A significant legal battle concluded in France as antiques experts Georges "Bill" Pallot and Bruno Desnoues were found guilty of defrauding collectors through the sale of forged chairs purported to have belonged to figures like Marie Antoinette. The final ruling marks the end of a protracted nine-year investigation that unveiled major issues within the antiquities market.
Fraudulent French Antiques Experts Convicted in Versailles Chair Scheme
Fraudulent French Antiques Experts Convicted in Versailles Chair Scheme
Two prominent French antiques specialists receive prison sentences for selling counterfeit historical chairs tied to royal lineage.
In a landmark ruling, Georges "Bill" Pallot and Bruno Desnoues have been convicted for their involvement in constructing and selling counterfeit 18th Century chairs, which they claimed were linked to French royalty. Both men received four-month prison terms and a further suspended sentence for selling fakes to high-profile buyers, including the Palace of Versailles and a member of the Qatari royal family. Despite the convictions, they will not serve additional prison time as they have already spent four months in detention.
The court's decision, delivered at a Pontoise courtroom near Paris, also mandated significant fines of €200,000 (£169,500) for Pallot and €100,000 for Desnoues. Initially heralded as an authority on French 18th Century chairs, Pallot had published a key book on the subject and worked closely with Versailles historical records, allowing him to identify unaccounted chairs. With the assistance of acclaimed woodcarver Desnoues, who was responsible for restoring furniture at Versailles, they fabricated replicas that misled numerous collectors.
Meanwhile, Laurent Kraemer and his gallery, accused of negligence for selling these fakes without thorough checks, were acquitted of all charges. Their lawyers argued that Kraemer acted as a victim of deceit in the antiques market, expressing relief at the ruling that cleared their name after nearly a decade of fighting accusations.
Pallot's and Desnoues's case has drawn attention to the vulnerabilities within the art and antiques market, highlighting conflicts of interest where experts also serve as sellers without disclosing this dual role to buyers. Prosecutor Pascal Rayer emphasized the case's implications for market regulation, advocating for measures that would ensure greater transparency and fairness in transactions involving historical artifacts.
France’s antiques market has faced scrutiny in recent years due to similar fraud cases, including that of Jean Lupu, who sold bogus royal furniture before his untimely death in 2023. The fallout from these revelations raises questions about the integrity of art markets and the measures necessary to prevent future fraud in the industry.
