Lt. Col. David Currie's VC up for sale - Uk Buyer pays $550,000

Ironic. On a site where government intervention and expenditures are frequently criticized there are now demands government intervene and/or spend to keep a piece of metal with a ribbon in Canadian hands because of what it symbolizes.

Col. Currie remains a hero whether his medal is in Canada or not.

Welcome to the free market. The family of the man who earned the award sold it. It was theirs to sell. The guy who bought it from them wants to sell it. It is his to sell. It is not yours or mine or Canada's and we have no say in its final disposition.
 
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I think it's about context.

When I was a boy, my Grandfather had a friend who had burn scars around his neck and face and another who was missing fingers from his left hand. Nice enough fellows but somewhat distant, much like my Grandfather tended to be. Wasn't until I was sorting a box of old pictures many years after his death that I realized that these two were crew mates from his time in the RAF. Until then, I had no real interest beyond "guns and tanks are neat", certainly nobody had talked about their time in the war when we kids were around.

Being able to put the face of someone I knew (even if not very well) into the role gave me context that has fueled my interests for decades. My kids, the nieces, nephews and cousins, they never met their Greats so they don't have the frame of reference.
 
I would be ashamed to own such a piece of history. It belongs to the family of the one who earned it or a museum where it should be proudly displayed.
 
Claybuster said:
Ironic. On a site where government intervention and expenditures are frequently criticized there are now demands government intervene and/or spend to keep a piece of metal with a ribbon in Canadian hands because of what it symbolizes.

Col. Currie remains a hero whether his medal is in Canada or not.

Welcome to the free market. The family of the man who earned the award sold it. It was theirs to sell. The guy who bought it from them wants to sell it. It is his to sell. It is not yours or mine or Canada's and we have no say in its final disposition.
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Agree

Ed Smurf said:
I would be ashamed to own such a piece of history. It belongs to the family of the one who earned it or a museum where it should be proudly displayed.
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You're right it did belong to the family, until they sold it, now the guy who bought it is selling it. The family did what they wanted with it. Want it in a museum buy it and donate it.

Shawn
 
mr.e moose said:
Museums may be thought of as a good repository for such things but that is not often the case. Too often due to display constraints the artifacts get shoe boxed and forgotten never to be seen again.
If the donor did not stipulate a return proviso sometimes the item is given to another museum or sold to a private individual.
If you look at the size of most museums and archives and their display areas you begin to see how much history languishes away on shelves never to be seen.
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No museum worthy of the name would accept a donation with the condition that if the artifact were to transfer out of the museum, it would be returned to the donor.

One, it would be outright illegal if a tax receipt was issued for the donation. Two, the vast majority of Canadian museums are incorporated under the Societies Act; they don't own their collections--they hold the collections in trust for the public. The Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto is a notable exception, as it is corporately owned and not publically incorporated.

Once donated, the artifact is public property. The custodian of that public property--the museum--has no authority to give public property to a private individual (which is what the donor is), no matter what relationship that individual may have previously had to the property.

When museums get rid of stuff from their collections, preference is given to transferring it to another museum--that keeps the material in the public realm. If no suitable/willing museum can be found to take the property, it may be sold to a private collector through a public process. Auctions are the preferred means of this, so that everyone who has an interest in obtaining the piece (including the original donor) has an equal opportunity to do so (up to their spending limit), as well as maximizing income for the museum, which ethically must be applied to the continued care of the museum's remaining collections.
 
I had forgotten to follow up on this;

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/uk-buyer-bids-550000-for-historic-currie-victoria-cross-at-auction
 
Thanks CL.

The unnamed buyer bought Currie’s VC and an assortment of other medals and memorabilia on Wednesday at a public sale at London auction house Dix Noonan Webb. They buyer must also pay a 20 per cent seller’s commission, pushing the total price to $660,000.

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CMichaud said:
The medals are going to the National War Museum
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Would you mind throwing up the link? I did find that the CWM had secured Colin Barron and Harcus Strachan's medals but the most recent info I can find on Currie's VC is that it's going to the UK.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/victoria-cross-auction-block-1.4432071

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/war-museum-acquires-historic-passchendaele-victoria-cross

http://www.warmuseum.ca/media/canad...onel-harcus-strachan-of-the-fort-garry-horse/

Cheers.
 
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/victoria-cross-auction-1.4543955

Canadian museums and art galleries will have six months to come up with the funds to purchase a Victoria Cross that was auctioned to an overseas buyer last year, according to the Department of Canadian Heritage.

The medal, regarded as the highest military award of the United Kingdom, was awarded to Saskatchewan's Lt.-Col. David Currie during the Second World War. Another eight medals of his were also in the auction grouping.

They were auctioned in September to a private U.K. buyer for $660,000. The auction was loudly criticized by historians, veterans' groups and by the Currie family, who reached out to Ottawa — and directly to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — to purchase the medals, arguing they are part of Canada's heritage and should not go overseas.

The Canadian War Museum in Ottawa attempted to buy the medals at auction but was out-bid.

But the Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board stepped in on Feb. 5, delaying the export of the medals for six months. The board, which reports to the minister of heritage, can impose export delays so designated organizations have the opportunity to purchase culturally significant pieces or collections that otherwise might be permanently on the way out of Canada
 
Cornflake Leader said:
I think it's about context.

When I was a boy, my Grandfather had a friend who had burn scars around his neck and face and another who was missing fingers from his left hand. Nice enough fellows but somewhat distant, much like my Grandfather tended to be. Wasn't until I was sorting a box of old pictures many years after his death that I realized that these two were crew mates from his time in the RAF. Until then, I had no real interest beyond "guns and tanks are neat", certainly nobody had talked about their time in the war when we kids were around.

Being able to put the face of someone I knew (even if not very well) into the role gave me context that has fueled my interests for decades. My kids, the nieces, nephews and cousins, they never met their Greats so they don't have the frame of reference.
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I agree 100%. When I was a boy, one of our neighbors was a WWII veteran. I never thought much about it. But, later on I found out that he was captured during the Dieppe raid and spent time in a POW camp. I think this helped make me more aware of the sacrifice these people made. I've tried to pass this along to my sons.
 
Cornflake Leader said:
Thanks for putting that up. The last VC in Canada not on public display.
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that is not a true statement. It may be the last VC won by a Canadian wearing a Canadian uniform at the time - but not the last VC currently in Canada and that will remain in Canada.... and currently not on public display.
 
grelmar said:
Terrorists get a blank cheque. Our own vets and history are "asking for more than we can give."
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The vets can take comfort in knowing that their denial of increased support made possible Turbeau's latest family vacation, along with an entourage of Liberal shills and hangers-on. "Thanks for your service".
 
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