Selling off museum pieces to save jobs should not be a taboo — especially during a pandemic Can we blame galleries if they decide to sell works to avoid job losses? (Getty Images) When a group of Royal Academy of Arts grandees recently suggested selling one of the institution’s masterpieces, it caused quite a stir. This was not just any artwork: it was Michelangelo’s Taddei Tondo, a great unfinished masterpiece that is considered among the Academy’s crown jewels. The proposal — auction it off for more than £100m in order to protect 150 jobs and secure the Royal Academy’s financial future — provoked outrage, and was quickly rejected. “It is our duty to look after our permanent collection, for current and future generations to enjoy,” said a spokeswoman at the time.