LONDON BAR SELLS VINTAGE DOM PERIGNON FOR £50,000

A VINTAGE BOTTLE OF DOM PERIGNON HAS BROKEN THE RECORD FOR THE MOST EXPENSIVE BOTTLE OF WINE EVER SOLD AT A BRITISH BAR, FOR £35,000. THE METHUSELAH OF 1996 ROSE GOLD, DUBBED THE 'KING OF CHAMPAGNES', WAS SOLD AT A TOP LONDON HOTEL. A TILL RECEIPT SHOWS THE BUYER LEFT A £10,625 TIP, IN ADDITION TO THE £4,375 SERVICE CHARGE. THE GRATUITY RAISED THE TOTAL TO £50,000, OR THE EQUIVALENT OF £1,562.50 PER GLASS. THE BUYER, THOUGHT TO BE A RUSSIAN BILLIONAIRE, IS SAID TO HAVE SPILLED 'AT LEAST THREE GLASSES' WITHIN MINUTES OF THE PURCHASE AT THE WESTBURY HOTEL ON TUESDAY. WHILE OTHER CHAMPAGNES HAVE SOLD MORE AT AUCTION, THE ROSE GOLD IS BELIEVED TO BE THE MOST EXPENSIVE SINGLE BOTTLE EVER BOUGHT FROM A BAR. IT WAS SOLD ON TUESDAY NIGHT AT A VIP AFTER-SHOW PARTY FOLLOWING THE GALA SCREENING OF THE NEW BRITISH COMEDY, 'BOOGIE WOOGIE'. TEH BAR MANAGER REFUSED TO REVEAL THE BUYER'S IDENTITY. THE 1996 VINTAGE IS REGARDED AS ONE OF THE FINEST IN THE 20th CENTURY AND WITH ONLY 35 BOTTLES PRODUCED PER YEAR, ITS INCREDIBLY RARE AND SOUGHT AFTER. THE ROSE METHUSELAH, THE EQUIVALENT TO EIGHT STANDARD SIZED BOTTLES, IS PRODUCED BY THE FRENCH WINERY MOET ET CHANDON AND IS PRIZED FOR ITS 'EXCELLENCE AND ELEGANCE'. THE BOTTLE ITSELF HAS A METAL CASING DIPPED IN ROSE GOLD, AND IS WORTH ALMOST £20,000 ALONE. IT IS SO EASILY SCRATCHED THAT SOMMELIERS ARE INSTRUCTED TO WEAR WHITE SILK GLOVES WHEN OPENING OR POURING. ACCORDING TO ITS MAKERS, THE BLEND IS 'CHARACTERIZED BY THE VIVACIOUS INTERPLAY BETWEEN PINOT NOIR AND CHARDONNAY GRAPES' AND IS 'COPPER PINK WITH SHADES OF AMBER AND GOLD' IN COLOUR.

JAMES A MICHENER ART MUSEUM PRESENTS 'MICHELLE BERKOWITZ: CONTEMPORARY COSTUMES'

THIS SPRING, THE JAMES A MICHENER ART MUSEUM, DOYLESTOWN, PA., PRESENTS CONTEMPORARY FASHIONS BY COSTUME ARTIST MICHELLE ANNETTE BERKOWITZ. CELEBRATED IN THE SOCIETY PAGES OF THE GREATER PHILADELPHIA NEWSPAPERS FOR HER UNIQUE EVENING GOWNS, BERKOWITZ'S DESIGN EXPLORATIONS ALSO INCLUDE MILLINERY, BEADED JEWELRY AND STERLING SILVER, AND RESTORATION WORK ON VINTAGE APPAREL. 'MICHELLE BERKOWITZ: CONTEMPORARY COSTUMES' IS ON VIEW IN THE MUSEUM'S PFUNDT GALLERY FROM 17.APRIL THROUGH 8.AUGUST AS A COUNTERPART TO 'ICONS OF COSTUME: HOLLYWOOD'S GOLDEN ERA AND BEYOND'. 'USING ANTIQUE FABRICS AND TRIM AND PERIOD SEWING TECHNIQUES, I CREATE WEARABLE ART FOR TODAY'S WOMAN', EXPLAINS BERKOWITZ, WHOSE GOWNS OFTEN FEATURE MODULAR COMPONENTS, LIKE CRINOLINES, UNDERSKIRTS, JACKETS AND WRAPS THAT CAN BE INTERCHANGED TO CREATE MULTIPLE COSTUMES. BERKOWITZ'S INFLUENCES INCLUDE THE FATHER OF HAUTE COUTURE, CHARLES FREDERICK WORTH, NOTED PHILADELPHIA MILLINER, ALZIE JACKSON, AND RENOWNED DESIGNER JUDITH LEIBER. A NATIVE OF PHILADELPHIA, BERKOWITZ STUDIED INTERIOR DESIGN AT DREXEL UNIVERSITY AND MILLINERY AT MOORE COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN. IN ADDITION TO HER OWN ORIGINAL WORK, BERKOWITZ IS ACTIVELY INVOLVED WITH RESTORATION OF COSTUMES FROM THE EARLY DAYS OF HOLLYWOOD.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.michenermuseum.org

BOWES MUSEUM INSTALLS NEW FUNDRAISING SWAN

THE BOWES MUSEUM, COUNTY DURHAM, HAS RECENTLY TAKEN DELIVERY OF A NEW, COIN OPERATED SILVER SWAN WHICH IT HOPES WILL GENERATE EXTRA FUNDING TOWARDS THE UPKEEP OF THE FRENCH STYLE CHATEAU. BESPOKE FURNITURE MAKERS ANTHONY NIXON, OF BARNARD CASTLE, WERE COMMISSIONED TO PRODUCE THE UNUSUAL DONATIONS BOX AND THEY CERTAINLY GAVE THEIR IMAGINATION FULL REIN IN CREATING THE STUNNING HAND CARVED BIRD FROM OAK. 'WE WANTED TO MAKE SOMETHING RELEVANT TO THE MUSEUM, AND WITH A BIT MORE INTEREST THAN YOUR USUAL CONTRIBUTIONS BOX', SAID THE FIRM'S OWNER. 'THE SILVER SWAN, AS THE MUSEUM'S MOST IDENTIFIABLE ARTIFACT, WAS THE OBVIOUS CHOICE.' THE MUSEUM'S ORIGINAL SILVER SWAN WAS ONCE COIN OPERATED, AND MANY VISITORS RECALL PUTTING SIXPENCE, 2½p IN TODAY'S TERMS, IN A SLOT TO OPERATE IT. HOWEVER, THE UNIQUE AUTOMATION IS NOW PLAYED JUST ONCE A DAY TO PRESERVE ITS DELICATE CONDITION. THE NEW SWAN HAS A SLOT WHICH DIRECTS COINS INTO THE HEAD OF THE BIRD, AND WHEN ENOUGH COINS ARE COLLECTED THE SWAN GRACEFULLY DIPS ITS NECK, REMINISCENT OF THE ORIGINAL 230 YEAR OLD AUTOMATION, AND DEPOSITS THE CASH INTO A COLLECTING BOX. THE WOODEN SWAN, WHICH IS PAINTED SILVER, SITS WITHIN A FUMED OAK CASE, WHICH INCORPORATES A STEP TO ALLOW VISITORS TO REACH THE COIN SLOT. THE COMMISSION, WHICH WAS SPONSORED BY NIXON'S COMPANY, TOOK OVER 200 MAN HOURS TO COMPLETE.

NATIONAL GALLERY DISCOVERS 15th PAINTING TO BE FAKE

THE NATIONAL GALLERY HAS DISCOVERED AN IMPOSTOR AMONG ITS GREAT OLD MASTER PICTURES, A 19th CENTURY FORGERY OF A 15th CENTURY PAINTING. THE VIRGIN AND CHILD WITH AN ANGEL HAS BEEN A HIGHLY PRIZED PAINTING BY THE RENAISSANCE ARTIST FRANCESCO FRANCIA SINCE IT WAS ACQUIRED AS A GIFT ALMOST 100 YEARS AGO. IT WAS THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN PAINTED AROUND 1490. NOW IT HAS BEEN UNMASKED AS A FAKE, PAINTED AS RECENTLY AS THE SECOND HALF OF THE 19th CENTURY. EXPERTS AT THE GALLERY FOUND THE DAMNING EVIDENCE RECENTLY WHEN THEY USED ROUTINE SCIENTIFIC TESTS TO LOOK THROUGH THE PAINTING'S LAYERS FOR THE FIRST TIME. SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS EXPOSED THE DECEPTION, REVEALING THAT THE FORGER USED PIGMENTS THAT WERE NOT AVAILABLE BEFORE THE 19th CENTURY AND COATED THE TOP LAYER WITH A NATURAL RESIN TO SIMULATE THE APPEARANCE OF AGE. TO THEIR ASTONISHMENT, THEY DISCOVERED A PRELIMINARY DRAWING BENEATH THE PAINTING DRAWN IN GRAPHITE PENCIL, AN IMPLEMENT THAT DID NOT EXIST AT THAT TIME. 'THIS PROVED THE PAINTING COULD NOT BE AN AUTHENTIC FRANCESCO FRANCIA', SAID A SPOKESPERSON FOR THE GALLERY. 'THE STYLE OF THE UNDER-DRAWING WAS 19th CENTURY RATHER THAN THE 16th', SHE ADDED. IF NOT FOR THE SCIENTIFIC TESTS, THE FORGERY WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED. THE OIL ON WOOD PAINTING, WHICH MEASURES 58.5 BY 44.5 cm, WAS DESCRIBED AS A FRANCIA WHEN IT WAS BOUGHT BY THE COLLECTOR LUDWIG MOND IN 1893. IN 1924, HIS £500 MILLION COLLECTION OF RENAISSANCE MASTERPIECES, INCLUDING RAPHAEL, TITIAN AND THE FRANCIA, WAS LEFT TO THE NATION. THE FRANCIA VIRGIN TOOK PRIDE OF PLACE IN THE NATIONAL GALLERY UNTIL 1954 WHEN ANOTHER VERSION, NOW IN THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM IN PITTSBURGH, SURFACED. ITS QUALITY WAS SUPERIOR, BUT EXPERTS SILL BELIEVED THAT THE NATIONAL GALLERY'S PAINTING WAS A FRANCIA. THE GALLERY NO REALIZES THAT ITS VERSION IS A PRECISE COPY OF THE PITTSBURGH ONE. ASKED WHETHER THEY FEAR THEY MAY DISCOVER MORE FAKES, THE GALLERY SAYS IT IS UNLIKELY. THE FAKE WILL HAVE ONE LAST OUTING IN A GALLERY SHOW BEFORE BEING DISGRACED TO A STOREROOM. IT WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE NATIONAL GALLERY'S MAJOR EXHIBITION 'FAKES, MISTAKES & DISCOVERIES' FROM 30.JUNE.

RICKY MARTIN

VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM TO PRESENT 'GRACE KELLY: STYLE ICON'

DRESSES THAT GRACE KELLY WORE IN SCREEN CLASSICS SUCH AS 'HIGH SOCIETY' AND 'REAR WINDOW' ARE GOING ON EXHIBITION IN LONDON. 'GRACE KELLY: STYLE ICON' AT THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM WILL DISPLAY THE GLAMOROUS WARDROBE OF THE OSCAR WINNING ACTRESS WHO WENT ON TO BECOME A PRINCESS. EXHIBITS INCLUDE THE GOWN KELLY WORE TO EXCEPT HER OSCAR IN 1955, AS WELL AS THE OUTFIT SHE WORE TO HER FIRST MEETING WITH HER FUTURE HUSBAND PRINCE RAINIER III OF MONACO LATER THAT YEAR. THE SHOW WILL TRACE THE EVOLUTION OF HER STYLE AS PRINCESS GRACE OF MONACO, WITH HAUTE COUTURE GOWNS BY HER FAVORITE COUTURIERS DIOR, BALENCIAGA, GIVENCHY AND YVES SAINT LAURENT. THE EXHIBITION EXPLORES KELLY'S ENDURING APPEAL AS A STYLE ICON, IT FEATURES HER FILM COSTUMES, THE MUCH PUBLICIZED DRESSES MADE FOR HER TROUSSEAU AND WEDDING, AND THE FRENCH HAUTE COUTURE THAT SHE REQUIRED FOR HER ROLE AS PRINCESS OF MONACO
WHEN PEOPLE THINK OF GRACE KELLY (1929-82), ONE OF THE MOST PHOTOGRAPHED WOMEN OF THE 20th CENTURY, WHAT THEY USUALLY RECALL IS HER BEAUTY AND ELEGANCE. SHE ROSE TO FAME AS AN ACTRESS IN THE 1950s, STARRING IN FILMS BY HITCHCOCK AND OTHERS. HER IMAGE WAS CULTIVATED BY THE MOVIE INDUSTRY, WHICH FED CINEMA-GOERS' GROWING APPETITE FOR PICTURES OF GLAMOROUS STARS THROUGH MAGAZINES AND NEWSPAPERS. SHE CAME TO SYMBOLIZE THE CLASSIC, UNDERSTATED LOOK SHE WORE BOTH ON AND OFF SCREEN. THE EXHIBITION EXPLORES, THROUGH HER SURVIVING CLOTHES, THE STORY OF HER TRANSFORMATION FROM HOLLYWOOD ACTRESS TO A PRINCESS OF ONE OF EUROPE'S OLDEST ROYAL FAMILIES.

ROYAL TRAINS ON EXHIBITION IN THE NETHERLANDS

DOORS WITH GILDED HANDLES LEADING TO AN ART NOUVEAU LOUNGE, LOUIS XV STYLE FURNITURE AND A 148 YEAR OLD LOCOMOTIVE ARE REMNANTS OF SOME OF THE WORLD'S OLDEST AND MOST STUNNING ROYAL TRAINS WHICH ARE ON DISPLAY IN THE DUTCH CITY OF UTRECHT. FROM BRITAIN, IRELAND, SWEDEN, DENMARK, BELGIUM, THE CZECH REPUBLIC AND PORTUGAL. ALL THE HISTORIC TRAINS HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TOGETHER FOR A FIRST-EVER EXHIBITION OF ITS KIND, IN THE DUTCH RAILWAY MUSEUM. ENTITLED ROYAL CLASS, REGAL JOURNEY, THE EXHIBITION WAS OFFICIALLY OPENED RECENTLY BY THE DUTCH MONARCH, QUEEN BEATRIX, WHO ARRIVED FOR THE OCCASION IN HER OWN PRIVATE TRAIN FROM THE HAGUE. HOSTED IN A COLONIAL-ERA STATION, THE EXHIBITION STARTS WITH THE DUTCH ROYAL FAMILY'S 19th CENTURY WAITING ROOM AT THE HAGUE CENTRAL STATION, RESTORED IN UTRECHT WITH ALL ITS WOOD PANELING AND A FIREPLACE DECORATED WITH TILES MADE FROM THE NETHERLANDS' FAMOUS BLUE AND WHITE GLAZED DELFT POTTERY. A GREEN TRAIN CONSTRUCTED IN 1862 FOR THE PORTUGUESE QUEEN MARIA PIA IS THE ONLY TRAIN ON SHOW THAT IS COMPLETE. A GIFT FROM HER FATHER, ITALIAN KING VICTOR EMMANUEL II, THE TRAIN COMPRISES THE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE AND ITS TENDER, THE QUEEN'S CARRIAGE AND ANOTHER WAGON. THE QUEEN'S COACH, LAVISHLY UPHOLSTERED IN GOLD AND RED VELVET AND CREAM COLOURED SILK BROCADE, HAS A SLEEPING COMPARTMENT WITH A PORCELAIN TOILET AND A SEPARATE COMPARTMENT FOR HER ATTENDANTS. THE SMALLEST WAGON IN THE EXHIBIT, ALL OF 6.4 METERS LONG, IS ALSO 'THE OLDEST PRESERVED ROYAL WAGON IN THE WORLD', ACCORDING TO THE MUSEUM'S CURATOR. CONSTRUCTED IN 1842 FOR THE EXCURSIONS OF THE ENGLISH QUEEN ADELAIDE, IT RESEMBLES AN OLD-FASHIONED STAGE COACH AND INCLUDED AN INNOVATIVE FEATURE: A FOLDAWAY BED. THE SALOON COACH BUILT IN 1910 FOR AUSTRIAN ARCHDUKE FRANZ FERDINAND HAS MORE MODERN ACCESSORIES, ELECTRIC LIGHTING AND A STEAM HEAT WARMING SYSTEM, A SEPARATE TOILET COMPARTMENT AND A BEDROOM WITH TWO BEDS. IT WAS ON BOARD THIS WAGON THAT THE HEIR TO THE AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN THRONE TRAVELED TO SARAJEVO IN JUNE 1914, WHERE HE WAS ASSASSINATED IN AN ACT THAT PROVOKED WORLD WAR I. GETTING THE WAGONS TO THE HAGUE REQUIRED 'MASSIVE LOGISTICS', SAID THE MUSEUM SPOKESMAN. 'SOME CAME VIA RAILROAD', HE SAID, 'INCLUDING THE LOUNGE AND RESTAURANT WAGON OF BELGIAN KING ALBERT, DATING FROM 1912.' IN THE KING'S DINING ROOM CART, FURNISHED IN THE STYLE OF LOUIS XV WITH CREAM-COLOURED WOOD PANELING, A DINING TABLE SET FOR TEN PEOPLE COMPLETE WITH SILVERWARE, PLATES AND GLASSES. THE EXHIBITION IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC UNTIL 5.SEPTEMBER.