Colin Gleadell teases Sotheby’s sale of the remainder of Helge Achenbach’s inventory. The German art adviser faked invoices to massively over-charge a client. (Yes. It is similar to that other case but different. Achenbach committed fraud. the other guy was smart enough to create a correct paper trail.)
But the art world loves a rogue. the German sale of Achenbach’s inventory was a surprise success, as Gleadell notes:
Ripples of a major art world scandal in Germany are to be felt in London next week as Sotheby’s offers 17 contemporary works from “the inventory of Achenbach Consulting,” the leading German art consultancy run by Helge Achenbach who was convicted of overcharging his clients and sentenced to six years in prison earlier this year. Declared insolvent, over 2,000 works from Achenbach’s stock were sold last week in Germany for some €6.5 million (£4.6 million), and the London sales are estimated to raise another £550,000. Most of the works at Sotheby’s were acquired through established dealers, and some at auction. Thomas Struth’s photograph of visitors to the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence was bought for £49,250 in a 2012 sale to raise money for the Ludwig Museum in Cologne, and is now re-offered with a £30,000 to £40,000 estimate.
Market News: Scandal Sells (Telegraph)
