VINTAGE and rare items contained in what is believed to be the country’s biggest ‘private home museum’ will be auctioned off on Friday as planned ... minus certain prized possessions.
It comes as the inheritors of artefacts belonging to the late, renowned collector of antiques Ali Musaed, say they have not received an official offer from interested parties to pull the plug on their plans, despite several visits to the property in Busaiteen.
However, family members insist they will not allow important documents, or items with royal connections, to leave the country which may allow further negotiations to take place at a later date.
Documents
“Authentic documents concerning the royal family have been removed by us from the sale and will be only sold to local authorities,” said his elder brother Isa Musaed.
“There will be documents on sale as part of the auction but the ones that are considered of national importance, as instructed by Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities (Baca) following numerous inspections, are hands off.
“Even if any individual offers us BD1 million for those documents, they will not be for sale. Any fears that certain treasured items would end up in the wrong hands should be cooled down. Rest assured, we remain more concerned than anyone else that this doesn’t happen.”
The late Mr Musaed, whose love of collecting local treasures, some dating back 200 years, was highlighted in the GDN. He died at the age of 51 in June from Covid-19 complications. His pleas earlier this year for financial support to continue his project were ignored by the authorities.
The retired Bahrain Airport Services (BAS) supervisor’s home museum covered three storeys on an area of 240sqm. It was divided into 10 sections: Government offices, classrooms, library, photography and telecommunications’ studios, majlis, pearl diving, music and art gallery, medical libraries and hospitals, restaurants and kitchens, plus cold stores.
Mr Musaed had been collecting items of interest for more than 40 years and he admitted that a childhood passion had grown into an expensive hobby when interviewed.
His 66-year-old eldest brother said that invitations to bid for the building and its contents had been sent through a broker to selected wholesale buyers.
He said initially that they never intended to auction off the belongings but his two nieces needed the money.
“They are now living with my brother’s ex-wife, who has since remarried, and need funds to cover their living expenses,” explained Mr Musaed Sr, who said his mother passed away a month after his brother, heartbroken by the loss.
“We have relinquished our inheritance – four brothers including myself and two sisters – all to provide for the girls’ future.”
He claimed that the family had waited for five months in hope that government entities would step in with an offer. However, it failed to materialise and he believes, following a professional evaluation, the items are worth ‘six to seven times more’ than the figure the family is willing to sell them for.
“We have no other option but to sell,” he added. “The collection meant something to their father, but not the two daughters who are now in intermediate school and want to live as other children and plan for their future.”
Area councillor Waheed Al Mannai said that at the end of the day, the collection belonged to the family and no-one should stop them from auctioning items off if they felt that was the best course of action to take.
Muharraq Municipal Council chairman Ghazi Al Murbati asked his colleagues to not get involved in an official capacity saying that it was up to the government to intervene. Muharraq Governor Salman Bin Hindi had earlier appealed to Baca to step in before the auction’s due date.
As reported, ministries and government bodies often requested items and documents in his possession to display at special events or when VIP delegates visited from abroad.
Baca was unavailable for comment.
mohammed@gdn.com.bh
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