Whitney Houston’s prized possessions set up for auction…family strips hotel room of ‘death memorabilia’
Prized possession: Some of Whitney Houston's possessions are set to go under the hammer at an auction next month
Some Whitney Houston's most prized possessions are set to go under the hammer at an auction next month.
Items up for sale include a pair of earrings, a brown satin waistcoat and a black velvet dress she wore in the 1992 movie The Bodyguard.
Julien's Auctions boss Darren Julien has defended the decision to hold the sale - which will take place at the Hollywood Legends auction on March 31 - so shortly after the singer's death.
He told the Associated Press: 'It proves a point that these items, they're an investment. You buy items just like a stock. Buy at the right time and sell at the right time, and they just increase in value.'
Mr Julien went on to say the auction would be a celebration of Houston, who was found dead in the bathtub of her Beverly Hilton hotel suite a week ago.
He said: 'It's a celebration of her life. If you hide these things in fear that you're going to offend someone - her life is to be celebrated.
'These items are historic now that she passed. They become a part of history. They should be in museums. She's lived a life and had a career that nobody else has ever had.
Under the hammer: The black velvet dress worn by Whitney in The Bodyguard
'For people who are fans of Whitney Houston and never would have had a chance to meet her and never got to talk to her, these are items that literally touched a part of her life.
'They are a way to relate to her or be a part of her life without having known her.'
Meanwhile, Whitney's family have ensured the hotel room she died in has been meticulously stripped of any memorabilia to prevent anyone selling the items to profit out of her death.
Co-stars: Pictured here in a scene from the film with co-star Kevin Costner
TMZ reports that everything has been removed from room 434, including bed sheets, towels and rubbish.
Houston, 48, was laid to rest yesterday next to the body of her father John Russell Houston Jr. - who died in 2003 - at the Fairview Cemetery in New Jersey.
Only close family - including cousin Dionne Warwick - attended the private burial - which took place a day after her funeral - with fans lining the route to the cemetery.
Infamous: The Beverly Hilton hotel in Los Angeles where Whitney died a week ago
To keep onlookers out a huge tent was erected over the site where Whitney's silver coffin was lowered into the ground.
Stars including Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Clive Davis and Kevin Costner - Whitney's co-star in movie 'The Bodyguard' - were among the mourners at her 'going home service' on Saturday.
Kevin paid tribute to the singer in a moving eulogy at the funeral, telling her fans to remember 'the sweet miracle' of the singer.
Send off: Whitney's funeral was held in Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday
Source:Daily Mail
Gold Fabergé egg unveiled for Diamond Jubilee charity Egg Hunt in London
As readers are probably aware, this is the Diamond Jubilee year of Queen Elizabeth II's reign over the UK.
The Queen of course owns many collectibles and there are many more associated with her, but there is one particular collectible which has just been unveiled for this celebration which was unheard of until now.
This is the diamond jubilee rose gold egg, created by Faberge and valued at £100,000, is decorated with 60 gemstones - a diamond, emerald, ruby or sapphire celebrates each and every year of the Queen's reign to date.
So how can collectors vie to get their hands on it? In London, 200 'eggs' have been artistically crafted by famous names, and then hidden. As of today (Tuesday), every one has been tucked away to hopefully be found by the eagle eyed. Some of those to craft an egg include Bruce Oldfield, Sir Ridley Scott and Zandra Rhodes.
Those finding an egg are urged to simply keep it, but to send a text to stake their claim for winning the golden egg using a code with the egg.
The hidden eggs will later be auctioned off for the benefit of charities Elephant Family and Action for Children. The event was launched with the appearance of Humpty Dumpty on the wall at Clarence House, and Emilia Fox has now unveiled the golden egg.
Elephant Family founder Mark Shand commented: "The firing gun has sounded - let the hunt begin. Here's to an Olympic effort to win that diamond jubilee egg."
Source: Paul Fraser Collectable
The long-lost ‘haunted’ painting and strange claims…
...that ghost of Mrs Bell vanished after the picture was put back in its rightful place
As ghosts go, she was rather a cultured specimen.
The pale Edwardian figure made frequent visits to the mansion home of Alan Smith, always accompanied by the music of Chopin, according to the startled souls who bore witness.
Her interest in the house was a mystery – until the discovery of a long-lost painting that appeared to feature the very same person, sitting at a piano.
When the portrait was returned to Heale House’s drawing room, the sightings stopped.
Mr Smith was so fascinated he decided to investigate the history of the painting – and uncovered the sad story of the uninvited guest.
He identified the woman as a Mrs Bell, one of the 15-bedroom mansion’s previous occupants, who had been bankrupted and forced to sell all her possessions – including her beloved portrait – shortly before her death in the early 1900s.
Mr Smith said her ghost ‘would walk along the corridors and in the bedrooms, usually at about one o’clock in the morning’.
He continued: ‘She was usually wreathed in a blue haze and just drifted around – you couldn’t see her legs. Sometimes she would even arrive at the bottom of my bed in the middle of the night.
‘I thought there must be some kind of scientific explanation, but other people who visited the house were terrified – and they now believe she’s been put to rest because she got her painting back.’
Mr Smith’s family had seen the apparition many times at the house, near Bideford, Devon, before Mr Smith was approached by the owner of a local junk shop, who asked him: ‘Are you the master of Heales?’
Ghostly: The story came to light when Alan Smith, 70, left, took the picture to be appraised on the Antiques Roadshow
She told him she had something that should be returned to its rightful home and showed him the picture, thought to be by Cyril Roberts, a prominent painter who was based in Paris.
The face was eerily familiar to Mr Smith and he quickly realised it depicted the woman his family had been visited by – and she was seated at a piano in his drawing room.
His research unmasked the subject as Mrs Bell, wife of an Argentine beef rancher who lived in Heale House in the early 1900s.
‘From what we know about Mrs Bell, she was a very cultured lady,’ said Mr Smith.
‘It must have been sad for her to see all of her possessions sold.’
He confirmed that after the portrait was placed in the drawing room, ‘she never appeared again’.
‘We even tried to use a Ouija board to bring her back but it looks as if she’s gone forever,’ he added.
The story came to light when Mr Smith, 70, took the picture to be appraised on the Antiques Roadshow.
Medals of First World War hero and Royal Household legend emerge for sale for first time
The medals belonging to a decorated First World War hero and one of the most influential figures in the Royal Household have emerged for sale.
The Rt Hon Sir Alan 'Tommy' Lascelles worked alongside four monarchs at crucial moments during the 20th century. He was private secretary to Queen Elizabeth II and King George VI.
His medals have never been sold at auction before and there is expected to be huge interest in them. They have been given a pre-sale estimate of £8,000.
They include the Order of the Bath, Knight Grand Cross, the Royal Victorian Order, Knight Grand Cross, and a companions’ badge of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.
Decorated: Sir Alan Lascelles was a First World War hero Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2101838/Medals-First-World-War-hero-Royal-Household-legend-emerged-sale-time.html#ixzz1mdmjTR00
He also received France’s Legion of Honour, and the group is unique and important.
Sir Alan left the service of the Prince of Wales - later Edward VIII - because of concerns about his behaviour. He famously gave the future King a 'dressing down'.
After leaving the royal he described as 'half child, half genius' he was called back to serve for King George V.
Six weeks later the King was dead and Sir Alan found himself back working for Edward VIII who he served throughout the abdication crisis.
He then became private secretary to King George VI who ascended the throne just before the war.
It was Sir Alan who persuaded the King and Winston Churchill not to sail with the invasion armada on D-Day itself.
When the King died in 1952 Sir Alan became private secretary to the young Queen Elizabeth II and helped build the foundation of her reign that has lasted 60 years.
His astonishing life was summed up in a letter Churchill wrote to him that said: 'Your knowledge has enabled you to steer the best course through tangles which would have baffled others.
'It will always be a joy to you to have played the distinguished part which fell to your lot in the Coronation of our brilliant young Queen and to have advised and helped her during what must have been to her the anxious ordeal of the opening years of her reign.'
The collection is being sold by Dix Noonan Webb auction house in London in a two day sale on March 28-29.
David Erskine-Hill, from the saleroom, said: 'With the possible exception of John Brown’s royal household awards which were auctioned back in 1984, these are arguably the most important equivalent collection to appear on the market in living memory.
Respected: Sir Alan Lascelles, left, who served three Monarchs with Clement Atlee (right) and Sir Stafford Cripps (centre) outside Westminster Abbey
'Medals are all about history, and in Sir Alan’s case we are dealing with a career that witnessed some of the most defining moments in modern royal household history.
'From the bleak days of Edward’s abdication in 1936, to the happy occasion of the Queen’s Coronation in 1953, Sir Alan was there.
'Above all, the momentous years of the last war, when he was present at so many crucial meetings with King George VI and Sir Winston Churchill, stand out.
'It was Sir Alan who was instrumental in persuading His Majesty and the Prime Minster from joining the invasion fleet on D-Day itself, just one of many fascinating stories related in his published diaries, The King’s Counsellor.'
‘Sexually charged’ portrait by Francis Bacon sells for £21m at auction
One of the most ‘seductive’ female potraits ever produced by Francis Bacon sold at auction for £19million yesterday.
Portrait of Henrietta Moraes, one of his favourite models, beat its estimate by £1million, making a total sale price including fees and taxes of £21,321,250.
Bidding began at £13million shortly before 7.25pm at Christie’s in London, but leapt to the final figure in just five minutes.
Auctioned off: The portrait of Henrietta Moraes sold for £21m
It was snapped up by an anonymous telephone buyer, who saw off competition from two other phone bidders and a saleroom bid as the price was raised at £500,000 a time.
Produced in 1963, it is one of the most valuable pieces to be sold at a post-War and contemporary art sale at the auction house, a spokesman said.
The highest selling work in this category was another piece by Bacon, Triptych, which went for £26.3million in February 2008.
Portrait of Henrietta Moraes is an oil on canvas, raw with colour and texture, which measures 65in (165cm) by 56in (142cm) and shows the model sprawled across a bed.
The painting, which has not been seen in public for 15 years, is described as one of Bacon’s ‘most seductive and sexually charged’ paintings.
Since the day it was created the work has only had two owners.
The the present owner who offered the item for sale was not disclosed by Christie’s, who said it came from a ‘distinguished’ New York collection which acquired it in 1983.
The Christie's auction also included Lucian Freud's rediscovered drawing 'Boat, Connemara' executed in 1948
Francis Outred, Christie’s head of post-war and contemporary art, said: ‘The carefully constructed mood through colour is forcefully invaded by the extraordinary swipes of the loaded brush, which create the woman’s voluptuous figure.
‘This juxtoposition of the sheer beauty of colour with the brutal physicality of paint is what makes Bacon’s art so remarkable.’
Bacon was born in Dublin in 1909 to English parents and moved to London in 1926.
Although he had no formal training as an artist, he started to exhibit his work in the 1930s and a decade later he was causing a sensation among the artistic community with his angst-ridden paintings of twisted and mutated forms.
He died of a heart attack in Madrid in 1992. Today his work is among the most popular of 20th century art at auction.
The most expensive painting sold at Christie’s auction house in London is Le bassin aux nymphéas.
The painting by Claude Monet, sold for £40,921,250 - a world record price for the artist at auction in June 2008.
The current world record price was paid for The Card Players by Paul Cezanne.
It was sold to Qatar’s royal family last year for more than £250million, the highest price ever paid for a work of art.
Valentine’s card which Princess Diana sent to a lonely footman set to fetch £8,000 at auction
She was one of the most attractive and glamorous women the world has ever known.
So when a former footman and valet in the Royal Household received this Valentine's Day card from Princess Diana, you can imagine how thrilled he must have been.
The pink personalised card - addressed to ‘George’ and signed by the popular Princess - was anonymously sent by Diana in 1989, when she was still married to Prince Charles.
However, the card is far from a romantic gesture to a lover, instead being a practical joke - sent to loveless employees at the Royal Household.
George, whose surname has not been released by his family, worked in The Royal Household of Prince Charles.
Diana wrote the card to George and had it secretly handed to him in a pink envelope.
It is now up for sale after the family of George - who died recently - decided to part with the Diana memorabilia to help fund a new life abroad.
Mark Riddle, who owns Memorabilia UK, tasked with selling the extremely rare card, said: 'The family of George contacted me after his death saying they wanted to sell his collection of Diana artefacts.
'I was amazed when I saw it, not many people can ever have been handed a Valentine’s card by a Princess, let alone one of the most iconic.
'George had a whole host of Diana memorabilia, often signed by her.
'It is believed to have been part of a few sent by Diana to cheer up loveless employees, but one, however, cannot imagine she gave out too many of these.'
The pink card - which measures 18x13cm - comes from the 1989 Andrew Brownsword collection and is called 'Lady Di by Dino...'
Nice gesture: The front of the card, left, and inside, right, which is personally signed from Princess Diana. It is expected to fetch nearly £8,000 at auctioni
It shows a teddy bear jumping among pink hearts and the printed message, 'Hey Valentine! Not Many Men Receive a Valentine’s Card From Princess Diana.'
Inside the message concludes, 'And You’re One of Them', and the Princess has written 'to George, from Diana!'
Memorabilia dealer Mr Riddle added: 'You can only imagine the potential worth of this Diana Valentine card in say 100 years time.
Funny: The Valentine's Day card was anonymously sent by Diana in 1989 when she was still married to Prince Charles. However, it was intended as a practical joke and not a romantic gesture
'It really shows the Princess’s sense of fun and girlishness.
'Like many rare collectables it is a hard thing to accurately value, but we have currently pricing it at £7,995.
'Hopefully this treasure can be safe-guarded for the next generation to enjoy.'
Only one other similar card has ever been discovered, which was addressed to Sgt Lewis, a former soldier who worked for the Royal family.
Catherine Wiley Impressionist painting sells at art saleroom for $107,900
As we reported, a Tennessee auction recently offered a substantial number of art and antiques lots (800) led by one of most underrated and tragic heroes of Impressionist Art.
That should be heroine of course, as the person in question was Anna Catherine Wiley, an artist who lived in the state of Tennessee who helped pioneer the art program at the State University.
Sadly, she suffered a career-ending nervous breakdown and spent her final days in an institution.
"This is not just a great painting by a regional female artist - it's a great American Impressionist painting," emphasised auction house president John Case.
- Catherine Wiley's Impressionist mother and child painting
"This is one instance where an artist is disadvantaged by scarcity. If Catherine Wiley had been more prolific, her name would probably be mentioned today alongside her mentors when people talk about great American Impressionist painters."
The painting in question is the evocative depiction of a mother and child seated in a meadow in dappled light.
Held in a Tennessee family's collection for decades, the painting was listed at $60,000-$75,000, but in the event competition bumped it up to an impressive $107,880. It was bought by a museum - good news for those who wish to view Catherine Wiley's work but less good for those who want to own it.
Collectors who are fascinated by Impressionist Art may be interested to know that we currently have an autograph note signed by its founder: Claude Monet.
Source: Paul Fraser Collectables
Five-inch T-rex tooth sells for world-record price of £36,000
A massive tooth from a Tyrannosaurus rex has sold for a world record £36,000.
The perfectly preserved 5in dinosaur tooth was discovered poking out of a field by a farmer in Montana earlier this year.
It is in such good condition that the tiny serrated edges, which helped the ferocious dinosaur grind down its prey, are still visible on the surface.
World record: This T. rex tooth, discovered during the summer in Garfield County, Montana, sold for a phenomenal $56,250 at auction
The tooth, one of the largest found, dates back to the Cretaceous Period about 67million years ago when the huge creatures roamed the Earth.
The tooth was put up for sale by the farmer who found it while ploughing his field. His identity has not been disclosed.
It went under the hammer at a natural history-themed auction at Bonhams in Los Angeles for £36,000, and was snapped up by an anonymous private collector.
One of the biggest land meat-eaters in history, T-rex terrorised the wooded valleys of western North America some 67million years ago.
Fearsome: Measuring up to 42ft in length, the T. rex stalked the plains of western North America some 67million years ago
Standing on two legs and measuring up to 42ft in length, the beast had jaws large enough to snap up an entire man in one bite and strong enough to crush bones.
The dinosaur's strong thighs and long, powerful tail helped it to move quickly, while its brawny neck muscles would have helped it to tear chunks from its prey.
Scientists believe T-rex could eat up to 500lb of meat in one bite. However there is a significant scientific debate as to whether it was a true predator or a carrion eater.
It became extinct some 65million years ago in the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction.
In the same sale a fossil palm flower from Wyoming sold for $50,000 Miss Grigsby added.
Source: Daily Mail
Milhous Collection carousel and Wurlitzer Band Organ could spin to $1.5m
How much would you need to spend to buy your very own carousel? The answer is $1.5m or even more, according to presale estimates for an upcoming auction of the Milhous Collection.
The Milhous Collection is one of the finest assemblages of Americana to have ever appeared for sale to collectors.
A variety of mechanical and Americana memorabilia items - including classic automobiles - will be offered from the collection, amassed by Florida brothers Bob and Paul Milhous over the past 50 years.
Among their most fantastical buys is this 46-foot custom carousel with 42 animals, two chariots and a Wurlitzer 153 band organ. It is for sale estimated at $1,000,000-$1,500,000.
They say Americans do things 'bigger'. This was certainly true during the country's 'golden era' for carousels and mechanical music in the early-20th century.
The 46-foot custom carousel with 42 animals, dated to 1998US carousel designs featured elaborate animals, chariots and decorations all handmade by master craftsmen. The Milhous Collection carousel typifies this remarkable era.The carousel for sale is actually a modern reconstruction from the 1990s. It was custom made to exacting specifications for the Milhous Collection, and took several years to build.This 46-foot custom carousel was finally installed in 1998. As you can see in the above video, the attention to detail in its construction is absolutely stunning. Notable features include its stained glass and depictions of the Eight Wonders of the World.One of the carousel's 42 animals, based on an early-20th design
The carousel's menagerie of 42 animals and two chariots is made up of individual creations, each based on rare and well-known original carousel pieces. All were professionally reproduced.
An original Wurlitzer Model 153 Band Organ has been installed in the carousel's centre, which was one of the early-20th century's most popular models.
Even more remarkable is the fact that the $1,000,000-$1,500,000 presale estimate doesn't even match the original cost of the carousel's construction and its accompanying organ.
Source: Paul Fraser Collectables
The REAL face of Mona Lisa…
First copy of da Vinci masterpiece reveals she had sculpted eyebrows and was more plump
The earliest copy of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece, Mona Lisa, has been found in the vaults of a Spanish museum, looking younger and more ravishing than the original.
Art historians have hailed the discovery, made during conservation work at the Prado Museum, as one of the most remarkable in recent times.
Museum officials said it was almost certainly painted by one of Leonardo da Vinci's apprentices alongside the master himself as he did the original.
Replica: Painted alongside the original (left), historians say the copy (right) gives another insight into what the model for one of the world's most famous paintings actually looked like
Rare discovery: Employees of Madrid's Prado Museum stand next to the authenticated contemporary copy of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa
It is not the Mona Lisa, but you might think of her as Mona Lisa's sister, who - after more than five centuries - is finally having her debutante party.
Painted alongside the original, historians say it gives another insight into what the model for one of the world's most famous paintings actually looked like.
The copy has been part of the Prado collection for years but officials said they did not realise its significance until a recent restoration revealed hidden layers.
The artwork features the same female figure, but had been covered over with black paint and varnish.
Two years ago, to get the copy ready for a da Vinci exhibition to be held in Paris this year, tests were done and restorers discovered something hidden under the black coat.
When the black covering was removed, a Tuscan landscape very similar to the one in the original emerged.
Unveiled: The copy has been part of the Prado collection for years but officials said they did not realise its significance until a recent restoration revealed hidden layers
Different perspective: The copy gives art lovers and experts a chance 'to admire the Mona Lisa with totally different eyes'
The Prado painting was long thought to be one of dozens surviving replicas of the masterpiece made after Leonardo's death but it is now believed to have been painted by one of his key pupils, Francesco Melzi, working alongside the master.
Prado's technical specialist, Ana González Mozo, said: 'It is quite possible that Leonardo's assistant met Lisa and may even have been present when she sat for the master.
'She may also have come to the studio when finishing touches were being applied to the face in the painting.'
Ms Mozo said the underdrawing of the Madrid replica was similar to that of the original, which suggests both were begun at the same time and painted next to each other, as the work evolved.
The Louvre original, displayed behind glass, is obscured by cracked darkened varnish, making the woman appear middle aged. Because of its fragility, cleaning and restoration is thought to be too risky.
But art historians believe the Prado's Mona Lisa which is in the process of being painstakingly stripped of a dark over-paint reveals her as she would have looked at the time- as a radiant young woman in her early 20s.
Miguel Falomir, the Prado's director for Italian painting, said the copy gives art lovers and experts a chance 'to admire the Mona Lisa with totally different eyes.'
Besides the black background, one other difference from the original is the woman in the copy has eyebrows and the Mona Lisa in the real masterpiece does not.
There are dozens of the surviving replicas of the masterpiece from the 16th and 17th centuries.
The sitter is generally believed to represent Lisa Gherardini, the wife of the Florentine cloth merchant Francesco del Giocondo and is thought to have been painted between 1503 and 1506.
After five hundred years, the two versions will be reunited again later this year.
The Prado plans to put it on display later this month before it travels to the Louvre for the da Vinci show, giving specialists and visitors the first chance to compare the two works.