Ivory bill could leave heirlooms worthless, say critics

Anger over ‘Kafkaesque’ government proposal to charge fee for registration

SELLERS of pianos and family heirlooms featuring tiny amounts of ivory must pay to register them on a government database or face jail, under a “Kafka-esque” bill going through Parliament.

The bureaucratic exercise will in many cases be costlier than the object’s worth, rendering them un-sellable and destined for the skip, antiques traders have warned.

The Government is pushing through a ban on ivory trading, with an exemption for items that contain less than 10 per cent ivory and musical instruments containing less than 20 per cent.

Ivory inlays and handles are common features of Georgian and Victorian chests of drawers, mirrors, teapots, clocks, barometers and other everyday items.

But in order to qualify for exemption, an object must be registered online and be issued with a logbook – a process that will involve measuring, photographing and noting all distinguishing features. There will be a charge, which is expected to be anywhere from £30-100.

Many of the items that pass through salerooms as a result of house clearances or probate fetch £100 or less.

Anyone who tries to sell such an object without registering it will face up to five years in jail or an unlimited fine. The law will apply both to sales via auction houses and to private sales through websites such as eBay.

“It is Kafka-esque,” said Lord Inglewood, president of the British Art Market Federation, which represents antiques traders.

“By the Government’s own admission, this category does not contribute either directly or indirectly to poaching, yet people will have to go through the hassle and expense of getting things registered.”

He said this is unfair for those selling lower value objects: “If you have a system in which everybody pays the same fee, the biggest hit is going to be for people with these relatively inexpensive things, not the people with exquisite Byzantine carvings. It ends up as the little man subsidising the big man.”

Anthony Browne, chairman of the federation, said many items that fall foul of the regulations will become unsellable. “Granny’s dressing table mirror is going to end up in a skip just because it happened to have tiny bits of ivory and is too expensive to register.”

Vicki Wonfor, director of Roseberys saleroom in south London, this week sold a George III dressing table mirror for £70, with carved ivory mounts and handles. She would not accept a similar item if the registration procedure comes into force.

“We won’t be able to offer a lot of things for sale which we currently do, because the administration cost just wouldn’t be worth it compared to the value of the item,” she said.

The Antiques Trade Gazette, which has covered the issue extensively on behalf of its members, said: “It is hard to ignore the damage this ban could inflict on large and small auctioneers.

“The trade is united and focused on the ban’s inconsistencies.”