Ali & Hichaam Aboutaam

Antiquities are not simply old pieces of art. They carry a message about a culture’s heritage and history which is the legacy and gift of that culture to its heirs and to the rest of the world. Because of the special place ancient objects have in a nation’s culture, the rules regarding trade and ownership of these artifacts have a special significance.
Recently there has been a movement to improve the laws that exist and perhaps create new laws that protect the objects and the nation’s that birthed them so that rightful possession and ownership can be sought after and maintained.

Antiquities dealers are affected by these changes. “If dealers ignore the changing standards in the antiquities trade,” says Hicham Aboutaam, co-owner, with his brother, Ali, of Phoenix Ancient Art of New York and Geneva, “it will be at their peril.”

In addition dealers often take the “buyers beware” approach to selling antiquities. “We research pieces as much as we can,” says Aboutaam, “and if we fail to find a provenance, we put everything on the table and let the buyer decide.”

What’s old is always in style.  At least that’s what people who love antiques say.  There are many great ways to decorate with antiques and to take the home décor to a whole new level of style with only a few key items.

When you start to search for antiques, you should first become familiar with the variety of choices at a location like Phoenix Ancient Art.  Antique dealers Hicham Aboutaam and Ali Aboutaam offer a great deal of information on their various sites, as do many other dealers.

One tip when starting to decorate with antiques is to group together like objects.  Stick to one time period, purchasing Mesopotanian statues to feature in one room, or Byzantine coins to display together.

Never afraid to innovative when it comes to bringing the beauty and excitement of ancient art to a wider audience, the Aboutaam brothers, Hicham and Ali instituted e-tiquities in May, 2009. Not only can items be purchased on-line, via e-tiquities™ but potential collectors can also participate in on-line auctions. After launching e-tiquities in May, 2009 the first auctioned art work was a core-formed glass amphoriskos, which is a type of perfume bottle, from the Greek Hellinistic epoch of the 3rd to 2nd century B.C.E. The bidding was set to begin at $8,000.
Hicham Aboutaam explained that purchasing antiquities can be a sound investment which not only maintains its monetary value, but adds value to the enjoyment of the collector’s life.

As Mr. Aboutaam put it:

“Given current economic conditions, people of all financial status are looking for safer havens for their investments. Antiquities have always been a good alternative through both booms and busts and unlike stocks or bonds, the return on investment includes a piece of timeless beauty.”

Some people might be nervous about purchasing ancient art. They might be unsure of the authenticity or chain of ownership (provenance) of the piece of art they are considering. At

Bronze Pendant

Phoenix Ancient Art this kind of worrying is completely unfounded.  According to Hicham Aboutaam,

“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 to ensure that our pieces are both authentic and on the market in accordance with international law.”

Always at the forefront of new trends in antiquity dealing, the Aboutaam brothers, Ali and Hicham have decided to launch a truly innovative method for people to acquire antiquities, through their computer. All a prospective customer has to do is point their mouse to www.e-tiquities.com and examine, at their own convenience, the large array of ancient works of art available for sale.

When the hopeful collector enters this web site he or she will find beautiful objects of art in the widest possible range of prices, from as little as $500 and all the way up to $25,000, all available at the mere touch of a button.

The purpose of this venture, which was inaugurated on May 1st, 2009, is to bring antiquities to a new audience, an audience that did not have access to antiquities, or believe that ancient art collecting is only for the mega-rich. Ali and Hicham Aboutaam also want to make collecting ancient art easier for those already involved.  As Hicham explained it,

“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.”

Ancient Egyptian Bronze Mirror

Have you ever had a hankering for owning some real old works of art? Phoenix Ancient Art makes this possibility easier than you might have thought.

The Aboutaam brothers, Hicham and Ali have made it one of their priorities to open up the world of antiquities to the general public and not only multi-millionaires or museum curators. Just take a gander at their web site Phoenix Ancient Art and see how easy it can be.

As a newcomer to the world of collecting antiquities, or even if you only want to dip your toes in and purchase one or two items, Hicham and Ali Aboutaam offer the following reassurances that you are not going where only the brave dare to go:

1. Provenance is established with the highest possible due diligence to guarantee that the chain of ownership has only and exclusively been passed down through reputable channels, in the open market and in accord with all applicable laws, internationally and locally.

2. Authenticity of each artifact is painstakingly established using scholarly analysis of the history and style of each piece. Some of the techniques used to establish authenticity of age are thermo-luminescence, carbon-14 dating, metallurgic and other s.

3. There is a money-back guarantee offered by Phoenix Ancient Art that the authenticity and its provenance is as described to the buyer. With these reassurances there is no reason not to jump into the wonderful world of owning ancient art.

Phoenix Ancient Art is a leading art dealership that specializes in the ancient world and antiquities that span cultures and centuries. Aside from the dealership, Phoenix Ancient Art holds public showings at its two galleries, featuring the most important and interesting pieces of art available to the public. Phoenix, and its two galleries, are under the proprietorship of  brothers Ali Aboutaam and Hicham Aboutaam, who took over the business from their father, both having made great strides in moving the business forward.

Situated in Geneva and New York, the two galleries that Phoenix Ancient Art maintains are prime venues for all – both the discerning art critique who understands antiquities and the ancient world, as well as the man off the street who desires to step into the ancient worlds and civilizations that preceded our modern era. Hicham and Ali continue the fine Aboutaam family tradition, maintaining impeccable art exhibits and constantly refreshing gallery displays, as well as a honest art dealership.