Sanctuary
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£2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 08:16
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http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20101007/tuk-rare-roman-helmet-sells-for-2-3m-6323e80.html
Wow!
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Mustard
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 09:20
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Gorgeous artefact though!
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Rhiannon
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Edited Oct 08, 2010, 10:59
Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 09:57
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Well yes. But wouldn't it have been nicer if it had gone to the Tullie house museum so we could all have a look at it. But now somebody's bought it for themselves. Surely it might as well be still in the ground. Other than some metal detectorist's a million quid richer.
mutter mutter mutter. Yeah, the market and all that. But isn't it a unique item, something that can tell us about our own cultural heritage? doesn't it belong in a sense to us all? and anyway wouldn't a kind person with that amount of cash buy it and give it to the museum rather than bidding against them so they can have it on their mantelpiece?
and because of what it's made of, the finder didn't really have to report it at all, he couldh ave just sold it full stop.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2010/oct/07/roman-helmet-sold-two-million
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goffik
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 10:07
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((APPLAUSE))
Very well said, Rhiannon! A lot clearer and less sweary than I could have said it, but you've pretty much got it spot on there! :)
G x
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nigelswift
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 10:18
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"and because of what it's made of, the finder didn't really have to report it at all, he could have just sold it full stop."
Actually, the point was that it wasn't "Treasure" as defined in the Act therefore it didn't become "ours" automatically (with a reward being paid to him) so he was free to flog it.
So far as reporting it to PAS, any decent person would have but he didn't. He pulled it out of the ground, destroying all the contextual evidence, took it to the auction house who stuck it together free of charge (thereby destroying the artefactual evidence) and PAS were then told presumably on their advice to enhance it's cred for sale - but they could learn very little from it by then.
The hero initially refused to tell PAS where he dug it up but has since shown them a hole in the ground. Huzzah!
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Mustard
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 10:42
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Rhiannon wrote: Well yes. But wouldn't it have been nicer if it had gone to the Tullie house museum so we could all have a look at it. But now somebody's bought it for themselves. Surely it might as well be still in the ground. Other than some metal detectorist's a million quid richer.
mutter mutter mutter. Yeah, the market and all that. But isn't it a unique item, something that can tell us about our own cultural heritage? doesn't it belong in a sense to us all? and anyway wouldn't a kind person with that amount of cash buy it and give it to the museum rather than bidding against them so they can have it on their mantelpiece?
and because of what it's made of, the finder didn't really have to report it at all, he couldh ave just sold it full stop.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2010/oct/07/roman-helmet-sold-two-million
Quite. I'm constantly appalled by the slapdash approach we seem to have to heritage in this country. Still, at least we're not Ireland, eh?!
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Rhiannon
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Edited Oct 08, 2010, 11:44
Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 10:43
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blimey even worse (considerably worse) than I read it then. That's because I read it quickly because it was making me cross. Sorry.
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goffik
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 11:22
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Rhiannon wrote: blimey even worse (considerably worse) than I read it then. That's because I read it quickly because it was making me cross. Sorry.
Bugger. Likewise.
May I just say, of aforementioned heritage thief and destroyer of archaeological context: what a c... What a pri... What a fuc... What a shame. Shame on everyone involved. Terrible precedent.
G x
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nigelswift
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 11:46
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I think you mean millionaire c... , millionaire pri... etc.
Oh and:
If the buyer is British we'll probably never see it again.
If the buyer is foreign a temporary export ban may go on it and we can try to raise the money. But he'll probably "sell" it to someone else for 4 million so we'll have to raise twice as much (this has been done before)
We pay £1.5 million per annum for PAS. He took it to PAS to get it authenticated so the price was higher. Instead of saying sod off, not till you've sold or given it to the museum they did it, thus raising the value, thus enabling the museum to be outbid.
Nice.
D'you want the half hour depression or will that do?
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Sanctuary
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Re: £2.3m for a Roman helmet
Oct 08, 2010, 12:41
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nigelswift wrote: I think you mean millionaire c... , millionaire pri... etc.
Oh and:
If the buyer is British we'll probably never see it again.
If the buyer is foreign a temporary export ban may go on it and we can try to raise the money. But he'll probably "sell" it to someone else for 4 million so we'll have to raise twice as much (this has been done before)
We pay £1.5 million per annum for PAS. He took it to PAS to get it authenticated so the price was higher. Instead of saying sod off, not till you've sold or given it to the museum they did it, thus raising the value, thus enabling the museum to be outbid.
Nice.
D'you want the half hour depression or will that do?
If the buyer is a genuine collector he'll keep it, but if he's just a dealer out to turn over a penny (or another Mil) it'll be back on the market, albeit quietly, in days if not already!!
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