Interview with Igor Goleš and his rare Dalmatian heritage online auction
- by croatiaweek
- in News
Igor Goleš (Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
Through Igor Goleš’ labour of love and dedication, his “Forgotten Dalmatia” project has produced some of the most captivating stories and artefacts of the beautiful Croatian region.
Igor has just launched a new endeavour in the form of an online auction, which showcases a selection of rare and remarkable items from Dalmatia’s cultural heritage.
This auction represents a culmination of passion, history, and a desire to preserve the past for generations to come.
Some rare items include a marble sculpture of the Virgin Mary dating back to the 18th century, Ante Pavelić’s proclamation from 1943 in which he proclaimed the return of Dalmatia to NDH, after the capitulation of Italy, and a ticket from the inaugural match of the Croatian national football team in 1990.
We caught up with Igor to learn more.
Why did you start the auction and how did you get all the rare items?
Considering that I have been a collector for 20 years and I am constantly acquiring various items for my collections, I also cooperate with many other collectors.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
We often exchange items and buy from each other, but in the last few years, many unknown persons have started contacting me because of my social media presence. They want to sell items from their family heirlooms or collections and I often help them. In the last 2 years, I had the opportunity to see very serious works of art and I simply had to professionalize this work, raise it to a higher level, for myself, the seller and the customers themselves. This is how the first auction was created.
What items have been most popular since the auction went live?
I wanted the first auction to offer only about 100 items from different fields. So there are several works of art, some souvenirs, and mostly very rare documents from the past of these areas.
The amazing marble Virgin from the 18th century, masterpiece from Francesco Cabianca, the proclamation of Ante Pavelić from 1943, the death sentence for Ivan Kutlača from 1844, and the letters of the great Croatian painters Vlaho Bukovac and Celestin Medović should certainly be singled out.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
An oil painting by Mate Lasić Rembrandt, the most controversial painter in Croatia today, a self-taught genius, was even offered at the auction. It’s incredible, and so is the success of this guy, whose paintings are already reaching €2,000, which some Croatian academic painters can only dream of.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
What is your favourite item?
My favorite item at the auction is, of course, my first book from 2014, Forgotten Dalmatia. This edition is bibliophile and in a circulation of only 100 copies and has never been officially offered on the market in these 10 years.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
When the book was printed, everything was sold out and reserved in advance, and all these years a lot of people have been asking me for this book. Several owners had up to 2 copies and sold theirs in the meantime, and here is one of them who has now offered his copy as well special for auction. I am emotionally attached to that book, and the Forgotten Dalmatia project was born from it, and it is my favorite item at the auction.
Is there any item from Dalmatia history you wish you had?
First of all, I am a passionate collector of Dalmatian old postcards, and postcards still bring me the most joy. Finding something new for my collection makes me happy the most, especially if we collectors have never had the chance to see it before. I also collect interesting documents and letters, and if we exclude them, the thing I’ve been looking for years is a photo album of Emperor Francis Josip’s visit to Dalmatia from 1875.
I found it at an auction 2 years ago, I actually found out that it was for sale only after the auction ended. I couldn’t forgive myself for months, haha.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
The online auction is for one month, will there be more?
I plan to do a maximum of 2 auctions a year, and the next one will be in November. We have already prepared enough items for that auction, and there will be some really sensational ones. I believe that people will also recognize the value of the documents they see at my auctions and use them as special and unique gifts for their loved ones or to complete their collections.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
I also believe that the existence of the auction will enable some new people to take out some valuables from their treasure caves and enable us all to rejoice for a long time to come.
(Photo: Forgotten Dalmatia)
The auction is held until 12 May and you can visit the auction here: https://aukcije.zaboravljenadalmacija.hr/
