MoMA Gains Treasure That Met Also Coveted
Note: Click Title Link for complete NY Times article by Patricia Cohen
The stuffed bird is ultimately the reason "Canyon" by Robert Rauschenberg is being donated at all. The presence of a bald eagle — a bird protected by federal laws — means that the work cannot be legally sold or traded. So when the Sonnabend children, Nina Sundell and Antonio Homem, inherited “Canyon,” five years ago, their appraisers valued it at zero. The I.R.S., however, insisted this masterwork was worth $65 million. It demanded they pay estate taxes of $29.2 million plus another $11.7 million in penalties.
Note: Click Title Link for complete NY Times article by Patricia Cohen