Christie's cancels sale of late Austrian billionaire Heidi Horten's jewelry over Nazi links_我的网站
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Jiang Bin Photo: China's Ministry of National Defense The Yasukuni Shrine is a spiritual tool and symbol of Japanese militarism in launching wars of aggression against other countries, and it enshrines war criminals whose hands are stained with the blood of the people of Asia-Pacific countries. The relevant acts of Japanese politicians openly desecrate historical justice and seriously hurt the feelings of the people of victimized countries in the Asia-Pacific, said Jiang Bin, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense on Saturday when commenting on news reports that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi sent a ritual offering to the notorious war-linked Yasukuni Shrine and that politicians including Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi visited the Yasukuni Shrine on the day that marks Japan’s defeat and surrender. “In essence, they are intended to cover up and deny the responsibility for aggression, and to challenge the victorious outcomes of the World Anti-Fascist War and the postwar international order,” said Jiang. “On the one hand, these Japanese politicians proclaim their pursuit of peace; on the other , they pay homage to the chief culprits responsible for war. Such hypocritical behavior fully exposes the seriously distorted view of history held by Japan’s right-wing forces and their dangerous attempt to raise the banner for and summon the spirit of militarism,” said Jiang. Facing up to the history of aggression and deeply reflecting on the responsibility for war crimes constitute the political foundation for Japan to develop relations with its Asian neighbors, according to the spokesperson. Jiang noted that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trial. “We demand that the Japanese side earnestly draw lessons from history and stop acting against the tide of history. If it insists on pushing forward ‘neo-militarism’ and becomes a root cause and source of turmoil endangering regional peace, it will inevitably once again be subjected to the judgment of justice and the reckoning of history,” the spokesperson added. Global Times 。 Christie's has canceled the second auction of jewels belonging to an Austrian billionaire, whose German husband made his fortune under the Nazis, following "intense scrutiny," it said Friday. The auction house held a first controversial online and in-person sale in Geneva of part of the large stash of more than 700 jewels in May, and had been scheduled to hold a second round in November.But in a statement it said "Christie's has taken the decision not to proceed with further sales of property from the Estate of Heidi Horten."This photograph taken on May 8, 2023, shows Christie's international head of jewellery, Rahul Kadakia, speaking on his phone behind a display case of jewels during a press preview of the "World of Heidi Horten" sales in Geneva. FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty With just a portion of the collection sold, the auction eclipsed previous records set by Christie's in sales of properties that belonged to actress Elizabeth Taylor in 2011 and the "Maharajas and Mughal Magnificence" collection in 2019, both of which exceeded $100 million. Hopes had been high for similar results from the second round. But following an initial report in the New York Times, Christie's sent a statement to AFP confirming that it had canceled the second round, acknowledging that "the sale of the Heidi Horten jewelry collection has provoked intense scrutiny.""The reaction to it has deeply affected us and many others, and we will continue to reflect on it," it said.
A large number of Jewish groups had asked Christie's to halt the initial Horten sale in May, describing it as "indecent" and demanding that the auction house do more to determine how much of it came from victims of the Nazis.
The extraordinary collection belonged to Horten, who died last year aged 81 with a fortune of $2.9 billion, according to Forbes.A report published in January 2022 by historians commissioned by the Horten Foundation said Horten's husband Helmut Horten, who died in Switzerland in 1987, had been a member of the Nazi party before being expelled.
"The Nazi Conspiracy": The WWII plot to kill FDR, Churchill and Stalin07:31In 1936, three years after Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany, Horten took over textile company Alsberg, based in the western city of Duisburg, after its Jewish owners fled. He later took over several other shops that had belonged to Jewish owners before the war.Christie's in May defended its decision to go ahead with the sale, with Christie's international head of jewelry Rahul Kadakia telling AFP that all of the proceeds would go towards charities.
"Christie's separately is making a significant donation towards Holocaust research and education," he said at the time, stressing that the "proceeds of the sale is going to do good."
