Launched on May 1, 2009, the on-line antiquities auction, gallery, and dealership of ancient art, dubbed e-tiquities, brings the world of antiquities to a broader range of potential collectors than was previously possible. The brainchild of brothers Hicham and Ali Aboutaam, e-tiquities is the virtual adjunct to the Phoenix Ancient Art real-world galleries located in New York City and Geneva, Switzerland.
Purchase prices range from only $500, allowing just about anyone with an interest and a computer with internet to enter the (previously) rarefied world of antiquities collecting. Most objects on display are from the area of the Mediterranean basin and span over 7,000 years of the human pursuit of beauty and refinement. The oldest artifacts come from the Neolithic period in world history, about 6,000 B.C.E., throughout the Middle Ages, approximately the 14th century A.D.
Hicham Aboutaam, co-owner of Phoenix Ancient Art, explains the importance of e-tiquities for veteran collectors as well as novices,
“In launching e-tiquities by Phoenix Ancient Art, we hope both to introduce a new audience to the cultures of the ancient world, and to give our existing clients an easy way to expand their collections. One of the things which makes Phoenix Ancient Art special in our field is the guarantee of authenticity that we provide to our clients, whether they buy works in our galleries or on our new website. Over the years, we’ve developed procedures to establish provenance (chain of ownership) to ensure that our pieces are both authentic and on the market in accordance with international law.”