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Michelangelo's Scribble Sells for $200,000 at New York Auction

The small work by Michelangelo depicts a block of marble, with the word "simile," or "similar" in English, according to Christie's auction house. ANGELA WEISS / AFP/File
The small work by Michelangelo depicts a block of marble, with the word "simile," or "similar" in English, according to Christie's auction house. ANGELA WEISS / AFP/File
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Michelangelo's Scribble Sells for $200,000 at New York Auction

The small work by Michelangelo depicts a block of marble, with the word "simile," or "similar" in English, according to Christie's auction house. ANGELA WEISS / AFP/File
The small work by Michelangelo depicts a block of marble, with the word "simile," or "similar" in English, according to Christie's auction house. ANGELA WEISS / AFP/File

A square scribbled on a yellowed piece of paper by Renaissance genius Michelangelo sold for $201,600 -- 33 times its estimated value, auction house Christie's said Wednesday.
Found stuck to the back of a frame, the small drawing accompanied by a letter from Michelangelo's last direct descendant was initially expected to sell for between $6,000 and $8,000, AFP said.
But Christie's in New York said the piece went under the hammer for "33.6 times its low estimate," without disclosing any details of the buyer.
The small work depicts a block of marble, with the word "simile," or "similar" in English. It is believed to have been drawn while Michelangelo worked on his famed Sistine Chapel ceiling, a Christie's specialist told AFP in January.
The drawing is coupled with a letter written by Cosimo Buonarroti in 1836, in which he offers the piece by his "illustrious forefather Michelangelo" to Sir John Bowring, the future governor of Hong Kong, whose signature appears at the bottom of the sheet.
Christie's specialists found the letter and diagram attached to the back of a different drawing that had been in a private collection for decades, the auction house said in a media statement.
Though unsigned by Michelangelo, Christie's said that research confirmed the great Italian artist was responsible for the small drawing.
Fewer than 10 of Michelangelo's works are thought to be privately owned, according to Christie's, with most housed in the Casa Buonarroti, a museum in Florence, Italy.

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Viking Ship Navigating Seafarers’ Ancient Routes Berths in Adriatic 

A full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking knarr "Saga Farmann" on its years-long expedition through European rivers, channels and seas, is berthed in Port of Bar, Montenegro, July 20, 2024. (Reuters)
A full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking knarr "Saga Farmann" on its years-long expedition through European rivers, channels and seas, is berthed in Port of Bar, Montenegro, July 20, 2024. (Reuters)
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Viking Ship Navigating Seafarers’ Ancient Routes Berths in Adriatic 

A full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking knarr "Saga Farmann" on its years-long expedition through European rivers, channels and seas, is berthed in Port of Bar, Montenegro, July 20, 2024. (Reuters)
A full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking knarr "Saga Farmann" on its years-long expedition through European rivers, channels and seas, is berthed in Port of Bar, Montenegro, July 20, 2024. (Reuters)

A replica Viking ship has berthed in Montenegro's Adriatic port of Bar on a years-long trip through European waters inspired by the Norse seafarers who set out from Scandinavia to explore, trade and conquer a millennium ago.

The ship, Saga Farmann, is a full-size archaeological reconstruction of a 10th-century Viking cargo vessel, or knarr, made from oak and pine, which was found in Norway as early as 1893 but only excavated in the 1970s.

"This is the type of ship that would travel to Iceland, or Greenland, even North America," said Linda Sten Vagnes, one of the journey's leaders.

The trip, set to end in 2026, was originally planned to follow the Norwegian coast into the White Sea off northern Russia and the Volga River, but it was rerouted to follow the rivers of Europe from West to East.

"We had to the change the route because of the war (in Ukraine)," Sten Vagnes said.

The Viking age, spanning the 8th to 11th centuries AD, saw Norsemen journey from Scandinavia aboard timber longships to stage raids, trade and settle across a wide region, including North America, using their mastery of maritime technology.

The Saga Farman's journey, which started in 2023, was inspired by the sagas about Vikings who travelled to Constantinople, capital of the-then Byzantine empire.

It took years of hard work by enthusiasts, with the support of the governments of Denmark and Norway, to make an exact copy of a knarr. The vessel was launched in 2018, said Axel Hubert Persvik, a ship builder.

"It takes a long time because most of craft we do is by hand, ... it takes many hours to build it."

At the latest leg of the trip, the 21 meters (69 ft)-long and five meters (16 ft)-wide ship sailed from the Aegean Sea into the Adriatic, said Zander Simpson, the ship's captain.

"The next stage of the trip is around Italy, Sicily ... to stay in Rome this winter, before next year's stage which will take her up the Italian coast, the French Riviera ... to Paris."

In addition to sails and oars, the Saga Farmann has four electric motors to propel it upwind and upstream. More than three tons of batteries are stored onboard where they serve for propulsion and as ballast.