French collector returns looted relic to China

[shuttler]

French collector returns looted relic to China - China.org.cn

Shanghai Daily, April 26, 2013

A rat's head and a rabbit's head which were looted from the Summer Palace in Beijing in 1860 will be returned to China by its current French owner, the owner's representative announced today in Beijing.


During a meeting with State Culture Relics Bureau officials, French PPR Group CEO Francois-Henri Pinault said on behalf of his family, he will donate the two bronze relics to Chinese government.

Pinault expects to return the relics in August or September, while the Chinese officials hope they can be sent back to their home country in July.

"The rat's head and a rabbit's head will be collected by the National Museum," said Song Xinchao, vice director of the State Culture Relics Bureau. He expressed gratitude to Pinault and his family.

The plundered pieces, part of a clepsydra or water clock, are considered Chinese national treasures and China wants them back. The issue of stolen antiquities is highly charged. The heads are among 12 zodiac animal heads that adorned the elaborate timekeeping device.

They were designed by the Italian Jesuit missionary Giuseppe Castiglione for the Emperor Qianlong in the mid-18th century. The Summer Palace was looted by British and French troops in 1860. The heads belonged to several European collections before they were acquired by French businessman Pierre Bergé and the late Yves Saint Laurent in the 1990s.

The Pinault family purchased the rat's head and a rabbit's head from their previous owner in 2009 after an auction failed.

 

[shuttler]

Billionaire says he'll return looted treasures

By Li Qian | 2013-4-27
NEWSPAPER EDITION

Billionaire says he'll return looted treasures -- Shanghai Daily - The English Window to China


FRENCH billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault is to return two bronze animal heads that were looted from Beijing's Summer Palace 153 years ago.

He said yesterday that he was returning the artifacts on behalf of his family, which runs French luxury goods conglomerate Kering.

In a statement, the Pinault family said it went to "great efforts to retrieve these two significant treasures of China, and strongly believe they belong in their rightful home."

The bronze heads belonged to several European collections before they were acquired by French businessman Pierre Berge and the late Yves Saint Laurent in the 1990s. The family said it would work with the Cultural Heritage Administration to return the bronzes "as early as possible."

It didn't say how the bronzes were acquired, but thanked the auction house Christie's, which managed an auction in 2009 and is part of the Kering group, along with Saint Laurent.

The pieces were among 12 animal heads looted by French and British troops in 1860.

The heads formed the zodiacal clepsydra (water clock) decorating the Calm Sea Pavilion in the Old Summer Palace of Emperor Qianlong (1736-1795).

They were designed by the Italian Jesuit missionary Giuseppe Castiglione for Emperor Qianlong in the mid-18th century.

They were looted when the palace was burned down by French and British troops. The palace's elaborate buildings were left in ruins, and the bronzes spirited abroad into private hands.

The plundered pieces are considered national treasures.

Despite Chinese protests, the heads were auctioned in Paris in February 2009. Chinese businessman Cai Mingchao won the bid but refused to pay, which caused the auction to fail, and Pinault later bought the sculptures from their owner.

In 2000, the cow, tiger and monkey head sculptures were returned to Beijing.

Macau billionaire Stanley Ho bought the pig head for 6 million yuan (US$973,000) in 2003 and the horse head at HK$69.1 million (US$8.9 million) in 2007.

The five pieces were later donated to the Poly Art Museum in Beijing.

The dragon is reported to be stored in Taiwan while the other four pieces, the rooster, snake, dog and goat, are missing.

The State Administration of Cultural Heritage said Pinault's offer was "an expression of friendship toward the Chinese people."

"The Chinese side offers its high praise for this action and considers that it conforms with the spirit of relevant international cultural heritage protection treaties," it said following a meeting between Pinault and administration deputy director Song Xinchao.

Pinault is in China with French President Francois Hollande on a visit aimed at strengthening economic ties.

 

[shuttler]

Complete set:

Rabbit; Rooster; Goat; Rat, Dog, Horse
Tiger'; Cow; Dragon, Monkey; Snake; Pig

Kept in Taiwan
Missing
Returned / To be retuned to China

An old painting of Haiyantang 海晏堂 in the Yuan Ming Yuan （Summer Palace Garden） - The 12 bronze animal zodiacs were erected on the 2 sides of the water clock fountain at the center

Ejecting water，telling time

An old pic showing lining up of the Statues at the original site

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/海晏堂 Haiyantang



A recreated painting of Haiyantang 海晏堂

 

[ShahidT]

good job. always nice to hear of stolen treasures returned. all old world countries should assist each other in this regard, and try to get them back as peacefully and patiently as possible. hopefully most will be brought back, but undoubtedly some won't want to return it as a matter of pride. there shouldn't be a standoff with those few, as its simply not worth it. they hang on to the relics and coat tails of our civilization, whereas we are the living descendants of it.

 

[Okemos]

Those heads are simply overvalued. From cultural and aesthetic points of view, I don't consider them national treasure. China has much much more ancient relics that have better cultural, historical and aesthetic values.

This might be the reason why the French will return. They can exchange cozy relationship with the Chinese government for those ugly heads.

I would very much have the Chinese government train some good international lawyers to sue foreign museums and governments, and to bring back real looted treasures.

 

[Audio]

LOL! CCP will buy Gucci bags for all female members and Yves Saint Laurent polo shirts for the males! (PPR Group has a stake in both)

 

[HongWu]

Boy that's ugly. Give it back

 

[shuttler]

Let‘s see how long will some of the world's famous museums like the Louvre, the British Museum ... be emptied by the return of the loots!

 

[liontk]

I hope Canada does not give back all of the historic artifacts and I know I am playing devils advocate but it is also part of western heritage too but still it is a good move by the billionaire to give back some of the heritage artifacts.

 

[shuttler]

China is not the only victim of looted arts, antiques, treasures, artifacts etc

Here is a long list:

Looted_art

Further reading on the subject:

International law, Museums and The Return of Cultural Objects

 

[ChinaToday]

Pinault family offers to return bronze heads to China

For four years two looted bronze statues from Qing dynasty have become a cause celebre for Chinese nationalists seeking their return from France.



Jackie Chan took on the hunt for the missing bronzes in his latest film, Chinese Zodiac/CZ12, which showed the star kickboxing his way around western museums, and depicted evil auctioneers bringing the hammer down on similar treasures.


So when on Friday the billionaire owner of Christie’s auction house said he would hand the statues back it did as much to improve Sino-French relations as a simultaneous visit to China of President François Hollande.

The offer by Francois-Henri Pinault, who is also head of PPR, the luxury goods group, to return the rare bronze animal heads was praised as “an expression of friendship toward the Chinese people,’’ by the country’s Administration of Cultural Heritage.

Mr Pinault was in a delegation of businessmen travelling in China with French President François Hollande during whose visit China placed a $4bn order for Airbus wide-body passenger jets.

The bronze heads of a rat and rabbit were part of 12 Chinese zodiac symbols looted during the destruction of Peking’s Summer Palace by British and French troops in 1860 at the height of the Opium Wars.

They formed part of Yves Saint Laurent’s sumptuous art collection which was auctioned at Christie’s after his death by Pierre Bergé, the fashion designer’s civil and business parter in 2009.

Chinese commentators lashed out at French authrorities, accusing them of showing disrespect to China. A year earlier Nicolas Sarkozy had met with the Dalai Lama and French protestors has disrupted the Paris leg of the torch relay for the Beijing Olympics.

But the sale went ahead despite protests from the Chinese government. The highest bidder turned out to be a Chinese nationalist who refused to pay the €28m total, saying the antiquities formed part of China’s rightful heritage.

This set off a diplomatic storm and damaging criticism of Christie’s in China, which is also PPR’s fastest-growing market for its luxury goods, which include Gucci, bags, Saint Laurent fashion and Puma sportswear.

Mr Pinault, who subsequently acquired the bronzes for an undisclosed sum from Mr Bergé, in a statement on Friday praised: “the forward-looking vision of China’s new leadership” in offering to hand back the former centerpieces of an elaborate fountain.

“The family went to great efforts to retrieve these two significant treasures of China and strongly believe they belong in their rightful home,” Mr Pinault said. “The family has an international portfolio of businesses with a considerable presence in China. The Pinault Family controls the Kering Group.”

PPR, which is to change its name to Kering in June, last year bought Qeelin, a small Chinese jeweller and Mr Pinault has said he seeks other acquisitions in China.

France is the world’s biggest producer of luxury goods and China is one of the few markets in which it has an export surplus. Luxury goods companies are increasingly dependent on China for growth in sales.

The destruction of the palace was one of the seminal events of what is now remembered in China as the country’s century of humiliation, when its millennia-old imperial system crumbled and foreign powers invaded the country.

Their donation underlines the dramatic improvement in Sino-French relations over the past five years but British officials have expressed concern that Mr Pinault’s decision could prompt Beijing to step up pressure on other European countries, particularly the UK, to return the treasure troves of Chinese artefacts held in Western museums and private collections.

In November two Chinese antiques were withdrawn from auction in the UK after the proposed sale sparked fury in China amid claims that too were looted.

Pinault family offers to return bronze heads to China - FT.com

 

[armchairPrivate]

Move forward boys. Your baggage is weighting you down.

 

[Psyops]

It's time for the CCP to put severe pressure on the countries that hold Chinese and other foreign treasures to return them back to their original owner. We should cooperate with all the victim countries and form a global union to identify the missing treasures, locate them wherever they are and bring them back to the museums of the original country.

 

[tranquilium]

It's time for the CCP to put severe pressure on the countries that hold Chinese and other foreign treasures to return them back to their original owner. We should cooperate with all the victim countries and form a global union to identify the missing treasures, locate them wherever they are and bring them back to the museums of the original country.

No point. Our treasure will be return when we grow strong enough. The French returned these because EU need China's support, plain and simple. The British will return their loot when we grow enough to influence them. Doing it early is, to be honest, a waste of resources. Ultimately, the relics are just relics. The nation's strength is the source of their value.

 

[xhw1986]

Great news, more to come...