Heritage Malta buys items from Borg Olivier auction

Heritage Malta has moved in on items auctioned at the house of former Prime Minister George Borg Olivier last month and acquired 16 lots at hammer price.

A team of experts evaluated the auctioned items from the prestigious Borg Olivier collection in terms of their artistic, ethnic and historical value.

Among the items acquired is a pair of still life paintings by Italian artist Antonio Tibaldi, whose works, Heritage Malta said, rarely feature in public collections.

This acquisition has already attracted the attention of the international art community, the agency said. Auctioneer Pierre Grech Pillow said the pair of paintings had sold for €54,000.

Another item is a portrait of Bishop Alpheran by Francesco Zahra's circle, which sold for over €4,700.

Others include a caricature by Giorgio Preca, a number of portraits and an Apollo 13 mission patch and fragment of heat shield presented to Dr Borg Olivier by its astronauts.

The items will be presented in an exhibition to be announced shortly, Heritage Malta said.