Objection to overseas sale of Highland Council's '£2.5m' artwork
Invergordon Town Council bought the sculpture for £5 in 1930, but it was later placed in storage at an industrial estate and its value was not widely appreciated until recent years.
A hearing of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest was held last month after the objection was raised.The new Highland Council report said: "The committee is assessing whether the bust meets any of the three Waverley Criteria and whether the export licence should be deferred."The council is currently awaiting the outcome of this review, and members will be updated in due course."The Waverley Criteria is a set of measures used to determine whether an artwork is a national treasure and if any sale to an overseas buyer would be considered a "misfortune".It is designed to give institutions, such as museums and galleries, a chance to purchase the art.The council report is due to be discussed at a meeting of the Black Isle and Easter Ross area committee next week.
The son of a banker, Sir John Gordon's family owned large areas of land in Sutherland and Ross-shire and established the town of Invergordon on the Cromarty Firth.Gordon was a young man travelling through continental Europe when he met Bouchardon in Rome in 1728 and the sculpture was made.Gordon became an MP in 1742.For years the bust was a feature of the Gordon family's Invergordon Castle, and survived a fire at the property in the 19th Century.The local town council bought the artwork for £5 at an auction in Kindeace, near Invergordon, in 1930.It is understood the bust was to be put on display in Invergordon Town Hall, before it was later moved to storage and almost forgotten.Records relating to the piece are thought to have been disposed of during local government reorganisation in the 1970s and 90s, according Rob Gibson, speaking to BBC Scotland News in 2014 when he was a local MSP.Maxine Smith, a Highland councillor, said she rediscovered the bust in 1998.She said it was found propping open a door in a Highland Council unit on an industrial estate in Balintore, about 14 miles from Invergordon.Highland Council describes the sculpture as a community asset belonging to Invergordon Common Good Fund.In Scotland, common good funds go back to the 15th Century and involve land, investments and property that exist under law for the benefit of burgh residents.
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The Sun
19 minutes ago
- The Sun
The 7 things you can get for FREE when your kids start school worth £4k – including transport and wrap-around care
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Times
3 hours ago
- Times
We had to restore a 100-year-old garden before we could build a home
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BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
Lynx could thrive in Northumberland, study finds
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