Looting Matters

I am very grateful to readers for their continuing support for Looting Matters. Your suggestions and feedback are a huge encouragement - thank you! I look forward to commenting on some of the key issues for 2011 in due course.

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© David Gill, 2010

Washington paid lobbyist, Peter Tompa, has revealed his misunderstanding of the academic process in his discussion of the invited forum piece on the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) that has appeared in the Papers from the Institute of Archaeology. The Institute of Archaeology is part of University College London (UCL).

Tompa asserted, "Archaeo-blogger David Gill has organized a forum on the PAS". Tompa could have read Brian Hole's editorial where it was stated, "We would like to thank David Gill for accepting our invitation to write the lead article".

Brian Hole, the Journal Manager for PIA, has now commented, "to set the record straight, the forum was indeed organised solely on the initiative of PIA". Indeed Hole notes, "We’re particularly grateful to David Gill for accepting our invitation to write the lead piece". It looks as if Tompa has once again misunderstood the issues; earlier examples can be found in Operation Baklava and Operati…

Ton Cremers has announced that he will be stepping down from moderating the Museum Security Network. Ton has provided an important service in collating a range of news stories and Web 2.0 sources for those of us who research in this area.

Thank you, Ton, for all your work.

How did stories unfold? At the beginning of the year I looked ahead and suggested some developments.

Top of the list was the expectation that toxic antiquities would continue to appear. Bonhams offered a number of items that were identified from images in the Medici Dossier and the Schinoussa Archive at two sales this year (April, October). The London press has started to comment on the phenomenon (see also here). Christie's in New York has also pressed ahead with the sale of material identified from the Medici Dossier in spite of a call for their withdrawal by the Italian State Prosecutor. Large numbers of Greek pots in the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid have been identified from the Medici Dossier and the Schinoussa Archive (overview). Princeton University Art Museum also seems to be subject to a further investigation apparently unrelated to the Medici Dossier. The issues surrounding the Attic krater in Minneapolis is still unresolved.

Operation Andromeda saw the retur…

Last week I drew attention to the sale of a Benin mask at auction in London. It has now been announced that the mask will be withdrawn (Rob Sharp, "Sotheby's cancels sale of 'looted' Benin mask", Independent December 29, 2010).

Protests against the sale emerged on social networking sites last week. An online petition was organised by the Nigeria Liberty Forum, which describes itself as a "UK-based Nigerian pro-democracy group"."They should seek good counsel and refrain from selling the mask," Orobosa Omo-Ojo, an official in the state government of Edo, which contains the modern city of Benin, told the press in Nigeria. "Anything that makes them ignore this call [from] the Edo state government will [make us] use this as a starting point to protect our intellectual properties."
This demonstrates that Sotheby's is responsive to concerns over long-standing cultural property issues. 

I am grateful to the editorial team of the Papers from the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) to write a forum piece on the Portable Antiquities Scheme and the Treasure Act. Brian Hole gives the background in his editorial.

This is now available online with responses from:
Trevor Austin, General Secretary, National Council for Metal DetectingPaul BarfordGabriel Moshenska, Institute of Archaeology, UCLLord Renfrew of KaimsthornSally Worrell, Portable Antiquities SchemeThere is a final response from me.

I have commented on Benin cultural property before. I do not wish to discuss the matter further here due to the holiday season but I draw the attention of readers to the post by S. Okwunodu Ogbechie.

I would like to extend Christmas Greetings to all readers of Looting Matters from a snow-bound South Wales.

Happy Christmas! Nadolig Llawen!
As a special treat I share a video from the North Point iBand ... I expect all iPad, iPhone and iPod users to be be joining in.



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Singleton Park, Swansea, December 2010 © David Gill

It has been reported that 15 antiquities, some stolen from the Baghdad Museum, have been seized at Krefeld in Germany. It looks as if those handling the material will escape prosecution.

Germany does not have a good record for handling recently-surfaced antiquities (e.g. Apulian helmet). There have also been concerns that antiquities from Iraq are using Germany as a route to the market.

In 2005 a reporter from the LA Times showed the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) a photograph that linked an Attic red-figured krater to a wider investigation into recently-surfaced antiquities. Now "Culture Monster" at the LA Times has noted (December 21, 2010) the Lee Rosenbaum's coverage of the story.
Questions are being raised about whether the Minneapolis Institute of Arts is coming sufficiently clean about an ancient Greek vase in its collection, which has been linked to antiquities dealers involved in tainted acquisitions by the Getty.MIA Director, Kaywin Feldman, is probably regretting writing a letter to the New York Times that drew attention to her thinking on cultural property. And her position is important because she is also President of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD).

But there is another aspect to this story. The krater is reported to have been acquired by the MIA on the recommendation of Michael Conforti, then head curator at the museum.…

Lee Rosenbaum has asked the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) a series of key questions about the Attic red-figured krater acquired in 1983 reportedly on the recommendation of Michael Conforti ("Transparency Gap: Minneapolis Institute Refuses to Discuss Greek Hot Pot", Culturegrrl December 20, 2010). Her starting point is a letter to the New York Times by Kaywin Feldman, director of the MIA and president of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), where she noted "the highest principles of collecting and stewardship of their collections".
Rosenbaum rightly shows that this is not a new story. She links to a statement made by MIA in November 2005 (i.e. over five years ago). She also notes that the MIA confirms that the statement as reproduced is accurate. In other words staff at MIA had been shown an image of the krater by a reporter from the Los Angeles Times.

The image, as Rosenbaum reminds us, is derived from the Medici Dossier. It shows the krater still …

Looting Matters: Looting in Spain

A discussion of the recent arrests in Spain.

Last week a German court rejected an Italian claim on a helmet that is alleged to have been removed from an archaeological context in Apulia (Sabine Deckwerth, "Prozess um einen Paradehelm Italien verlangt einen wertvollen antiken Kopfschutz zurück - und zog deshalb vor das Verwaltungsgericht", Berliner Zeitung December 10, 2010). The Italians claim it came from illicit activity in 1993 ("Der hegte einen Verdacht: Dass der Helm aus einer Raubgrabung in Apulien im Jahre 1993 stammt.") The helmet, dating from between 900 and 700 BCE, then passed to the Axel Guttman collection, and after his death in 2001 was offered on the London market (2002). It was spotted in a catalogue by an Italian academic, and in 2004 Italian authorities submitted a claim; the helmet was seized pending the court case.

The German judge has stated that the Italian authorities were unable to demonstrate that the piece had been looted or been able to show when the helmet entered Germany ("Ma…

In November it was reported that four individuals had been arrested in Spain following looting from a Roman cemetery ("España: descubiertos restos robados de una necrópolis de Córdoba", AFP, November 16, 2010; "Spanish police recover relics from Roman necropolis", AFP November 16, 2010). One of those arrested was a Belgian-Lebanese male who was reported to be linked to the consignment of marble column-base, valued at 150,000 euros, to Christie's in London. The finds recovered included a Roman mosaic, prehistoric axes and 800 Arab and Roman coins. It was said that "police were still searching for the mastermind behind the network".

There seems to have been a development ("Cae una red que expoliaba y subastaba en Internet piezas arqueológicas", EFE Newswire December 10, 2010). It is reported that there have been some 85 arrests in several provinces: Madrid, Sevilla, Córdoba, Jaén, Málaga, Granada and Valencia. This is part of an operation know…

A year ago it looked as if the New York antiquities market was in decline. The results from Sotheby's and Christie's this week show that there has been a massive upturn, bolstered by the Antinous at Sotheby's and the Cycladic marble figure at Christie's. Together they accounted for over $40 million (out of $79 million achieved this week).

Over $133 million worth of antiquities have been sold at the two auction houses this year. (The second highest year, 2007, only reached $55 million.)

Sotheby's seems to be well ahead of Christie's in the period from 1999 to 2010.

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© David Gill, 2010

I have commented before on the appearance of a marble Cycladic figure, attributed to the 'Schuster Sculptor', on the New York market. Max Bernheimer is no doubt relieved to find that the figure fetched a record $16,882,500 yesterday [press release]. Bernheimer is quoted:
Christie's Antiquities Department made history once again, achieving $34 million, the highest total for an Antiquities sale at Christie’s and selling the exceptional Cycladic marble reclining female figure for an amazing $16.8 million, a world auction record for a Cycladic marble figure and the highest price achieved for an ancient work of art ever sold at Christie’s.The Christie's sale fetched $34,092,875, a little behind Sotheby's at $45 million. But this means some $79 million worth of antiquities were sold at two New York auction-houses this week.

I am grateful to Lee Rosenbaum of Culturegrrl for her comment on Kaywin Feldman's letter to the New York Times (December 7, 2010) on the return of material from New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art to Egypt. Feldman is president of the Association of Art Museum Directors and director of the Minneapolis Institute of Art. She was responding to a NYT editorial, "Repatriating Tut" (November 29, 2010), that drew attention to Hawass' attempts to reclaim the mummy mask acquired by the St Louis Art Museum.
Egypt has rightly been demanding that governments and museums return fundamental parts of its patrimony that have disappeared from ancient troves. It has had no success thus far with a 3,200-year-old burial mask at the Saint Louis Art Museum, a bust of Nefertiti in Germany, or the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum.Hawass takes the view that the mask was removed from one of the archaeological stores in Saqqara.

Feldman claimed to be "taken aback" by the edi…

The results of today's sale of antiquities at Sotheby's have been released (see also Clarence Day collection results). Over $45 million worth of antiquities were sold over the last two days, of which $12 million were Egyptian antiquities. It looks as if the market is growing with over $63 million worth of antiquities sold at Sotheby's this year.

Since 1998 some $64 million worth of Egyptian antiquities have been sold at Sotheby's, representing approximately one fifth of sales. Some 65% of Egyptian antiquities surfacing on the market through Sotheby's in the same period do not appear to have a documented collecting history pre-dating 1973 (the date of the AIA declaration). Approximately 95% of the Egyptian antiquities do not have a recorded find-spot.

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© David Gill, 2010

Professor Martin Carver, editor of Antiquity, discusses recent metal-detecting finds in his December 2010 editorial.
... why should we pay a treasure hunter 1000 times more than an archaeologist to dig up an object? Even to my politician, it seems pretty obvious that new finds like this year’s Crosby Garrett Roman helmet need to be in a museum where people can see them; and equally obvious that the sums of money paid to treasure hunters are as absurd as their public adulation. Two million pounds for the helmet and three for the Staffordshire hoard – these are sums that could keep a small museum going for several years.
There is a huge debate in the United Kingdom about the value of Arts and Humanities. Craver concludes his editorial with this:
Archaeology is in the business of understanding the climate, the soil, society, religion, conflict, commerce, living together: no minor matters. It is as important as every other science, from medicine to space travel, and its findings have a perm…

The sale of the Clarence Day collection took place at Sotheby's yesterday (December 7, 2010) with a staggering $36,769,250 achieved [results].

The bust of Antinous, lot 9, fetched $23,826,500 (estimate $2-3 million). The marble was found at Banias (Caesarea Philippi) by M. Pérétié, Chancellor of the French Consulate, Beirut (1879-1882). It then has a well documented collecting history (and even passed through the hands of Robin Symes).

A green porphyry sphinx, lot 25, fetched $5,234,500 (estimate $800,000-$1,200,000). It had surfaced through Hagop Kevorkian, New York, and was "probably acquired before World War II".

A polychrome ushabti, lot 27, achieved $1,314,500 (estimate $200,000-300,000). It was known from a Cairo collection in the 1920s.

The Cycladic figure, attributed to the Rogers sculptor (Lot 6), fetched $332,500 only just within the estimate ($300,000-500,000).

I have noted earlier the forthcoming sale of a Cycladic marble figure attributed to the 'Schuster Sculptor'.

Max Bernheimer of Christie's has spoken in a short video about the forthcoming auction of the reclining figurine:
G. Max Bernheimer, International Head of Antiquities showcases a Cycladic marble figure, one of the few sculptures attributed to the Schuster Master. The idol is one of the most iconic sculptural types to have survived from antiquity and is the highlight of Christie's Antiquities sale in New York on 9 December.Bernheimer seems so out of touch with Cycladic scholarship that he still uses the now obsolete nomenclature. I have noted elsewhere:
One change in G-G's approach has been the abandonment of the term 'Master' in favor of 'Sculptor' (though still in upper case). In G-G's earlier work, she explained: 'The term master is used throughout ... to denote a craftsman who was thoroughly competent in his profession although not n…

I am grateful to a reader for pointing out that Catherine Duazo's article on acquisitions by the Princeton University Art Museum has been updated. It now states:
In June 2010, the Italian government accused the Princeton University Art Museum’s antiquities curator, J. Michael Padgett, of acquiring nearly two dozen Italian artifacts for the museum that were the property of the Italian government. The University conducted an internal investigation and is now waiting for the Italian government's response.It should be noted that the New York Times disclosed the Italian papers in June 2010.

There is an additional note at the end of the article:
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that J. Michael Padgett was accused of illegally donating artifacts to the Princeton University Art Museum when, in fact, he allegedly assisted in the artifacts' acquisition from an alumnus.This story is about the due diligence process conducted by a curatorial member of staff at the Prin…

The Princeton University Art Museum has attracted some attention in recent years. In 2007 the museum returned some items to Italy though it has yet to disclose (unlike Boston's Museum of Fine Art, and the J. Paul Getty Museum) the complete collecting histories for the objects. However it appears that some of the items feature in the Medici Dossier.

More recently, in June 2010, it was reported that the museum has been mentioned in papers relating to Edoardo Almagià, a New York dealer. The appearance of Almagià is not without significance as his name has been linked to objects returned to Italy from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Almagià has responded to the story with an interview. The Princeton curator mentioned in the Italian report has also given an interview.

Now Catherine Duazo ("Art museum acquisitions face scrutiny over past ownership", Daily Princetonian November 30, 2010) has commented on the Alamagià story.
In June 2010, the Italian government accused the Princeton…

Thank you to all who supported Sherif Hassan who was detained in Egypt. There were some 4000 visits to the website over the weekend. I understand that he has arrived at Heathrow this evening.

Rick Witschonke of Califon, New Jersey has responded in a letter to the editor of the Art Newspaper.  He comments on the report of the appearance of two items that feature in the Medici Dossier in the October sale at Bonhams.

There are several points worth noting:

"The stigma of association with one of these convicted antiquities traffickers is often enough to result in its withdrawal". This was not the case with either Bonhams in October 2010 or Christie's in June 2010; both auction-houses proceeded with the sales. However this was true for Bonhams in October 2008, and April 2010. (For seizures at Christie's in 2009 see here.)"The larger issue, however, is that US collectors, dealers, auction houses, and museums are compelled to research the provenance of any prospective purchase to ensure it is not recently looted". The issue is that it is appropriate for vendors and buyers to conduct a rigorous due diligence process. In some recent cases the objects had …

Looting Matters normally confines itself to archaeological matters. However, in this case, I am going to make an exception as I know that these posts are widely read by those interested in (ancient) Egypt.

Mark Meynell, who works at All Souls, Langham Place (next to the BBC), has posted a story that is hard to ignore.
On 9th November, we had the terrible news from friends at All Souls. Emma and her Egyptian husband, Sherif, who only got married at All Souls in the summer, were travelling to Cairo to visit members of his family. She was immediately put back on the plane she had come in; Sherif was detained. Over the last couple of weeks, contact has been sporadic, mainly by email but one brief phone call.Meynell has set up a website to encourage support for Sherif Hassan.

If you have an interest in Egypt please consider supporting this campaign and make Sherif's case known.

Looting Matters: Zeus Returns to Italy
A discussion of the Zeus returned to Italy.

I am very proud of my postgraduate students who are a bright group. Today we were discussing repatriation and Egypt. They drew my attention to a limestone block from the Tomb of Imep-Hor that is now listed on the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) website.

According to the SCA website the block was spotted in the Alexandra Irigoyen Art Gallery in Madrid.
On March 19th, 2009, Dr. Josep Cervello from the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona sent an e-mail to the Secretary General of the SCA expressing his concern about a limestone block that was then on display in the art gallery of Alexandra Irigoyen in Madrid.This story had been spotted in anonymous form by the same group of students. But now we have further detail:
Dr. Cervello also was able to ascertain that the piece belongs to the Galerias F. Cervera in Barcelona.This is the same Barcelona galerista linked to the Egyptian coffin seized in Miami. Barcelona has also been the location of seizures during Operation Ghelas.

I presume that …

Looting Matters would like to wish North American readers a Happy Thanksgiving!

The Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) has posted details of how it will deal with the cuts announced as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review. PAS is facing a 15% reduction by 2014-15. One of the most significant features is the impact of devolution. Historically PAS has covered England and Wales. However it is stated:
To reduce the current contribution made by the Scheme to PAS in Wales, the total costs of which is £75K pa, from £59K this year to £6K from 2012. This is on the basis that these costs should be borne by the Welsh Assembly Government, through CyMAL or the National Museum WalesWales is facing significant budget cuts. (See draft budget.) Last Friday, the Heritage Minister, Alun Ffred Jones, announced:
As a result of cuts to the Welsh budget by the UK government, the Heritage portfolio revenue budget will see a reduction of 3.15% over 3 years with the capital budget decreasing by 33.9% over 3 years.The Welsh Assembly Government website does not appear to contain any menti…

I recently completed an invited forum piece on the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) and the Treasure Act and am now waiting to write my response to the five reactions. I note that today the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) announced the new arrangement for PAS. Culture Minister Ed Vaizey "confirmed an additional £1.3m of funding going directly to the British Museum to run the Portable Antiquities scheme" (press release, October 23, 2010).

A more detailed press statement was issued by the British Museum ("British Museum to manage Portable Antiquities Scheme, as exciting new finds go on display", November 23, 2010).
Culture Minister Ed Vaizey today confirmed that the future funding of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) has been secured with a reduction of 15% in real terms over four years. From April 2011 it will be managed directly by the British Museum.
There is a quote from Neil Macgregor:
Following the Spending Review settlement we will wish to main…

The "Merrin Zeus" is a reminder that purchasers need to have fully documented collecting histories that can be traced back to the period before 1970. If the Zeus was indeed removed from the Museo Nazionale Romano in 1980 it would appear that the collecting history that it had been in an old Swiss collection in the 1960s was fabricated. Who created the account? Who knew it was fiction?

The Castor and Pollux statues now on loan to the Metropolitan Museum of Art also have an interesting collecting history. Where did they acquire the reported find-spot of the Mithraeum in Sidon? The curatorial staff at the Met have yet to present their documented and authenticated collecting history.

What do the Zeus and the Dioskouroi have in common?

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Head from Roman marble statuette. The Schinoussa Archive.

It appears that my suggestion that the bronze Zeus returned to Italy was significant. This means that we can reconstruct the recent collecting history:

a. 1980. Statue reported to have been removed from the Museo Nazionale Romano.
b. 1982. Statue surfaced in the supplementary exhibition, The Search for Alexander, in The Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco (no. S-10).
c. 1983. Statue appeared in the supplementary exhibition, The Search for Alexander, in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto (no. S-14).
d. 1984. Statue published by Joyce Geary Volk in California Studies in Classical Antiquity. Owner stated to be Edward H. Merrin of New York City. Collecting history stated: "Mr. Merrin purchased it from a dealer who had obtained it from a Swiss collector in the late 1960s".
e. 1988-89. Statue appeared in The Gods Delight: The Human Figure in Classical Bronze, organized by Arielle P. Kozloff and David Gordon Mitten (no. 29).  Owner stated to be: Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence A. Fleischman.  E…

The Italian press has been commenting on the report that a female marble torso and a bronze Zeus have been returned to Italy ("Busto romano in vetrina a New York riportato in Italia da un maresciallo", Corriere della Sera November 20, 2010).
Il pregevole bronzetto era detenuto da una ricchissima collezionista di Manhattan, che l'aveva comprato da una casa d'aste per 537 mila dollari. La donna, messa al corrente della provenienza illecita, l'ha restituito senza chiedere contropartite. In precedenza era transitato per una mostra a Cleveland, nell'Ohio, dove era stato presentato con un'expertise di Marion True processata poi per gli acquisti del Getty Museum di Malibù e mostrato sulla rivista «Gods Delight».The Italian report confirms the Zeus was in the exhibition The Gods Delight at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

But who is 'la donna' described as 'una ricchissima collezionista di Manhattan'?

Earlier today I noted the return of a marble female torso and a bronze Zeus to Italy. The statue of the Zeus is distinctive with the right arm lost below the elbow. (There is now a short statement on the Carabinieri website; see also "Zeus statue returned to Italian museum after 30 years", Daily Telegraph November 19, 2010)

Paul Barford also noted the story and added a quote from AFP.
The bronze statue, which was stolen from the National Roman Museum in 1980, was sold by Sotheby's auction house in New York in 2006 and later put on display at an exhibition in Cleveland in the US state of Ohio.I have been unable to find a bronze Zeus at auction at Sotheby's in 2006. However a bronze figure of a Zeus, some 24 cm tall, with a "missing right hand" (it appears to be missing from the elbow) was auctioned at Sotheby's New York on 9 December 2004, lot 249.

The Zeus auctioned at Sotheby's in 2004 had been exhibited at the Cleveland Museum of Art:
The Gods Delig…