Antiquities Offered at Christie’s, London (Oct 1 2015) Which Appear To Be In Photo Archived Seized in Police Raids

Trafficking Culture’s Research Assistant Dr. Christos Tsirogiannis, a Greek forensic archaeologist, searched the Christie’s antiquities catalogue for the auction scheduled for 1 October 2015 in London and identified three antiquities (lots 6, 8 and 16) which appear to be represented in the archive of Gianfranco Becchina, confiscated by the Swiss and Italian authorities. The three antiquities are offered by Christie’s as part of Professor Heissmeyer’s antiquities collection; the information added by Tsirogiannis’ research extends the collecting history of each object back to Becchina, who was convicted for trafficking illicit antiquities in 2011. A fourth antiquity (lot 93) was temporarily confiscated by the Swiss authorities in 2008 from the Japanese illicit antiquities dealer Noriyoshi Horiuchi and has now been put back in the market. Dr Christos Tsirogiannis has notified Interpol, the Carabinieri Art Squad and Scotland Yard’s Art & Antiques Unit with the evidence for his findings.

In the three first cases, Christie’s ‘due diligence’ looks to have failed to take just one more step back and trace the collecting history of the antiquities back to Becchina. In the fourth case (lot 93), Christie’s record the 1986 and 1997 parts of the lekythos’ collecting history, but not the most recent part, involving the authorities’ raid of Horiuchi’s warehouse in Switzerland and the subsequent ownership of the vase by the convicted Aboutaam brothers, through their ‘Phoenix Ancient Art’ gallery in New York and Geneva.

Lot 6: An Attic Pottery Figural Oinochoe, circa 500–475 BC

The oinochoe’s collecting history (Provenance), as it appears in the Christie’s catalogue, is:

Private collection, Germany, acquired prior to 1990.
with Galerie am Museum Jürgen Haering, Freiburg.
Prof. H.-H. Heissmeyer collection, Schwäbisch Hall, acquired from
the above in 2005 (inv. no. 32).
Beazley Archive no. 9024860.

The same oenochoe seems to be depicted in a Polaroid image from the Becchina archive. The vase is covered with encrustations, lying on what appears to be a plastic tray, while a handwritten note in the archive states that this antiquity was sent for restoration, among other antiquities, on 1 December 1989 to Sandro Cimicchi, Becchina’s usual restorer.

L: The oinochoe depicted in the Becchina archive. R: The same oinochoe on exhibition in Christie’s, London, on Saturday 26 September 2015.

Lot 8: An Attic Black-Figured Droop Cup, circa 550–530 BC

The cup’s collecting history (Provenance), as it appears in the Christie’s catalogue, is:

Private collection, Switzerland, acquired prior to 1980.
with Galerie am Museum Jürgen Haering, Freiburg.
Prof. H.-H. Heissmeyer collection, Schwäbisch Hall, acquired from
the above in 1995 (inv. no. 17).
Beazley Archive no. 9024849.

In the Becchina archive, what appears to be the same cup is depicted in a Polaroid image, upside down and partially covered with encrustations, among three other cups. The similarities can especially be identified from the position of the panthers painted on the lower part of the body. A handwritten note states that the cups were bought by the middleman Raffaele Monticelli on 4 March 1993. In 2002 Monticelli was sentenced to 4 years imprisonment for conspiracy related to the trafficking of antiquities. Another handwritten note on the Polaroid states: ‘V/ Hae  CH’ [sold to Hae  Swiss Francs].

L: The cup depicted in the Becchina archive R: The same cup on exhibition in Christie’s, London, on Saturday 26 September 2015.

Lot 16: An Attic Red-Figured Lekythos, Attributed to The Sabouroff Painter, circa 450–440 BC

The lekythos’ collecting history (‘Provenance’), as it appears in the Christie’s catalogue, is:

Private collection, United Kingdom, acquired prior to 1980.
with Galerie am Museum Jürgen Haering, Freiburg.
Prof. H.-H. Heissmeyer collection, Schwäbisch Hall, acquired from
the above in 1992 (inv. no. 23).
Beazley Archive no. 21590.

An object that appears to be the same lekythos is depicted in two professional images from the Becchina archive. A handwritten note states: ‘E Nov 78’.

L: The lekythos depicted in the Becchina archive. R: The same lekythos on exhibition in Christie’s, London, on Saturday 26 September 2015.

Lot 93: An Attic Red-Figured Lekythos Attributed to The Nikon Painter, circa 460–450 BC

The lekythos’ collecting history (‘Provenance’), as it appears in the Christie’s catalogue, is:

Anonymous sale; Münzen und Medaillen AG, Basel, 14 November 1986, lot 213.
Formerly private collection, Japan, acquired privately in 1997.

However, the same lekythos was found and confiscated during the raid of the Swiss and Italian authorities at the warehouse of the Japanese dealer Noriyoshi Horiuchi in the Geneva Freeport in 2008. The Italian authorities could not prove the illicit origin of this lekythos and although Horiuchi did not supply any documentation to prove the licit origin of the lekythos, the vase was returned to Horiuchi. The Italian authorities finally confiscated from Horiuchi 337 antiquities depicted in the Becchina, Medici and Symes-Michaelides confiscated archives. Later, the same lekythos appeared on offer at the ‘Phoenix Ancient Art’ gallery, owned by the Aboutaam brothers, one of whom was convicted in Egypt for antiquities smuggling and the other of whom pleaded guilty to the falsification of at least one customs document. Recently, the lekythos appeared as ‘SOLD’ in the website of the ‘Phoenix Ancient Art’ gallery. Christie’s here fail to state the name of the consigner, although they do so in the case of the other three lots (Professor Heissmeyer).

L: The lekythos depicted during its confiscation in a photograph taken by the Italian authorities during the raid at Horiuchi’s warehouse in Geneva in 2008 R: The same lekythos on exhibition in Christie’s, London, on Saturday 26 September 2015.