Bouchardon bust sale plan by Highland Council is approved at Tain Sheriff Court in Ross-shire
A court has given the go-ahead for Highland Council to sell a valuable marble bust - already the centre of a £2.5m bid - that was bought for just £5.
The Bouchardon bust, which was bought by Invergordon Town Council in 1930 and depicts the man after whom the town gets its name, disappeared for decades before being rediscovered propping open a shed door in Balintore in 1998.
The bust was sculpted by celebrated French artist Edme Bouchardon in 1728 and is thought to have been created when its subject - Sir John Gordon - was on a Grand Tour in Europe.
But, following its rediscovery, its multi-million pound value has posed issues for Highland Council, with the local authority claiming its value made it too difficult to secure insurance and security for public display within the region
It has remained securely locked away from public view for much of the time since then - although it was exhibited in 2016 at The Louvre in Paris and the J Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.
The local authority has instead pursued the possibility of selling it, with that money intended for Invergordon Common Good Fund. A museum-quality replica would also be created which could then be displayed for the public going forward.
Members of the Black Isle and Easter Ross area committee voted in May to pursue the sale, which was rubber stamped by a full council meeting a month later.
That vote followed public consultation over the plans which drew dozens of responses - with 48 of the 70 received being in favour of the sale despite strong criticism from some quarters.
And last Thursday the council applied to Tain Sheriff Court for formal approval to sell the bust under the terms of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.
It was successful, although the planned sale will now almost certainly be subject to The Waverley Criteria - which are used to decide whether an object should be considered a national treasure and not leave the UK.
To qualify, the object must meet at least one of three criteria: it is closely connected with British history and national life; is of outstanding aesthetic importance, or is of outstanding significance for the study of art, learning or history.
When a bar is placed, there is a deferral period of three months - though this can vary - which allows time for potential UK buyers to express interest.
A spokesperson for Highland Council said: ”As the court approved the sale the Waverley Criteria will almost certainly be triggered which allows for institutions to consider whether they wish to offer to buy – the timescales for that are set by the UK Government Reviewing Committee on Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest and outwith council control.”
If the sale goes ahead the money generated from the bust could provide a large boost for community projects in Invergordon. Councillor Maxine Smith has previously said that the value of the bust means that interest alone could be worth as much as £125,000 a year to the common good fund.
A report to councillors previously said: “It is the considered opinion of the experts at Sotheby’s that the current offer received [of £2.5million] is at the top level of the market and represents peak offer for the bust."
