Friday, April 4, 2008

Rocker Jimmy Page will be Keeping his Morris Tapestry for Now


Several of you asked about what Jimmy Page's William Morris tapestry (designed by Edward Burne-Jones and woven at William Morris' shop) sold for at auction last month. I've been checking back at Sotheby's regularly and it turns out that it didn't sell.

Although many other items in the auction sold for several times their value, the tapestry failed to sell for its reserve price, and will remain in Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page's extensive collection of Pre-Raphaelite art.

Page purchased the tapestry back in 1978 for $80,000 and is only the third person to have owned it. He put it up for auction because the mammoth art piece (it's 24 feet wide) is too heavy for him to hang on the oak panelings at his new mansion near the Thames. Perhaps he will be lending it to a museum since he can't display it at home.

For more info, check out the Guardian's report.

If you'd like to see what the other items in the auction sold for, you can take a look at Sotheby's website. You'll need an account, but it's worth signing up just to look at all the beautiful artwork they have!

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