Coveted Churchill Artifacts Go on Sale in New York 

Winston Churchill’s personal desk and a portrait of the late British leader by Arthur Pan, part of Winston S. Churchill Collection of Steve Forbes, are displayed at the Winter Show in New York City on January 18, 2024. (AFP)
Winston Churchill’s personal desk and a portrait of the late British leader by Arthur Pan, part of Winston S. Churchill Collection of Steve Forbes, are displayed at the Winter Show in New York City on January 18, 2024. (AFP)
TT
20

Coveted Churchill Artifacts Go on Sale in New York 

Winston Churchill’s personal desk and a portrait of the late British leader by Arthur Pan, part of Winston S. Churchill Collection of Steve Forbes, are displayed at the Winter Show in New York City on January 18, 2024. (AFP)
Winston Churchill’s personal desk and a portrait of the late British leader by Arthur Pan, part of Winston S. Churchill Collection of Steve Forbes, are displayed at the Winter Show in New York City on January 18, 2024. (AFP)

A treasure trove of Winston Churchill's possessions including his desk, a holiday painting from a trip to Morocco, and a copy of his first book go on sale in New York on Thursday.

An imposing portrait of the British wartime leader by Hungarian artist Arthur Pan, sold at the height of the Second World War in 1943 to fundraise for Clementine Churchill's Aid to Russia Fund, is listed for $125,000.

The pieces are on sale at the Winter Show art, antiques and design fair in New York until January 28. They were acquired from the heir to the Forbes media fortune Steve Forbes.

"We've bought the highlights, we have papers, letters and we also have the desk and the painting -- crown jewel stuff," rare books dealer Pom Harrington told AFP.

Harrington said the cigar-smoking former prime minister had an enduring appeal in the United States.

"He's a war hero -- he was the underdog," he said. "We'll have plenty of customers in America."

Churchill was born to a mother from the United States and a British father and went on to receive honorary US citizenship.

His 1935 oil study of "The Entrance to the Gorge at Todhra" near Marrakesh in Morocco has an asking price of $395,000.

"If it weren't for painting, I could not live; I could not bear the strain of things," Churchill famously once said.

The desk, available for $450,000, was from his London home at Hyde Park Gate and was used while writing his "Second World War" memoirs, hand-corrected revised proofs of which are on sale for $750,000.

An inscribed copy of a first edition of "The Story of the Malakand Field Force," Churchill's first published non-fiction work, described by Harrington as "exceedingly rare" is on sale for $47,500.

And a copy of "Savrola," inscribed by Churchill to his military mentor Ian Hamilton after the two men were involved in the relief of Ladysmith following a 118-day siege, is on sale for $47,500.

The area around Ladysmith in South Africa was the scene of one of the bloodiest battles of the Boer War more than a century ago.

The battle involved three future world leaders Churchill, stretcher-bearer Mahatma Gandhi who later led India to independence and Louis Botha, South Africa's first prime minister.

Bound editions of Churchill's "On Free Trade" speeches, in defense of the free market, will likely attract the interest of collectors because of how rarely examples are available to purchase, Harrington said.

"If I'm a collector of rare books, these are the things to buy," said Harrington of the volumes, listed for $150,000.



Egypt, Greece Agree to Protect Status of Mount Sinai Monastery

A general view of St. Catherine's Monastery in South Sinai, Egypt, March 7, 2019. Picture taken March 7, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
A general view of St. Catherine's Monastery in South Sinai, Egypt, March 7, 2019. Picture taken March 7, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
TT
20

Egypt, Greece Agree to Protect Status of Mount Sinai Monastery

A general view of St. Catherine's Monastery in South Sinai, Egypt, March 7, 2019. Picture taken March 7, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo
A general view of St. Catherine's Monastery in South Sinai, Egypt, March 7, 2019. Picture taken March 7, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo

Greece and Egypt have agreed to safeguard the status of one of the world's oldest sites of Christian worship, foreign ministers of both countries said late on Wednesday, after an Egyptian court ruling last week cast uncertainty over its future.

The St Catherine's Monastery, at the foot of Egypt's Mount Sinai, was founded in the 6th century and is the oldest Christian monastery still in use for its original function, says UNESCO, which has listed the area as a World Heritage site, Reuters reported.

Revered by Christians, Muslims and Jews, the monastery is at the site where by Biblical tradition Moses received the Ten Commandments.

But last week, an Egyptian court ruling seen by Reuters ordered Orthodox monks to vacate several plots of land that the monks have used for years, including vineyards and gardens adjacent to the monastery compound, on the grounds that they were illegally sequestered, prompting a diplomatic flurry between Cairo and Athens over the site's status.

"We agreed in the immediate future to work towards safeguarding the rights of the monastery, as well as its legal status," Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis said after meeting his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty in Cairo.

"Both Egypt and Greece intend to move forward based on the long-standing tradition and the already established status of an emblematic monastery for its Greek Orthodox character of worship".

Abdelatty said that the ruling preserves the monastery’s profound spiritual value and religious standing, and confirmed that the monks would continue to have access to and use of the monastery and its religious and historical sites, according to a foreign ministry statement. With a long history of diplomatic ties, Greece and Egypt have deepened cooperation in recent years.

St Catherine's is a sprawling complex, and according to tradition it was built around a burning bush where God was said to have spoken to Moses as described in the Book of Exodus. Its library is one of the most extensive worldwide, containing some of the world's earliest Christian manuscripts.