An elderly French couple who sold a mask that their father had stolen from Gabon during French colonial rule now wants a cut of its $4 million price tag.

In 2021, an elderly couple was clearing out their second home when they came across an African mask.

The couple went to a local antique dealer to sell the piece. Both parties agreed on a price: of $158.

But what they sold for a cheap price turned out to be a sublime artefact.

The mask is a rare piece of African art—a 19th-century Ngil mask used in rituals by the Fang people in Gabon. Only a handful of such pieces are in existence. The mask was apparently brought to France by the husband’s grandfather, who was a colonial governor in Africa.

After the antique dealer sought a few appraisals and radiocarbon dating, the mask was put up for auction for about $315,000 to $420,000.

In March 2022, it was sold for, wait for it, $4.4 million.

Now the couple is suing the dealer for roughly $5.55 million for allegedly cheating them by withholding the knowledge that the piece was valuable.

The antique dealer attempted to settle the case by paying the couple about $315,000, but according to the lawsuit, their children opposed the settlement.

The court proceeding continues...

In a twist of fate, Gabon has now interjected in the matter, requesting that the rare 19th-century mask be returned home.

In 2006 a similar Fang mask brought in 5.9 million euros at a Paris auction.
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