Academy Award winner Russell Crowe clearly intends to finally put his relationship with former wife Danielle Spencer behind him. The Gladiator star is expected to sell off over 200 of his personal possessions at a sale at Sotheby’s in Sydney next month, with the $3.6 million-valued collection being intriguingly listed as The Art of Divorce.
End of his marriage
Crowe and Spencer’s formal split was eventually finalised last December after a somewhat turbulent history, but their marriage did yield two sons, first Charles and then Tennyson. The couple had first separated five years previously in what had become something of an on-off relationship as they mixed time together and apart.
The ever-burgeoning but still distinctive movie star shared some family bonding time earlier this week with 11-year-old Tennyson, as they were pictured shooting hoops at the North Bondi basketball courts.
Sale on his birthday
The rugged actor – a New Zealand citizen by birth despite having lived the bulk of his life in neighbouring Australia - has clearly decided the time is right to have a clear out and the sale neatly coincides with both his 54th birthday celebrations and wedding anniversary on April 7.
Speaking about his divorce and the decision to sell off his items now, he told the Australian commercial radio station 2GB that “no matter how positive you are and in agreement with the fact that you are separating” there are still “a lot of really deep things to unwind.”
He added that on reflection he was keen to find a way to “put this in a different perspective and actually get some joy out of this instead of just sadness?
So, this is what I came up with."
Eclectic selection of items
The collection includes major paintings created by some of Australia’s most significant artists from a historic, modern and contemporary viewpoint. Among an eclectic selection of lots at the eagerly-anticipated sale will also be watches, jewellery, musical instruments and sporting Memorabilia, with many items having been shared with his ex-wife, Danielle.
Interest in ‘Gladiator’ memorabilia
Showbiz fans will no doubt be interested in a selection of movie-related memorabilia that will be auctioned off, with costumes and props from the actor’s various films going under the hammer. They include two Louisville Slugger baseball bats signed by Al Pacino and the cast of The Insider, and Crowe’s $20,000 rated stunt cuirass from the final death scene of Gladiator.
Indeed, there is expected to be keen global interest in several of the items that featured in the filming of Gladiator, including a fully functioning replica Roman chariot, a pair of Maximus’ black leather wrist cuffs and the sword used in the famous tiger-fighting scene.
Academy Award-winning role
The role that ultimately elevated Crowe to international stardom in the film industry was Ridley Scott’s epic 2000 blockbuster, Gladiator. His striking portrayal of the ill-fated Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius and his mission to avenge his emperor and family’s brutal murders earned him critical acclaim and a much-coveted Oscar for Best Actor.
