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Rare Inlaid Stradivari Violin Could Fetch $11 Million at Auction

Violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason holds the rare "Hellier" violin, created by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari in 1679. (Reuters)
Violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason holds the rare "Hellier" violin, created by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari in 1679. (Reuters)
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Rare Inlaid Stradivari Violin Could Fetch $11 Million at Auction

Violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason holds the rare "Hellier" violin, created by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari in 1679. (Reuters)
Violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason holds the rare "Hellier" violin, created by Italian luthier Antonio Stradivari in 1679. (Reuters)

A rare 1679 violin made by renowned Italian craftsman Antonio Stradivari is headed for auction next month where it could fetch up to $11 million.

The "Hellier" Stradivarius "is the finest inlaid violin ever made by... Stradivari and one of the finest Stradivarius instruments in existence", said auction house Christie's which is offering the instrument as the top lot in its July 7 "The Exceptional Sale".

Engraved with ivory diamonds and finished with a golden varnish, the violin has a price estimate of 6-9 million pounds ($7.54-11.31 million).

Stradivari kept the instrument for 55 years, selling it in 1734 for 40 pounds to Samuel Hellier of Wombourne, England.

"I expect a lot of interest for such an instrument because it is so rare that it comes out of a museum," violin expert and Christie's consultant Florian Leonhard told Reuters.

"When can you touch a violin like this and own it? It’s incredible."

Stradivari's violins are known for their exquisite craftsmanship. They cost between $8 million and $20 million, according to Leonhard.

"Of the roughly 1,100 instruments Stradivari made over the course of his career, only around a dozen are embellished with decoration, and this specimen is regarded by the Smithsonian curators as the best-preserved extant example," Christie's said in a statement.

Violinist Braimah Kanneh-Mason played the instrument at a preview and described it as "beautiful".

"These kinds of violins are often compared to sports cars, you have to firstly learn how to drive them, but once you learn how to maneuver it’s incredibly rewarding," he said.

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US Moves to Protect All Species of Pangolin, World’s Most Trafficked Mammal

A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
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US Moves to Protect All Species of Pangolin, World’s Most Trafficked Mammal

A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)
A Malaysian pangolin walks past cages containing 45 others as a wildlife officer watches in Kuala Lumpur August 8, 2002. (Reuters)

The United States on Monday moved to extend federal protections to all species of pangolins -- a step that would tighten trade restrictions and highlight the urgent conservation plight of the world's only scaly mammals.

Found in the forests, woodlands, and savannas of Africa and Asia, pangolins are small, nocturnal creatures known for their distinctive appearance, slow and peaceful demeanor, and habit of curling into a ball when threatened.

Often likened to a walking pinecone, they use long, sticky tongues to feast on ants and termites, give birth to a single pup each year -- and are the most heavily trafficked mammals on Earth. Their keratin scales are coveted in traditional medicine, and their meat is also considered a delicacy in some regions.

Despite steep population declines driven by poaching, habitat loss, and inbreeding, only one species -- Temminck's pangolin of Africa -- is currently protected under the US Endangered Species Act. Monday's proposal by the US Fish and Wildlife Service would extend that status to all eight known species.

In a statement, the agency said it intends to list the four Asian species -- Chinese, Indian, Sunda, and Philippine -- as well as the three other African species: white-bellied, black-bellied, and giant pangolins.

"I'm delighted the United States is doing its part to save these adorably odd creatures," said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

"Pangolins are on the razor's edge of extinction, and we need to completely shut down any US market for their scales. There's no good reason for anybody to ingest any part of a pangolin."

Pangolins are currently protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits international trade for commercial purposes and allows it only under exceptional circumstances.

Still, the illegal trade persists.

In April, Nigerian authorities seized nearly four tons of trafficked pangolin scales, representing the slaughter of some 2,000 animals. In November 2024, Indonesian officials intercepted another 1.2 tons.

US demand remains a factor. Between 2016 and 2020, border officials intercepted 76 shipments of pangolin parts, including scales and products marketed for traditional medicine, according to public data.