In the era of Trump-sized disruptions, one thing is certain: everything is up in the air. In May, Sotheby’s had to pull its season’s crown jewels—specifically the Piprahwa Gems of the Historical Buddha. Two days before the marquee sale, the house was issued a legal notice from the Indian government, which threatened legal action if the sale of Shakyamuni’s jewels went ahead. The 334 gems, presented in the house’s “Grotto” in a bizarre Damien Hirst-like assemblage in transparent cases—accompanied of course by the tantalizing label, “price on request”—were unearthed from a stupa during British Imperial rule. Earlier this year, chairman and worldwide head of Asian art at Sotheby’s, Nicolas Chow, had expressed: “The privilege we have of unveiling these contact relics in Hong Kong in our maison remains a challenge to my imagination.” Perhaps meditating on the Indian Ministry of Culture’s proposition that Sotheby’s would be “participating in continued colonial exploitation,” they chose the path to overcoming duhkha (suffering) by pulling the sale, showing nothing is set in stone!