to a guest, who in turn sold it for an undisclosed sum to its current owner in 2009.
Coincidentally the consignor, Andy Wilson of Santa Maria, Calif., was an acquaintance of Jackson's, and bought it with the star's blessing.
Sanders told Reuters on Wednesday that the slab could sell for more than $100,000. His firm last month auctioned off another unorthodox piece of memorabilia, selling the rotting coffin of suspected John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald for more than $87,000.
The item is dubbed the "Broken Heart Stone," said auction house Nate D. Sanders, because a surface crack runs through a heart design within Jackson's left palm print.
The online auction, to be held at http://www.natedsanders.com, will end on February 15.
The slab dates from 1984 when Jackson made the impression for a Las Vegas Walk of Fame project that never materialized. It was discovered in the Riviera Hotel basement in 2006 and raffled-off to a guest, who in turn sold it for an undisclosed sum to its current owner in 2009.
Coincidentally the consignor, Andy Wilson of Santa Maria, Calif., was an acquaintance of Jackson's, and bought it with the star's blessing.
Sanders told Reuters on Wednesday that the slab could sell for more than $100,000. His firm last month auctioned off another unorthodox piece of memorabilia, selling the rotting coffin of suspected John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald for more than $87,000.
Saturday, 25 December 2010
Christmas Greetings - two auction films to bring a smile
Fools and Horses: Auction Scene.
To many fans of ‘Only Fools and Horses’, the final auction house scene was the best ever. Here it is again on You Tube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OI-EpehWf_I
* BLACK HUMOUR
For really black humour have a look at the following short video on You Tube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=PVpIFvnkYm0
Called ‘Everything is for sale. It's just a matter of price’ it shows firefighters auctioning off the only available landing net to people trapped in a burning building.
Wishing all my readers a safe, happy and peaceful festive season.
Noel
To many fans of ‘Only Fools and Horses’, the final auction house scene was the best ever. Here it is again on You Tube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OI-EpehWf_I
* BLACK HUMOUR
For really black humour have a look at the following short video on You Tube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=PVpIFvnkYm0
Called ‘Everything is for sale. It's just a matter of price’ it shows firefighters auctioning off the only available landing net to people trapped in a burning building.
Wishing all my readers a safe, happy and peaceful festive season.
Noel
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