In December 2018, a strange news was reported. Mr, Karl Martin had bought a piece of pottery at a car boot sale at Derbyshire, UK. He bought two pieces of pottery at this sale. The total value of both was about 4 pounds.
After coming home, he decided to use one of the pieces as a toothbrush holder.
Mr. Martin worked at Hansons Auctioneers – well-known auctioneers of antiques. One day, he found that a piece similar to his toothbrush holder was being sold at a high value. He got curious and requested a colleague to value his piece too.
Imagine his surprise when he found that this toothbrush holder was only 3200 years old – dating back to 1900 BCE. It belonged to the Saraswati Indus Valley civilisation (this civilisation is known for its pottery) and was like the pieces found in modern day Afghanistan.
Let’s think about the question – How did an antique from India end up at a car boot sale in Derbyshire, UK?
The Legal Route of Antiques
To understand illegal trade, we start by understanding the legal route for antiques to be traded. Anything that does not follow this route is, by definition, illegal.
Why are antiques special?
Antiques represent the history and culture of an entire civilisation. For instance, the piece above has an animal that looks like an antelope, but not exactly. How has the ink on this thing not dulled for 3200 years? What dyes were used? How has it remained unbroken? Was a special process used to bake this piece?
A country, therefore, values its antiques. But all antiques do not automatically belong to the government of the said country. Private owners and museums are both legitimate owners of antiques. As are organisations like temples, monastries, village panchayats, etc.
The legal way to trade antiques starts by ensuring that it is a piece that can be traded. In some cases, while domestic trade may be possible, but the artifact may not leave the country.
Once the local law has been understood and confirmed, then, a professional valuer values the artifact.
How is the value of an antique determined?
It is more an art than an exact science. Some of the factors that decide the value of an antique are:
A. The kind of antique it is – metal pieces, being more durable, are more valuable than wood or paper. Gold, silver, diamond, etc., obviously, are far more valuable than any others.
B. The antiquity – as a general rule, older the better.
C. The state of preservation – better preserved pieces are more valuable.
D. How unique the piece is – more unique pieces fetch more value.
E. The demand for such a piece – For the same antiquity, books are worth less than art because there are more buyers for art.
F. Other factors – these might be some important people associated with a piece, or some historical event, or anything that makes the piece special.
Once a valuer has given a range, the owner of the piece has two options. They can either commission an auction house to auction the piece, or they can sell it to a private buyer of their choice.
Sometimes, some wealthy families might gift their art collection to a museum for the greater good. For instance, Smr. Nirmala Birla has donated her collection of Lladro porcelain figurines to the Birla Science museum in Hyderabad. This gift is also a legal transfer. The antiques now become the property of the museum.
The Illegal trade
Why would anyone want to trade in antiques illegally?
There are many reasons.
In times of war, antiques were surrogate holders of value. Also, many antiques were looted at that time. This made it hard to get antiques with their entire chain of ownership in place. This gap led to the creation of a market in which it became possible to sell antique items even with missing provenance or chain of ownership.
Sometimes, people want to own something rare or precious. Sometimes, people want to show off. Sometimes, people want to create wealth without paying enough for it. When the antique is valued, the owner, possibly someone from their family, will get a lot of money for it, notwithstanding the fact that it was originally stolen.
The illegal antiques market is in billions of dollars.
How are antiques stolen and sold?
Antiques are stolen in many ways. Some of the more popular ways in which antiques are stolen from India are:
A. From temples – Since the techniques of metallurgy are exactly the same for at least the last three or four centuries, it is possible to replace an old sculpture with a more recent one.
B. From homes – Most Indian families have heirlooms going back hundreds of years. It is possible for anyone to steal some items and sell them illegally for profit. Sometimes, a family member may be involved.
C. From private collections – Especially in art, replicas have been known to muddy the waters very often.
Once an antique piece is stolen or illegally procured, it is shipped to a potential buyer or distributor – usually outside the country. One of the most common ways to do this is to package the antique as a gift replica and ship it alongwith many other replicas. This technique also forms the basis of many criminal fiction plots. But there are many other ways to ship the product.
At the receiving port, the receiver then collects the item and arranges for its sale or delivery.
Sometimes, the product has already been sold before being shipped. Sometimes, the sale is done by the receiver after getting the product.
Every country values its antiques and the illegal antique trade is fought by all of them.
When the police of a country retrieve antiques that they think were stolen from another country, they make an effort to return the said pieces to the country of origin.
What is the best way to buy or sell an antique?
The best way to buy or sell an antique is to go through a registered valuer to get the real value of the product and to ensure that it is authentic.
Then, one can opt for private placement or auction sale, depending on one’s comfort.