Britain stops U.S. pop singer's export of Jane Austen ring
A campaign to prevent U.S. pop singer Kelly Clarkson from taking a
ring owned by 19th century novelist Jane Austen out of Britain has raised
enough money to save it, a museum recently said.
The singer, who became the first contestant to win the TV singing
contest "American Idol" more than a decade ago, bought the turquoise
and gold antique ring at an auction last year for more than 150,000 pounds
($227,000).
But Culture Minister Ed Vaizey placed a temporary export bar on
the ring, which stops it leaving the country, and appealed for a British buyer
to come forward and save it for the nation.
Jane Austen's House Museum said a fundraising campaign had been
successful and it could now afford to buy the ring that had been owned by the
Austen family for more than 200 years until its sale at auction last year.
Curator Mary Guyatt said the campaign received a 100,000 pound
donation from an anonymous donor and contributions from Austen fans from all
over the world.
"The museum is now able to reveal that their offer to
purchase the ring has been accepted," she said in a statement.
The ring is one of only three surviving pieces of jewellery known
to have belonged to the author of such classics as "Pride and
Prejudice", "Sense and Sensibility" and "Emma". It
comes with papers documenting its history within her family.
Clarkson congratulated the museum on raising the funds to purchase
the ring owned by the writer who died in 1817.
"The ring is a beautiful national treasure and I am happy to
know that so many Jane Austen fans will get to see it at Jane Austen's House
Museum," she said in the statement.
Culled from REUTERS
Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @simplysamad for more exciting gist, photos, interviews, reviews, jokes, quotes and other entertaining content | BB pin: 2B3D28E3
Comments
Post a Comment
Please Leave a comment