Conditions of Purchase
Artcurial SAM
Artcurial SAM is an operator of voluntary auction sales. In such capacity Artcurial SAM acts as the agent of the seller who contracts with the buyer.
The relationships between Artcurial SAM and the buyer are subject to the present general conditions of purchase that can be modified by saleroom notices or oral indications before the sale, which will be recorded in the official sale record.
1 - Goods for auction
The photographs reproduced in the catalogue have no legal value and are not to be considered as guarantee of quality. Artcurial SAM reserves the right to modify the scale and proportions of an object for the purpose of the page setup of a catalogue.
a) The prospective buyers are invited to examine any goods in which they may be interested, before the auction takes place, and notably during the exhibitions.
Artcurial SAM is available to the prospective buyers to provide them with reports about the conditions of lots. Pieces of furniture, paintings and works of Art are sold in their current condition.
b) Description of the lots resulting from the catalogue, reports, labels and verbal statements or announcements are only the expression by Artcurial SAM of their perception of the lot, but cannot constitute the proof of a fact.
c) The statements by made Artcurial SAM about any restoration, mishap or harm arisen concerning the lot are only made to facilitate the inspection thereof by the prospective buyer and remain subject to the buyer's own or to the buyer's expert's evaluation. The absence of statements Artcurial SAM in regard to a restoration, mishap or harm, in the catalogue, condition reports, on labels or orally, does not imply that the item is exempt from any current, past or repaired defect. Inversely, indication of any defect whatsoever does not imply the absence of any other defects. Artcurial SAM is bound only within the limits of due care.
d) Estimates are provided for guidance only and cannot be considered as implying the certainty that the item will be sold for the estimated price or even within the bracket of estimates.
Estimates cannot constitute any warranty assurance whatsoever.
The estimations can be provided in several currencies ; the conversions may, in this case or, be rounded off differently than the legal rounding
e) Regarding clockmaking, watches and
pendulum clocks are sold «as is». No warranty
is given as the correct operation of the watches
and clocks or to the condition of the bracelet
or hand wrists. Most of the watches have been
opened, as required in order to identify the type and quality of the movement, including the waterproof watches. It is therefore recommended to the purchasers who would like to check the waterproofness of a watch to consult a clockmaker. Any dial of a watch that has been restored or repainted shall be considered as the subject of a measure of conversation, and hence shall not be reported.
The replacement of any bracelets, as well as the waterproofness, the restorations, revisions and settings are the responsibility of the purchaser. Artcurial SAM shall not accept
any quotation for restoration from any clockmaker whatsoever. Once adjudication has been awarded, all claims shall be rejected, as the purchasers will have had the opportunity to examine the items before acquisition.
f) Concerning jewels sales, gem stones and pearls:
1) Our expert Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten indicates those gem stones which have been altered as being «traditional lapidary methods» in the same manner as thosestones which have not been altered.
2) Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten indicates those gem stones which have been modified by other processes with the stone's name, followed by the mention «treated/traité» or by the name of the treatment applied. Those gemstones presented without a laboratory certificate have
been evaluated and estimated by the Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten, the possible modifications having been taking into account as noted in paragraph 1).
Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten remains at the buyer's disposal for further information concerning the various types of treatment. The identification techniques and the analysis results concerning the origins and the classification of stones and pearls may vary from one laboratory to another. Therefore, it is possible to obtain, in certain cases, a different result depending on the laboratory used.
3) ) If a buyer wishes to get the opinion of another gemological laboratory, he must submit this request at the latest 15 days prior to the sale. No dispute will be considered valid on the gem certificates provided by Artcurial SAM. These certificates are provided as a service only.
4) Lots which include rubies/jades from Burma can be exported to the US, providing they have a certificate or invoice which states that they were exported from Burma before 2007. There exist no restriction for rubies/jades circulating within the EU.
g) Regarding animal matter (ivory, coral, tortoiseshell, rare skins, etc.), some lots offered for sale are potentially composed of elements from endangered or protected species. Artcurial SAM reserves the right to refuse any jewelery and / or object whose composition would violate the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Flora (CITES) applicable in the Principality of Monaco under Sovereign Order No. 67 of 23 May 2005.
2 - The auction
a) In order to assure the proper organization of the auction, prospective buyers are invited to make themselves known to Artcurial SAM before the auction to register their personal identification and information.
Artcurial SAM will ask all prospective buyers to prove their identity as well as provide bank references, and will request a deposit.
Artcurial SAM reserves the right to refuse admission to the auction premises to any prospective buyer for legitimate reasons.
b) Any person who is a bidder undertakes to pay personally and immediately the hammer price increased by the costs to be born by the buyer and any and all taxes or fees/expenses that may be due.
Any bidder is deemed to be acting on his own behalf except when prior notification, accepted by Artcurial SAM, unless proof is provided that he is acting as an agent on behalf of a third party. The personal data that have been transmitted during the recording will be carried forward in the same way if no prior indications are otherwise given.
c) The usual way to bid consists in attending the sale on the premises. However, Artcurial SAM may graciously accept to receive some bids by telephone from a prospective buyer who has expressed such a request before the sale.
Artcurial SAM will bear no liability / responsibility whatsoever, notably if the telephone contact is not made, or if it is made too late, or in case of mistakes or omissions relating to reception of the phone call. For variety of reasons, Artcurial SAM reserves the right to record all telephone calls during the auction. Such records shall be kept until complete payment of the auction price, except claims.
d) Artcurial SAM may agree to execute orders submitted before the auction and by Artcurial SAM that have been deemed acceptable. Artcurial SAM is entitled to request a deposit that will be refunded within 72 hours after the auction if the lot is not sold to this buyer.
Should Artcurial SAM receive several instructions to bid for the same amounts, it is the instruction bid first received that is given preference. Artcurial SAM will bear no liability/responsibility in case of mistakes or omission of performance of the written order.
e) In the event a reserve price has been stipulated by the seller, Artcurial SAM reserves the right to bid on behalf of the seller until the reserve price is reached. The seller will not be admitted to bid himself directly or through an agent. The reserve price may not be higher than the low estimate for the lot printed in or publicly modified before the sale.
f) Artcurial SAM will conduct auction sales at their discretion, ensuring free auction conditions and equality among all bidders, in accordance with established practices.
Artcurial SAM reserves the right to refuse any bid, to organize the bidding in such manner as may be the most appropriate, to move some lots in the course of the sale, to withdraw any lot in the course of the sale, to combine or to divide some lots in the course of the sale.
In case of challenge or dispute, Artcurial SAM reserves the right to designate the successful bidder, to continue the bidding or to cancel it, or to put the lot back up for bidding.
g) to the decision of the person conducting the bidding for Artcurial SAM, the successful bidder will be the bidder making highest bid, provided the final bid is equal to or higher than the reserve price if such a reserve price has been stipulated.
The hammer stroke will mark the acceptance of the highest bid and the pronouncing of the word "adjugé" ("sold") or any equivalent will indicate the conclusion of the purchase contract between the seller and the last bidder taken in consideration.
No lot will be delivered to the buyer until full payment has been made. In case of payment by an ordinary draft/check, payment will be deemed complete only when the check has been cashed. Artcurial SAM will deliver any purchase once the bank cheque has been cashed.
h) So as to facilitate the price calculation for prospective buyers, a currency converter may be operated by Artcurial SAM as guidance. Nevertheless, the bidding cannot be made in foreign currency and Artcurial SAM will not be liable for errors of conversion.
3 - Concluding the sale
a) In addition of the lot's hammer price, the buyer must pay the following costs and fees/taxes by lot and by decreasing scale :
1) Lots from the UE:
• From 1 to 150,000 euros: 25 % + current VAT.
• From 150,001 to 1,200,000 euros: 20 %
+ current VAT.
• Over 1,200,00 euros: 12 % + current VAT.
2) Lots from outside the UE: (identified by an ). In addition to the commissions and taxes indicated above, importation expenses will be charged (5.5% of the hammer price, 20% for jewelry and watches, motorcars, wines and spirits and multiples).
3) Artcurial SAM being subject to VAT on the margin, no document mentions VAT.
4) The VAT on buyer's premium and importation expenses may be refund to the purchaser on presentation of written proof of exportation outside the UE.
An UE purchaser who will submit his intra-Community VAT number will be exempted from paying the VAT on buyer's premium providing he can prove with an adequate document that his purchase will be shipped to his EU country home address.
5) The payment of the lot will be made in cash, for the entire price, costs and taxes, even when an export license is required.
The purchaser will be authorized to pay by the following means:
- In cash, up to 30,000 euros, on presentation of their identity papers ;
-By bank check drawn on a Monegasque or French bank upon presentation of identification and to any legal person, registration certificate society (checks drawn on a foreign bank are not accepted).
- By bank transfer in euros;
- By credit card: VISA, MASTERCARD or AMEX (in case of payment by AMEX, a additional 1.85 % commission corresponding to cashing costs will be collected).
6) Rights for the authors of graphic and art works: The foregoing shall not preclude, as appropriate, the application of Article 11-1 of the Act No. 491 of 24 November 1948 on the protection of Literary and artistic Works and the Ministerial Decree No. 87-007 of 12 January 1987 on its application.
b) Artcurial SAM will be authorized to reproduce in the official auction record and on the bid summary the information that the buyer will have provided before the sale. The buyer will be responsible for any false information given.
Should the buyer have neglected to give his personal information before the sale, he will have to give the necessary information as soon as the sale of the lot has taken place.
Any person registered by Artcurial SAM has right of access and of rectification to the personal data provided to Artcurial SAM pursuant to the provisions of Law No. 1165 of 23 December 1993, as amended by Law No. 1353 of 4 December 2008 on the protection of personal information.
c) The lot must to be insured by the buyer immediately after the purchase. The buyer will have no recourse against Artcurial SAM, in the event where, due to a theft, loss or deterioration of his lot after the purchase, the compensation he received from Artcurial SAM 's insurer proves insufficient.
d) The lot will be delivered to the buyer only after the entire payment of the price, costs and taxes. If payment is made by check, the lot will be delivered after cashing, eight working days after the check deposit.
In the meantime Artcurial SAM may invoice to the buyer the costs of storage of the lot, and if applicable the costs of handling and transport.
Should the buyer fail to pay the amount due, and after notice to pay has been given by Artcurial SAM to the buyer without success, at the seller's request, the lot is re-offered for sale, under the procedure known as "procédure de folle enchère" (irresponsible bidding). If the seller does not make this request within three months from the date of the sale, the sale will be automatically cancelled, without prejudice to any damages owed by the defaulting buyer.
In addition, Artcurial SAM reserves the right to claim against the defaulting buyer, if they so choose:
- interest at the legal rate increased by five points,
- reimbursement of additional costs generated by the buyer's default,
- payment of the difference between the initial hammer price and the price of sale after "procédure de folle enchère" if it is inferior as well as the costs generated by the new auction.
Artcurial SAM also reserves the right to set off any amount Artcurial SAM may owe the defaulting buyer with the amounts to be paid by the defaulting buyer.
Artcurial SAM reserves the right to exclude from any future auction, any bidder who has been a defaulting buyer or who has not fulfilled these general conditions of purchase.
e) For items purchased which are not collected within seven days from after the sale (Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays included), Artcurial SAM will be authorized to move them into a storage place at the defaulting buyer's expense, and to release them to same after payment of corresponding costs, in addition to the price, costs and taxes.
f) ) The buyer may obtain a certificate of sale upon request which will be invoiced EUR60.
4 - Auction procedures
In case of dispute, Artcurial SAM reserves the right to designate the successful bidder, to continue the sale or to cancel it, or to put the lot up for sale.
a) In case two bidders have bidden vocally, by mean of gesture or by telephone for the same amount and both claim title to the lot, after the bidding the lot, will immediately be offered again for sale at the previous last bid, and all those attending will be entitled to bid again.
b) So as to facilitate the presentation of the items during the sales, Artcurial SAM will use video technology.
Should any error occur in operation of such, which may lead to showing an item during the bidding that is not the one on which the bids have been made, Artcurial SAM shall bear no liability/responsibility whatsoever, and will have sole discretion to decide whether or not the bidding will take place again.
5 - Pre-emption of the Monaco state
The Monaco state in entitled to use a right of pre-emption on works of art. In accordance with the laws in force in Article 2-1 of the Law No. 1014 of 29 December 1978 concerning public sales of furniture.
The use of this right comes immediately after the hammer stroke, the representative of the State expressing then the intention of the State to substitute for the last bidder, provided he confirms the pre-emption decision within fifteen days. In the absence of confirmation at the end of this period, the object will return to the highest bidder Artcurial SAM will not bear any liability/responsibility for the conditions of pre-emption by the State of Monaco.
6 - Intellectual Property Right - Copyright
The copyright in any and all parts of the catalogue is the property of Artcurial SAM.
Any reproduction thereof is forbidden and will be considered as a counterfeit to their detriment.
Furthermore, Artcurial SAM benefits from a legal exception allowing them to reproduce the lots for auction sale in their catalogue, even though the copyright protection on an item has not lapsed.
Any reproduction of Artcurial SAM catalogue may therefore constitute an illegal reproduction of a work that may lead its perpetrator to be prosecuted for counterfeiting by the holder of copyright on the work.
The sale of a work of art does not transfer to its buyer any reproduction or representation rights thereof.
7 - Removal of purchases
The buyer must insure his purchase, and Artcurial SAM assumes no liability for any damage items may incur after the sale. All transportation arrangements are the sole responsibility of the buyer.
8 - Severability
The clauses of these general conditions of purchase are independent from one other.
Should any clause whatsoever be found null and void, the others shall remain valid and applicable.
9 - Law and Jurisdiction
These general conditions of purchase, and all that relates to the sale are governed by Monegasque law and, in particular, by Law No. 1014 of 29 December 1978 concerning public auctions of furniture.
Any dispute regarding the existence, validity, and enforceability for any bidder or buyer falls under the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Principality of Monaco.
10 - Protection of cultural property
Artcurial SAM follows a policy to prevent the sale of looted or stolen cultural property.
Goods for auction
The photographs reproduced in the catalogue have no legal value and are not to be considered as guarantee of quality. Artcurial SAM reserves the right to modify the scale and proportions of an object for the purpose of the page setup of a catalogue.
a) The prospective buyers are invited to examine any goods in which they may be interested, before the auction takes place, and notably during the exhibitions.
Artcurial SAM is available to the prospective buyers to provide them with reports about the conditions of lots. Pieces of furniture, paintings and works of Art are sold in their current condition.
b) Description of the lots resulting from the catalogue, reports, labels and verbal statements or announcements are only the expression by Artcurial SAM of their perception of the lot, but cannot constitute the proof of a fact.
c) The statements by made Artcurial SAM about any restoration, mishap or harm arisen concerning the lot are only made to facilitate the inspection thereof by the prospective buyer and remain subject to the buyer's own or to the buyer's expert's evaluation. The absence of statements Artcurial SAM in regard to a restoration, mishap or harm, in the catalogue, condition reports, on labels or orally, does not imply that the item is exempt from any current, past or repaired defect. Inversely, indication of any defect whatsoever does not imply the absence of any other defects. Artcurial SAM is bound only within the limits of due care.
d) Estimates are provided for guidance only and cannot be considered as implying the certainty that the item will be sold for the estimated price or even within the bracket of estimates.
Estimates cannot constitute any warranty assurance whatsoever.
The estimations can be provided in several currencies ; the conversions may, in this case or, be rounded off differently than the legal rounding
e) Regarding clockmaking, watches and
pendulum clocks are sold «as is». No warranty
is given as the correct operation of the watches
and clocks or to the condition of the bracelet
or hand wrists. Most of the watches have been
opened, as required in order to identify the type and quality of the movement, including the waterproof watches. It is therefore recommended to the purchasers who would like to check the waterproofness of a watch to consult a clockmaker. Any dial of a watch that has been restored or repainted shall be considered as the subject of a measure of conversation, and hence shall not be reported.
The replacement of any bracelets, as well as the waterproofness, the restorations, revisions and settings are the responsibility of the purchaser. Artcurial SAM shall not accept
any quotation for restoration from any clockmaker whatsoever. Once adjudication has been awarded, all claims shall be rejected, as the purchasers will have had the opportunity to examine the items before acquisition.
f) Concerning jewels sales, gem stones and pearls:
1) Our expert Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten indicates those gem stones which have been altered as being «traditional lapidary methods» in the same manner as thosestones which have not been altered.
2) Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten indicates those gem stones which have been modified by other processes with the stone's name, followed by the mention «treated/traité» or by the name of the treatment applied. Those gemstones presented without a laboratory certificate have
been evaluated and estimated by the Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten, the possible modifications having been taking into account as noted in paragraph 1).
Cabinet Déchaut-Stetten remains at the buyer's disposal for further information concerning the various types of treatment. The identification techniques and the analysis results concerning the origins and the classification of stones and pearls may vary from one laboratory to another. Therefore, it is possible to obtain, in certain cases, a different result depending on the laboratory used.
3) ) If a buyer wishes to get the opinion of another gemological laboratory, he must submit this request at the latest 15 days prior to the sale. No dispute will be considered valid on the gem certificates provided by Artcurial SAM. These certificates are provided as a service only.
4) Lots which include rubies/jades from Burma can be exported to the US, providing they have a certificate or invoice which states that they were exported from Burma before 2007. There exist no restriction for rubies/jades circulating within the EU.
g) Regarding animal matter (ivory, coral, tortoiseshell, rare skins, etc.), some lots offered for sale are potentially composed of elements from endangered or protected species. Artcurial SAM reserves the right to refuse any jewelery and / or object whose composition would violate the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Flora (CITES) applicable in the Principality of Monaco under Sovereign Order No. 67 of 23 May 2005.
