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On 23 July 2003, the National Gallery was delighted by the Heritage Lottery Fund's exceptionally generous grant of £11.5m towards the purchase of Raphael's 'The Madonna of the Pinks'. The unprecedented grant, together with approximately £9.5m pledged to the Gallery as a result of a public appeal, provides the funding for what the Gallery believes is a compensating offer.
Whether Raphael's extraordinary painting will stay in the UK remains to be determined by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport: The Minister at the DCMS has to decide what constitutes a compensating offer for the painting, and this in turn is dependent on how the owner of the painting, the Duke of Northumberland, would be taxed on a sale of the painting abroad. Today, the DCMS announced that it would be unable to reach its decision on this issue by 27 August 2003, date of the export ban deadline placed on the painting.
The DCMS said today:
“This is an unusual case and, given the complex issues which remain outstanding, the Minister will not be able to reach a decision as to what constitutes a compensating offer by 27 August. She intends to give the interested parties a proper opportunity to contribute fully in the decision making process, while at the same time making every effort to progress with all possible speed. Once she has decided what amounts to a compensating offer, those concerned will be given full and fair opportunity to respond to that decision. At that stage, depending on what the Minister's decision is, it may be appropriate to allow a further fixed deferral period before she makes her final decision on whether to grant an export licence.”
The National Gallery remains confident that an appropriate compensating offer is approximately £21m.
For further information please contact the Press Office on 020 7747 2865
22 Aug 2003
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