Bust of Sir John Gordon (cropped) – SWNS

A town council in Scotland has been given the go ahead by a local court to sell a marble bust found propping open a garden shed, and turn the proceeds into a multitude of good for the community.

The bust was purchased by the Invergordon Town Council in 1930 for just $5 and depicts the man after whom the town gets its name—Sir John Gordon.

Sculpted by celebrated French artist Edme Bouchardon in 1728, it was created when its subject, Gordon, was on a Grand Tour in Europe.

It disappeared for decades before it was rediscovered being used as a doorstop in the town of Balintore 26 years ago. But its rediscovery and multi-million dollar value posed issues for the Highland Council.

They wanted to display the historical piece for the public, but a local authority claimed its value made securing insurance and security very difficult.

So it has remained securely locked away from public view for much of the time—although it was exhibited in The Louvre in Paris in 2016 and at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

The town has instead pursued the possibility of selling it, with the money going to the Invergordon Common Good Fund.

Sotheby’s / SWNS

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A museum-quality replica could be created which could then be displayed for the public going forward.

Members of the area committee voted in May to pursue the sale under the terms of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, and it was later rubber stamped by the full council after 48 of the 70 public comments—68%—favored the sale. However, vocal critics called for the bust to be loaned to the Inverness Museum or National Galleries of Scotland.

The planned sale will now almost certainly be subject to The Waverley Criteria, used to decide whether an object should be considered a national treasure and thus remain in 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.

Potential UK buyers or institutions would still be able to make bids on the masterpiece that Sotheby’s appraised at £2.5 million.

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If the sale goes ahead the money generated from the bust could provide a large boost for community projects in Invergordon—as much as £125,000 a year to the common good fund, says Councillor Maxine Smith.

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