The House of Hope by Kate Alexander

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In 1861, Vittorio Speranza set sail from Italy for England with his inheritance: an ancient marble statue of Hermes, a fifteenth-century depiction of the Nativity by the Italian master Monaccio, and a gold cup attributed to Benvenuto Cellini. He also carried with him a very valuable talent-Vittorio Speranza had an almost uncanny ability to discern the priceless from the mundane, the true work of fine art from the worthless fake. Established by Vittorio's exceptional taste in antiquities-and by his marriage to a beautiful English woman, The House of Hope auction-house dynasty spans a stark depression and two world wars.

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