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<p>[QUOTE="Ignoramus Maximus, post: 5483356, member: 104741"]I sympathize with you, [USER=31620]@maridvnvm[/USER], and everyone else who is suddenly confronted with unexpected charges.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>I live in Norway. Import tax/VAT on everything is a hefty 25%. Fortunately, coins as collectibles are exempt from duties, which makes collecting them an attractive option.</p><p><br /></p><p>Antiquities, however, are a completely different story.</p><p>To give an example: I recently bought this Greek dish.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1239221[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]1239203[/ATTACH]</p><p>Greek pedestal dish, Hellenistic period, ca. 4th cent. BC.</p><p>Height 7cm, diameter 17cm.</p><p>Workshop: 'Master of the Wobbly Plate.'</p><p><br /></p><p>It auctioned at 260 GBP. 'Great buy! Lucky me!'</p><p>Next: 26% auction fees. 'Fair enough'.</p><p>Next: 64 GBP in shipping. 'OK...'</p><p>Next: 25% import tax/VAT. 'Ai,ai,ai!'</p><p>Next: 'service fees' from DHL. 'Have you lost your minds, you ..!'</p><p>( turns out, DHL 'generously' advances the duties to the Norwegian customs as a service to their customers, supposedly to 'expedite shipping', but really as a thinly veiled ( and, in my opinion, legally highly questionable) excuse to slap an extra 60 Euro onto the bill... And this 'service' is compulsory, not an optional extra.</p><p>I can live with all the charges, it's part of the game, but this 'service' from DHL to top it off pisses me off).</p><p><br /></p><p>Well, you get it. I'm not complaining,(ok, I am:_)). I love the dish and I knew ( or should have known) what I was in for when I bought it. But when you add it all up... well, let's just say, you have to really, really, really want something before you hit that 'bid' button.</p><p><br /></p><p>But it does take some of the fun out of collecting antiquities. A shame really.</p><p><br /></p><p>Better stop ranting and enjoy what I have...</p><p><br /></p><p>Now the dish sits nicely on top of my nightstand just behind a nice Alexander tet ( I always have at least one coin on display). And man, do they complement each other! The plate lends body and substance to the coin, silver Zeus on his throne, in turn, lends refinement and dignity to the plate. In a year or two, three I'll be living in my own miniature museum...</p><p><br /></p><p>Who said life was bad?<img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>So, things can be worse than 20%. Hope that's consoling. And, more importantly, the UK has a thriving local market for both coins and (ancient) antiquities, so there's a lot to be found without looking abroad. As for Norway...<img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie3" alt=":(" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Ignoramus Maximus, post: 5483356, member: 104741"]I sympathize with you, [USER=31620]@maridvnvm[/USER], and everyone else who is suddenly confronted with unexpected charges. I live in Norway. Import tax/VAT on everything is a hefty 25%. Fortunately, coins as collectibles are exempt from duties, which makes collecting them an attractive option. Antiquities, however, are a completely different story. To give an example: I recently bought this Greek dish. [ATTACH=full]1239221[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]1239203[/ATTACH] Greek pedestal dish, Hellenistic period, ca. 4th cent. BC. Height 7cm, diameter 17cm. Workshop: 'Master of the Wobbly Plate.' It auctioned at 260 GBP. 'Great buy! Lucky me!' Next: 26% auction fees. 'Fair enough'. Next: 64 GBP in shipping. 'OK...' Next: 25% import tax/VAT. 'Ai,ai,ai!' Next: 'service fees' from DHL. 'Have you lost your minds, you ..!' ( turns out, DHL 'generously' advances the duties to the Norwegian customs as a service to their customers, supposedly to 'expedite shipping', but really as a thinly veiled ( and, in my opinion, legally highly questionable) excuse to slap an extra 60 Euro onto the bill... And this 'service' is compulsory, not an optional extra. I can live with all the charges, it's part of the game, but this 'service' from DHL to top it off pisses me off). Well, you get it. I'm not complaining,(ok, I am:_)). I love the dish and I knew ( or should have known) what I was in for when I bought it. But when you add it all up... well, let's just say, you have to really, really, really want something before you hit that 'bid' button. But it does take some of the fun out of collecting antiquities. A shame really. Better stop ranting and enjoy what I have... Now the dish sits nicely on top of my nightstand just behind a nice Alexander tet ( I always have at least one coin on display). And man, do they complement each other! The plate lends body and substance to the coin, silver Zeus on his throne, in turn, lends refinement and dignity to the plate. In a year or two, three I'll be living in my own miniature museum... Who said life was bad?:) So, things can be worse than 20%. Hope that's consoling. And, more importantly, the UK has a thriving local market for both coins and (ancient) antiquities, so there's a lot to be found without looking abroad. As for Norway...:([/QUOTE]
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