| Special number plates to be sold at charity auction
Abu Dhabi: A first-of-a-kind charity auction to sell car plates with special numbers will take place at Emirates Palace next month, according to Abu Dhabi Police. The auction, titled 'A Special Number for A Special Cause' is organised by the Abu Dhabi Traffic Department at the General Headquarters of Abu Dhabi Police in cooperation with The Emirates Auctions Company. The auction will be held on May 12 at 10am. The money collected from the auction will go to the newly-founded fund for road accident victims, in addition to supporting people with special needs, according to a police official. .
Retired priest auctions fine wines, gifts from parishioners
Perigueux, France - Hundreds of bottles of fine Bordeaux wine given to a former parish priest by parishioners were put up for auction on Saturday in a move that raised eyebrows in the region. Auctioneers said the sale of the cellar accounted for some 80 per cent of the 700 lots being sold, and included some of the best labels, such as Cheval-Blanc, Angelus and Figeac. The current priest in the wine town of Saint Emilion, Emeric de Rozieres, whose predecessor, named as Father Bonnet, retired in 2006, told AFP that some parishioners had been astonished by the sale. He said that Bonnet had received wine from his flock, as many priests did, but had also given a lot away. Wine expert Didier Guerin also praised Bonnet, saying that if he was selling off his wine, it was in order to live, not to take a holiday or buy a new car.
Community bids farewell to consul
Come Friday, the Mexican consul general for the Central Coast region will be clearing out his San Jose office to take a new position in the City of Light. On Sunday, a farewell dinner was held at Chapala restaurant in Salinas in honor of Bruno Figueroa, who has been appointed by the Mexican government to represent the country in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris. .
Prices jump at mammoth auction in Paris
PARIS: The skeleton of a 15,000-year-old Siberian mammoth was snapped up at auction in Paris on Monday for over one-and-a-half times the estimated price. Dubbed "The President", the 3.8-metre-high tusked mammoth was sold for 260,000 euros ($NZ475,231) to an unknown bidder by Christie's in Paris, compared to a 150,000-180,000 euros guide price. The skeleton of a woolly rhinoceros dating back some 10,000 years also beat its estimated price to sell for 100,000 euros, while rare bird and fish fossils went under the hammer along with a meteorite. The widespread media coverage of the auction has caused mixed feelings among some scientists. Pascal Picq, a palaeontologist at the College of France, told France Info radio the risk of a commercialization of fossils could cause their decline.
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