2023-12-02 19:47:52
French designer Albert Uderzo poses next to a figurine of his famous character Asterix, at his home, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, near Paris, October 10, 2013. JOEL SAGET / AFP
Judging the conditions of acquisition of a famous board to be doubtfulAsterix and Cleopatra, the daughter of designer Albert Uderzo filed a complaint to prevent the sale, her lawyer said on Saturday, December 2. The original album cover design was to be put up for sale in Brussels on December 10 by the Millon auction house.
The value of this 32 x 17 cm gouache, dating from 1963, is estimated at 400,000 to 500,000 euros. It is sold by an individual who claims to have held it for “over fifty years”. Uderzo had offered it “during a dinner with friends”Millon said at the end of November in a communiqué. The complaint was filed for concealment of breach of trust or theft.
“The short-term objective is to prevent the sale, in any case to have time to shed as much light as possible on the circumstances of the possession of this board and perhaps even to recover it, eventually »explained Orly Rezlan, lawyer for Sylvie Uderzo, confirming information from the daily Le Figaro.
The lawyer recalls that Albert Uderzo used to autograph the boards he offered, but this one is not. According to her, Sylvie Uderzo and her mother were informed by the auction house of the sale, with “a narrative” Who “looked quite smoky” on the conditions for obtaining the work by the seller’s father.
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“We are sure of our rights”
Arnaud de Partz, general manager of Millon Belgium, said he had been informed of the complaint without having yet received it. He recognizes that the sale is now “uncertain”. According to him, the drawing was indeed given by Albert Uderzo to a friend, whose son now wants to sell it.
“There are a lot of boards that have been donated and have not been autographed”affirms Arnaud de Partz, who explains that at the time these originals had not ” no value “. “We are sure of our rights. We have all the history. We have a photo [du père du vendeur] with Uderzo, it is certain that they knew each other”he added.
Huge success at the cinema, with nearly twenty-five million admissions worldwide for Asterix and Obelix: Cleopatra mission (2002), the adventures of the Gaul in Egypt were first a comic book album.
The album cover design is a parody of the Hollywood production poster Cleopatra, from 1963, at the time the most expensive film in history. Uderzo’s Cleopatra takes the same pose as Elizabeth Taylor; Asterix replaces Julius Caesar played by Rex Harrison; and Obélix, Marc Antoine, played by Richard Burton.
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