In a speech to Britain’s Royal Academy in 1851, Prince Albert declared that “works of art, by being publicly exhibited and offered for sale, are becoming articles of trade, following as such the unreasoning laws of markets and fashion; and public and even private patronage is swayed by their tyrannical influence”.

The democratisation of wealth has been the death knell of such aristocratic views of art. Collectors still buy fine art for its aesthetic qualities but have long acknowledged its role as a store of value or as a commodity to be sold for gain. Others, aided by their bankers, have gone a step further: they treat their collections as working assets.