Sotheby's management has been confronted with yet another scandal after the Sunday Times revealed on September 26th 1999 that the famous American-owned auction house sold many faked pieces of 18th Century furniture. Sotheby's acknowledged the fact and promised to reimburse those who acquired such forgeries and to sue the people who supplied these.
Some US $ 3 million worth of furniture pieces were sold by Sotheby's while two heads of the department concerned, Joe Fridman and Graham Child, were asked to resign from their posts last July. Simon Redburn, a former dealer who was in the trade during 30 years, replaced them.
The resignation of Graham Child, 52, came as a shock for many professionals as he had been working for Sotheby's for 21 years.
The Pelham Gallery bought an 18th Century desk purportedly originating from Carlton House, one of the Prince Regent's dwellings, for some US $ 130,000 and the Experts committee of the Grosvenor House Antique Fair did not challenge its authenticity when such piece was exhibited there. The same gallery and John Hill, another London antique dealer, also bought some other pieces considered as fakes.
A series of chairs which allegedly came from St Gile's House, the residence of Earl Shaftesbury in Winborne, Dorset, were also forgeries. A pair had been sold for a record US $ 1,3 million in 1996 and another had been auctioned for US $ 730,000 in 1994 to Canadian industrialist Herbert Black. When the latter decided to have the seats restored it was discovered that their wood frames were not old.
A company called Cook's of Marlborough has been suspected of having put these forgeries on the market and Sotheby's has been quick to react in this case as the reputation of the auction house has already been tarnished recently regarding the fraudulent export of a painting from Italy.
Auction houses are presently engaged in a kind of race to realise quick profits and are placing many experts under pressure when it comes to verify thoroughly a piece between the moment it is consigned for sale and the day it appears at auction.
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