Ali Aboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art in Geneva, Switzerland

Asserting that ancient art objects can be an excellent way to diversify assets when considering investment vehicles, nevertheless, Hicham Aboutaam cautions that the prospective investor must also possess passion for and knowledge about the antiquities he is procuring.

Collecting antiquities is not like other ways of investing money, obviously, explains Hicham Aboutaam. Those collecting these rare, beautiful art objects will be displaying them in their homes, so therefore must enjoy viewing them, now, and in the future. Collectors also must be informed about the items they collect, so that they make appropriate purchases at the correct prices.

Phoenix Ancient Art and the Aboutaam brothers, Hicham and Ali, make collecting antiquities the most pleasant and rewarding of pastimes. They love to educate the public and they guarantee that everything you purchase is exactly what you wanted and expected.

According to Hicham Aboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art, collecting and owning antiquities has always been an interest to people throughout history. Antiquities are appreciated for their beauty as art objects as well as their role as repositories of the cultures of the progenitors of western civilization. For this reason collecting antiquities is a growing interest, and if the number of objects can never get larger, as demand increases and supply is static, prices will rise. This fact makes investing in antiquities a pretty safe bet.

In other words, as Hicham Aboutaam puts it,

“Especially antiquities originating in the area of the Mediterranean basin are the essence of our western civilization.”

Art collecting has always been a source of joy and satisfaction for many people, from the rich to the not-so-rich. Until relatively recently, however, collecting art was not thought of as a primary means for investing. In recent times works of art have been more and more reliable as a haven for funds, rewarding the collector with larger and larger profits on the resale at auction of the collected objects.

For instance, in a recent sale at Christie’s in New York, over $325 million in sales was enjoyed, the second highest total sales at a contemporary art auction since the 2nd World War.

In the antiquities marketplace, especially in the realm of ancient art, this fact is even truer. Considering that there is a limited amount of ancient art, (no one is producing any more of it) items are therefore rare and in demand, and demand continues to grow.

According to Hicham Aboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art, antiquities can be the perfect blend of a satisfying hobby or interest with an excellent way to diversify one’s portfolio.

This past October the 21st International Fine Art and Antique Dealers fair took place at the Park Avenue Armory. After expressing “apprehension” this past June about how the fair would succeed amidst the global economic crisis, most dealers expressed satisfaction with their results.

Phoenix Ancient Art was present, and with Hicham and Ali Aboutaam there representing their New York and Geneva offices, interest was keen and sales were excellent.  Bidding was “feverish” for a statue of a first-century Roman female figure, which ultimately sold for $800,000. Other sales at the Phoenix Ancient Art booth included a Roman bust, selling for $120,000 and a ceramic oinochoe-shaped head vase from 450 BCE which sold for $300,000.

The fair itself had a new flavor, with many veteran exhibiters refraining from attending, but with many more newcomers taking their places and then some. Altogether there were 15 dealers from previous shows not attending, but 21 first-timers displaying their wares.

Mostly gone were the fine arts such as paintings of the impressionist and pointillist genres, with price tags soaring in the multi-million dollar range. Replacing them were the more decorative arts and antiques, with substantially more modest prices.

According to Ann Haughton, responsible for the organization of the highly respected fair, the mood was distinctly up-beat. Many dealers told Ms. Haughton that they saw clients for the first time in two to three years in some cases, and a definite “sea change” in the atmosphere was experienced.

A wonderful example of Hellenistic Realism, this bronze sculpture depicts a street dance that appears to be suffering from some type of deformity or other sickness. As an example of daily life, we see the artist expressing extreme care to capture the details with precision. Anatomically we see clearly energetic movements of the dance, rendered in an unnatural but realistic style.

Although it is difficult to cage the age of the dancer depicted, it can be surmised that due to the figures extreme thinness and large, smooth forehead and facial features that we are observing a man getting on in years.

Ali and Hicham Aboutaam invite you to examine more examples from their catalogue, “Exotics of the Classical World” and enjoy a trip to the classics, with a little bit of a different point of view.

Not only can you purchase antiquities from Phoenix Ancient Art, but there are beautiful catalogs available which discuss interesting subjects which many of the antiquities available at Phoenix are examples of.

For example, Ali and Hicham Aboutaam published a catalog entitled “Exotics of the Classical World.”

Within this catalog 40 separate pieces are discussed in depth in English, with a full French translation of each description available in an appendix at the back.

The premise of this collection is a counterpoint to what has come to be accepted as the theme of Greco-Roman antiquities and the neo-classical movement of the 19th century. In opposition to the traditional notion of the ‘Greek-Roman’ ideal of beauty, idealism, elegance and nobility, the “Exotics” collection point to a different standard, that of the unusual, strange, picturesque, and even ugly, at times.

Delve into the world of “Exotics” with the Aboutaam brothers, and get a taste of something different.

Guennol Lioness

“Compared to contemporary art, antiquities are terribly undervalued,” says Hicham Aboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art. This remark was made in response to the sale at Sotheby’s in New York of a 3 inch tall ancient limestone sculpture of a lioness for $57.2 million in December 2007. To date that was the highest ever paid for a sculpture.

The statue, known as the Guennol Lioness, is 5,000 years old and originates from Mesopotamia, where it was discovered not far from Baghdad, Iraq in the early part of the 20th century by archeologist Sir Leonard Woolley.

The winning price almost doubled the previous high which had been paid for a sculpture, and was three times the estimate of the piece’s value before the sale, at $18 million. In November of 2007 a Picasso bronze sold for $29.2 million, the previous high price, the “Tete de Femme (Dora Maar).”

AliAboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art offers objects from a huge range of time periods and geographical locations.  One of the more astounding artifacts on offer is a Scythian bamboo bow and quiver set. This remarkably preserved set is from the 3rd to 1st century. The state of preservation is astounding, with wood and leather paint almost perfect.

Also incredible is the fact that this set has remained together through the ages. The bamboo bow is shaped into a triple curve, the center curve for hand placement, and the top and bottom curves to increase the action of the bowstring.

Scythian Bamboo Weapon

Scythian refers to a group comprised of many tribes which were nomadic. They spoke the Iranian language and roamed throughout the area from the Danube river plains to the Central Asia steppes and eastward to Siberia.
The Scythian main occupation was as warriors, and even Scythian women were welcomed to fight in battles.
This artifact is quite a find, not just for its inherent beauty but for its historical value as well.

Attic Amphora Vase

In an interview with Hicham Aboutaam, we learn about a beautiful and rare stamnos, or Greek pottery, which was used in ancient times to carry liquids. In this case the liquid it carried was most likely wine.

According to Aboutaam this stamnos was made near the end of the 6th century, B.C.E. “Attic” refers to Attica, which includes Athens and was the prestige dialect of Greek.

Discussing the various types of storage containers in use in ancient Greece, Hicham explained that water would be stored in a hydria, wine in an amphora, and olive oil in a small, hanging alabastron. This stamnos was probably one of the most rare shapes of Greek vases.

This particular vase was decorated with a chariot race scene in which two dogs are included, one with a bone and the other dog running along with the horses. The Michigan painter, as he is known, depicted the scene with great feeling for the excitement and emotion of a chariot race.

On the shoulders of the vase a banquet is depicted, in which there found three women are alternating with three bearded men, reclining at the meal. According to Aboutaam it is unusual for women to be depicted on a vase in this way.

Phoenix is anxiously awaiting the upcoming International Fine Art and Antique Dealers show

Park Avenue Armory

which should prove to be the best one yet, according to Ali and Hicham Aboutaam of Phoenix Ancient Art.

This is Phoenix’s third year in a row in which they have displayed some of their best art works from the ancient world. The show will be taking place at the Park Avenue Armory located at 66th St. on Park Ave, running from Thursday October 16th until Thursday October 22nd.

At the opening of the show a full color catalogue will be released including all the works which will be present at the show.

Phoenix Ancient Art and the Aboutaam brothers hope to see you there.