Met prepares to sell off British decorative arts

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is to deaccession more than 200 decorative arts objects, including English furniture, porcelain and silver, in a dedicated sale at Christie’s on 27 October. The proceeds will go towards future acquisitions as the museum prepares to refurbish its decorative arts galleries. The pre-sale estimates for the objects, which include 17th-century Jacobean oak coffers and a 19th-century Regency sofa table, range from $500 to $100,000. Luke Syson, the museum’s chairman of European sculpture and decorative arts, says the museum’s staff decided what to sell by evaluating “which pieces belong in a museum and which… would sing louder and better in someone’s home”.