APA-Johannesburg (South Africa) New York-based auctioneer Guernsey’s Auction House has suspended an online auction of personal items belonging to late former South African president Nelson Mandela that was set for February 22, APA learnt here Wednesday.
“This auction has been suspended,” the auctioneer said in a notice on its website without giving reasons for the suspension.
The sale would have seen 70 personal items and treasured gifts belonging to the late apartheid icon going under the hammer “to raise funds to build a memorial garden at Mandela’s gravesite” in Qunu in Eastern Cape province.
The suspension came in the wake of the decision by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) to appeal a recent high court ruling that gave one of Mandela’s daughters, Makaziwe, the permission to auction off some of her father’s personal items.
SAHRA argued that 29 items belonging to Mandela were heritage objects and should be returned to South Africa.
This is the second time the auction has been suspended. It was also put on hold in January 2022 amid a similar legal battle between SAHRA and Makaziwe.
The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Mr Zizi Kodwa welcomes the decision by Guernsey’s Auction House to suspend the auction of items associated with former President Nelson Mandela.
Minister Kodwa welcomed the cooperation between the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) and Guernsey’s Auction which allows the ongoing legal proceedings on the matter to be finalised.
Minister Kodwa said SAHRA, with the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture and Robben Island Museum, will continue to appeal the High Court judgement relating to the unpermitted export for exhibition or sale on auction of items associated with the late Mandela.
“I reiterate the importance of preserving and protecting the legacy of former President Nelson Mandela and South Africa’s rich cultural heritage. Our cultural heritage defines who we are and maintains the knowledge and memory of where we come from as a nation” he added.
JN/APA