The Graham Geddes Collection at Auction

As we look forward to the sale of the Graham Geddes collection at Bonhams in London this October, I though that it would be useful to review some of the recent sales of items from this Australian collection. The examples listed here were auctioned at Christie's.

Attic

• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 9 December 2005, lot 238. AN ATTIC RED-FIGURED CALYX-KRATER THE L.C. GROUP. Pre-Lot Text: ANCIENT VASES FROM THE COLLECTION OF WILLIAM SUDDABY. Provenance: with Graham Geddes, Australia, circa 1970s.
  

Apulian

Bell-krater

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, lot 127. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE TRURO PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: Property of a Melbourne Private Collector. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 364; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10 December 1996, lot 187. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part I, no26a. Exhibited: The Borchardt Library, La Trobe University, Melbourne, 1988-1994
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 140. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF THE LONG OVERFALLS. Pre-Lot Text: PROPERTY OF AN AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTION. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 12-13 December 1983, lot 534b; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part I, no. 4/107a.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, lot 142. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF THE LONG OVERFALLS. Provenance: Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part I, no. 4/110f; Schauenberg, "Herakles und Eulen," RM, 1985, p.45, pl. 85-86,2-3.
• New York, Park Avenue: 5 June 1998, Lot 239 ($3220) = New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 10 December 2004, Lot 501 ($5975). AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE DECHTER PAINTER. Provenance: Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; The Property of an Australian Collector; Christie's, New York, 5 June 1998, lot 239; The Property of a Louisiana Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 10/79b, pl. XI, 3-4.
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 12 December 2002, lot 141. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURED BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE TARPORLEY PAINTER. Provenance: Macciolli Collection, Melbourne, 1984; BGM Collection, Melbourne, 1988-1994; Graham Geddes Collection, Melbourne, 1994. Literature: Trendall, "Two bell-kraters in Melbourne by the Tarporley Painter" in Studies Cambitoglou; Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to The Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, Part I, no. 3/4a. Exhibited: On loan, La Trobe University, Melbourne, 1988-2002

Calyx-krater

• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 8 June 2001, lot 169. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURED CALYX-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE UNDERWORLD PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: VARIOUS PROPERTIES. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10 December 1984, lot 365; Private Collection, 1984-1994; Graham Geddes Collection, 1994-present. Literature: Trendall, "Two Apulian Calyx-Kraters with Representations of Amphion and Zethos" in Enthousiasmos Vol. 6, Festschrift Hemelrijk, Allard Pierson Series, pp. 157-166; Heger, "Dirke" in LIMC, III, p. 636, no. 6, pl. 505,5; Trendall, Red Figure Vases of South Italy and Sicily, no. p. 91, no. 211; Trendall, "On the Divergence of South Italian from Attic Red-figure Vase-painting," pl. 24,4 in Descoeudres, ed., Greek Colonists and Native Populations; Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, Part I, no. 18/318a.
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 8 June 2001. lot 170. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURED CALYX-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE DARIUS PAINTER. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 13-14 December 1982, lot 291; Private Collection, 1982-1994; Graham Geddes Collection, 1994-present. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, Supplement I, no. 18/64d; Trendall, "Two Apulian Calyx-Kraters with Representations of Amphion and Zethos" in Enthousiasmos, Festchrift Hemelrijk, Vol. 6, Allard Pierson Series, pp. 157-166. Exhibited: Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne, on loan 1994-2001

Column-krater

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, lot 132. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE COLUMN-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PATERA PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: Property of a Melbourne Private Collector. Provenance: Brought to England prior to 1920; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 13-14 July 1981, lot 350; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10 December 1996, lot 181.
• New York, Park Avenue: 5 June 1998, lot 236. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE COLUMN-KRATER, A-SIDE ATTRIBUTED TO THE BALTIMORE PAINTER, B-SIDE ATTRIBUTED TO THE STOKE ON TRENT PAINTER. Provenance: Property of a Nobleman, brought to England prior to 1920; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 13 July 1981, lot 347; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 157. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, vol. II, no. 27/224a, pl. 339, 5-6.

Volute-krater

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 128. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF COPENHAGEN 4223. Pre-Lot Text: PROPERTY OF AN AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR. Provenance: Once Swiss Market; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 11 December 1984, lot 599; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, First Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no.17/40c; Schauenburg, "Flügelgestalten auf unteritalischen Grabvasen," JdL 102, p.205, fig.6-7.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, lot 129. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE DE SCHULTHESS PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: Property of a Melbourne Private Collector. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 12 December 1988, lot 165; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 17/76, pl. xxxii,1-2; Schauenburg, "Flügelgestalten auf unteritalischen Grabvasen," JdI, 1987, pp. 199-282.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 130. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF BM F281. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 23 May 1988, lot 216; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10 December 1996, lot 197. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part I, no. 17/62a, pl. XXXI, 5-6.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 135. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE SAMARCANDE GROUP, ASSOCIATED WITH THE PAINTER OF THE MACINAGROSSA STAND. Pre-Lot Text: Property of a Melbourne Private Collector. Provenance: Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10 December 1996, lot 196. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part II, no. 27/574, pl. lxxxi,1-2.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 136. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF TARANTO 7013. Provenance: German Market; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 19 May 1986, lot 316; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, vol. II, no. 28/39a.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, lot 137. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF BERLIN F 3383. Pre-Lot Text: PROPERTY OF AN AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 600; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red- Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 28/64e; Schauenburg, "Zur zwei Krateren des Malers von Berlin F 3383" in Festschrift Himmelmann, 1989, pl. 37,2-3.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1998, Lot 106. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE GROUP OF COPENHAGEN 4223. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 21 May 1984, lot 408; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 330. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 17/50-10, pl. xxx, 3.
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 12 June 2002, Lot 39. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURED VOLUTE-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE BALTIMORE PAINTER. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 11 July 1988, lot 184; Bongiorno Collection, Melbourne, 1988-1994; Buxton Collection, Melbourne, 1994-1998; Geddes Collection, Melbourne, 1994-present. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to The Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, Part II, no. 27/11b. Exhibited: University of Melbourne, 1990-1998

Amphora

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 133. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE AMPHORA ATTRIBUTED TO THE BALTIMORE PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: PROPERTY OF AN AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR. Provenance: Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red Figured Vases of Apulia, part II, no. 27/40c, pl. lxxiii,1; Schauenberg, "Baltimoremaler und Bellerophon" in Jb. Musem K. und G., Hamburg, 3, 1984, p. 36, fig. 39.

Pelike

• New York, Park Avenue: 5 June 1998, lot 233. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE PELIKE ATTRIBUTED TO THE SIREN CITHARIST. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 9 December 1988, lot 171; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 328. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The First Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 18/334b1; Schauenburg, JdI 104, 1989, pl. 22, pp. 1-60.

Loutrophoros

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 131. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE LOUTROPHOROS ATTRIBUTED TO THE PATERA PAINTER. Pre-Lot Text: PROPERTY OF AN AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR. Provenance: Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part II, no. 23/52-1, pl. lix,1.
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 12 December 2002, Lot 145. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURED LOUTROPHOROUS (TYPE III=BARREL AMPHORA) ATTRIBUTED TO THE WHITE SACCOS PAINTER, CIRCA 320-310 B.C. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 13 July 1987, lot 309; Graham Geddes Collection, Melbourne, 1987. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to The Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, Part II, no. 29/4-1. Exhibited: On loan, University of Queensland, Brisbane, 1988-2002

Hydria

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 134. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE HYDRIA ATTRIBUTED TO THE BALTIMORE PAINTER. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 368; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part II, no. 27/52d.

Skyphos

• New York, Park Avenue 5 June 1998: lot 237. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE SKYPHOS ATTRIBUTED TO THE FOGG GROUP. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 13 July 1981, lot 353; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 304. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, The First Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, 30/53a.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1998, Lot 105. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE SKYPHOS ATTRIBUTED TO THE LIVERPOOL PAINTER. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 19 May 1986, lot 159; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 329. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, no. 21/297b.
• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 143. AN APULIAN RED-FIGURE SKYPHOS ATTRIBUTED TO THE FOGGIA/BASSANO GROUP. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 597; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall and Cambitoglou, Second Supplement to the Red-Figured Vases of Apulia, part II, no. 30/26d, pl.cvii,5.

Lucanian

• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 12 December 2002, Lot 142. A LUCANIAN RED-FIGURED BELL-KRATER ATTRIBUTED TO THE ANABATES PAINTER, CIRCA 380 B.C. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 23 May 1988, lot 220; BGM Collection, Melbourne, 1988-1994; Graham Geddes Collection, Melbourne, 1994. Exhibited: On loan, Monash University, Melbourne, 1989-2002
  

Paestan

• New York, Park Avenue: 18 December 1997, Lot 149. A PAESTAN RED-FIGURE LEBES GAMIKOS ATTRIBUTED TO THE ASTEAS/PYTHON WORKSHOP. Provenance: Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 21 May 1984, lot 372; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection. Literature: Trendall, The Red-figured Vases of Paestum, no. 6/192, pl. 78c-d.
• New York, Park Avenue: 5 June 1998, lot 245 ($4600) = New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 10 December 2004, lot 494 ($10,158). A PAESTAN RED-FIGURE AMPHORA ATTRIBUTED TO THE PAINTER OF WURZBURG H 5379. Provenance: Anonymous sale; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 9 December 1985, lot 367; Melbourne, Graham Geddes Collection; Antiquities, Sotheby's London, 8 December 1994, lot 159; The Property of an Australian Collector; Christie's, New York, 5 June 1998, lot 245; The Property of a Louisiana collection. Literature: Trendall, The Red-Figured Vases of Paestum, no. 381, pl. 119, c-d.

Marble sarcophagi

• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 June 2003, Lot 220. A ROMAN MARBLE CHILD'S SARCOPHAGUS FRAGMENT. Provenance: Macciolli Collection, Melbourne, 1983; Graham Geddes Collection, Melbourne, 1985. Exhibited: Monash University, Melbourne, 1995-2002
  

Mosaics

• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 5 - 6 December 2001, lot 680. A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL: goddess. Provenance: Australian Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1982-June 1984; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1985-June 1986; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, Classics Department, January 1988-December 1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 5 - 6 December 2001, lot 681. A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL: 'Africa'. Provenance: Australian Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1982-June 1984; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1985-June 1986; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, Classics Department, January 1988-December 1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 5 - 6 December 2001, lot 682. A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL: 'Phrgyian cap'. Provenance: Australian Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1982-June 1984; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1985-June 1986; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, Classics Department, January 1988-December 1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 5 - 6 December 2001, lot 683. A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL: goddess. Provenance: Australian Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1982-June 1984; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, July 1985-June 1986; Melbourne, the University of Melbourne, Classics Department, January 1988-December 1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 June 2003, lot 226. A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL. Provenance: Australian Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: The University of Melbourne, July 1982-June 1984 and July 1985-June 1986; The University of Melbourne, Classics Department, January 1988-December 1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 June 2003, lot 229. A BYZANTINE MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL. Provenance: Graham Geddes Collection. Exhibited: The University of Melbourne, 1982-1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 June 2003, lot 230. A LATE ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL. Provenance: Graham Geddes Collection. Exhibited: The University of Melbourne, 1982-1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 June 2003, Lot 232. A BYZANTINE MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL. Provenance: Graham Geddes Collection. Exhibited: The University of Melbourne, 1982-1989
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 December 2003, lot 245: A ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANEL. Provenance: European Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, The University of Melbourne, July 1982 - June 1984; July 1985 - June 1986; (Classics Department) January 1988 - December 1989.
• New York, Rockefeller Plaza: 11 December 2003, lot 251. TWO ROMAN MARBLE MOSAIC PANELS. Provenance: European Private Collection, prior to 1980; Graham Geddes Collection, 1980-present. Exhibited: Melbourne, The University of Melbourne, July 1982 - June 1984; July 1985 - June 1986; (Classics Department) January 1988 - December 1989.

The sources are:

• Sotheby's London, 13 July 1981, lot 347
• Sotheby's London, 13-14 July 1981, lot 350
• Sotheby's London, 13 July 1981, lot 353
• Sotheby's London, 13-14 December 1982, lot 291
• Sotheby's London, 12-13 December 1983, lot 534b
• Sotheby's London, 21 May 1984, lot 372
• Sotheby's London, 21 May 1984, lot 408
• Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 368
• Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 364
• Sotheby's London, 10 December 1984, lot 365
• Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 597
• Sotheby's London, 11 December 1984, lot 599
• Sotheby's London, 10-11 December 1984, lot 600
• Sotheby's London, 9 December 1985, lot 367
• Sotheby's London, 19 May 1986, lot 159
• Sotheby's London, 19 May 1986, lot 316
• Sotheby's London, 13 July 1987, lot 309
• Sotheby's London, 23 May 1988, lot 216
• Sotheby's London, 23 May 1988, lot 220
• Sotheby's London, 11 July 1988, lot 184
• Sotheby's London, 9 December 1988, lot 171
• Sotheby's London, 12 December 1988, lot 165
• Sotheby's London, 10 December 1996, lot 196

Apulian pottery and loss of knowledge

Ricardo Elia of Boston University has conducted significant research on Apulian pottery. His study has suggested that as little as 5.5% of the Apulian corpus has been derived from scientific excavations. And if we put this another way 94.5% of Apulian pots do not have a scientifically recorded context. In other words, we do not know what else was found in the tomb: for example, other pots, terracotta figures, bronze armour, jewellery, single or multiple burials, or the gender of the bodies buried with the pots. And this has implications for understanding the stylistic development of the pottery. Were pots attributed to the same hand placed in the same grave? Were pots from the same broad workshops placed together? Are workshops linked to specific cemeteries? Deliberate destruction of the funerary record of ancient Apulia has caused extensive and permanent loss of knowledge.

Apulian pots featured prominently in the "Nostoi" exhibitions in Rome. Some 50 Apulian pots were reportedly seized on the frontier between France and Spain in 2000. In 2008 about 4400 antiquities were returned from Switzerland to Italy in three truckloads; approximately half were reported to have been derived from Apulian tombs.

Princeton returned an Apulian loutrophoros attributed to the Darius painter (though it was then placed on loan). The Darius painter is significant as an amphora and a pelike were returned to Italy from Boston's Museum of Fine Art and the J. Paul Getty Museum, a volute-krater from the Cleveland Museum of Art, and a dinos from New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are still unanswered questions surrounding the collecting history of a large "funerary" group of Apulian pots in Berlin that included three volute-kraters attributed to the Darius painter.

One major private collection of Apulian pottery was owned by Graham Geddes who even had an anonymous pot-painter, the Geddes painter, named in his honour. The "most important" piece in the sale of further Apulian pieces from the Geddes collection had to be withdrawn from auction in October 2008. Two other Apulian pieces from his collection were withdrawn from the same sale. All three had surfaced at Sotheby's London in the 1980s.

Robin Symes is also linked with an Apulian krater that was offered at (and withdrawn from) a London auction in 2008.

In 2009 an Apulian situla was seized after passing through a New York auction-house in June of that year. It was subsequently described by a spokesperson for the auction-house as a "stolen" artifact.

And now an Apulian rhyton in the shape of a goat's head with white-painted horns is up for auction at Christie's later this week. It appears similar to an image in the Medici dossier. There have been calls for the rhyton to be withdrawn from the sale, although a spokesperson for Christie's has made it clear that the auction-house intends to proceed.

Image
Left,  Apulian rhyton featured in the Medici Dossier (courtesy of Christos Tsirogiannis); right, Apulian situla reportedly seized from a New York auction-house in 2009.

Fordham, The Walsh Collection and Collecting Histories

I have been working my way through Barbara Cavaliere and Jennifer Udell (ed.), Ancient Mediterranean Art: The William D. and Jane Walsh Collection at Fordham University (New York: Fordham University Press, 2012) [Review in BMCR].

I was disappointed in the presentation of the catalogue. Where are the full collecting histories for each piece? How did they enter the Walsh collection? When? Who were the previous owners?

The limited information is likely to be significant.

The entries for the coins (nos. 93-103) do not contain collecting histories.

Some of the information on the antiquities includes:

Atlantis Antiquities, New York
Greek and Etruscan Art (1988): no. 16, cup fragment

Christie's, New York
1995, December 7, lot 98: inv. 4.016, Faliscan stamnos
1999, June 4, lot 11: no. 11, Attic neck-amphora; lot 26, no. 35, terracotta Eros; lot 32, no. 36, terracotta thymiaterion; lot 52, no. 33, Gnathian situla; lot 72, inv. 7.050, Etruscan kylix; lot 74, inv. 7.024, Etruscan chalice
1999, June 6, lot 42: inv. 5.001, Apulian hydria
2000, December 7, lot 576: inv. 11.002, Roman portrait
2002, December 12, lot 81: inv. 4.018, Etruscan neck-amphora; lot 132 ($11,353): no. 19, Attic bell-krater; lot 134 ($7170), inv. 7.029, Tarentine water-spout; lot 148: inv. 4.004, Apulian volute-krater; lot 260 ($2629): inv. 3.013, marble eagle
2003, June 11, lot 206 ($71,700): no.79, portrait of Caracalla
2003, December 11, lot 233 ($47,800): no. 81, Severan female portrait
2005, June 8, lot 112 ($18,000): inv. 2.006, Canosan askos; lot 113 ($9600): inv. 3.011, 3.014, pair of theatrical masks
2005, December 9, lot 259 ($3840): inv. 7.023, Apulian plate
2008, June 4, lot 146 ($3500): no. 83, glass cosmetic jar, no. 84, glass bottle, no. 85, glass flask, no. 86, glass beaker, no. 87, glass bottle, no. 88, glass amphoriskos, no. 89, glass unguentarium; lot 174 ($6875): no. 10, Attic lekythos; lot 181 ($22,500): no. 16, cup fragment

Charles Ede, London
Prior to July 1992: no. 11, Attic neck-amphora

Galerie Blondeel-Deroyen, Paris
1999: no. 79, portrait of Caracalla

Archeologia, Montreal
1992: inv. 7.023, Apulian plate

Rome market
1966: inv. 7.020, Apulian epichysis

Sotheby's, London
1967, June 12, lot 152: no. 80, bronze portrait of Caracalla
1983, December 12-13, lot 403: no. 25, Apulian patera
1987, July 13, lot 298: no. 25, Apulian patera
1989, December 11, lot 167: no. 25, Apulian patera
1990, December 13-14, lot 288: no. 20, Apulian column-krater

Sotheby's, New York
1989, June 23, lot 419: no. 10, Attic lekythos [not mentioned in catalogue]
1991, June 18, lot 228: inv. 3.013, marble eagle

Collectors
Ambassador Edward Elliot Elson: no. 83, glass jar; no. 84, glass bottle; no. 85, glass flask; no. 86, glass beaker; no. 87, glass bottle; no. 88, glass amphoriskos; no. 89, glass unguentarium
Daniel Friedenberg: inv. 3.013, marble eagle
Sigmund S. Harrison, Philadelphia: no. 10, Attic lekythos [not mentioned in catalogue]
William and Linda Houston, London: no. 11, Attic neck-amphora; no. 33, Gnathian situla
William Suddaby: inv. 7.023, Apulian plate
Alfred Wolkenberg: no. 86, glass beaker

American private collection, acquired in 1983: inv. 2.006, Canosan askos [not mentioned in catalogue]
European private collection: no. 19, Attic bell-krater
German private collection: no. 81, Severan female portrait [not mentioned in catalogue]
New York private collection: no.79, portrait of Caracalla [not mentioned in catalogue]
Turin, private collection: no. 29, Paestan lekythos

History of objects in Virginia exhibition

Colleagues have suggested that I had a look at the exhibition catalogue of The Horse in Ancient Greek Art that will be opening at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) in a week's time. Among the interesting sources for the objects are:

• Edoardo Almagià: no. 43, Apulian volute-krater attributed to the Virginia Exhibition painter, Fordham University Collection 8.001 [Fordham cat. no. 32]
• Fritz Bürki: no. 19, Apulian lekythos attributed to the Underworld painter, Virginia MFA 81.55; no. 20, Apulian lekythos attributed to the Underworld painter, Virginia MFA 80.162; no. 26, Corinthian skyphos showing a boar hunt, Virginia MFA 80.27; no. 41, Apulian calyx-krater attributed to the Dublin Situlae group, Virginia MFA 81.81; no. 53.1, Apulian Xenon oinochoe, Virginia MFA 81.82; no. 53.2, Apulian Xenon oinochoe, Virginia MFA 81.83
• Sotheby's, London (12–13 December 1983): no. 42, Apulian patera attributed to the Baltimore painter, Fordham University Collection 11.003 [Fordham cat. no. 25].
• Summa Galleries Inc. Beverley Hills: no. 12, a Phrygian terracotta revetment, Virginia MFA 78.62.5. (This looks as if it could be part of the Düver frieze.)
• Robin Symes: no. 55, Villanovan or early Etruscan bronze horse bit, Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University 84.28

The series of acquisitions from Fritz Bürki is particularly significant as Dr Christos Tsirogiannis has written on a Gnathian askos acquired by Virginia MFA in 1980. Not only was this acquired from Bürki but it had previously been handled by Giacomo Medici. Has VMFA conducted a rigorous due diligence search on the series of objects that it acquired from Bürki? Has VMFA contacted the Italian authorities about the controversial askos?

Has Fordham University contacted the Italian authorities about the Almagià volute-krater? And what about the Apulian patera that surfaced at Sotheby's, London in 1983?

We should be grateful to Peter Schertz and Nicole Stribling, the editors of the VMFA catalogue, for printing the histories of the objects.

An Italian cavalryman in Manhattan

Greek colonial cavalrymen are clearly gathering on the eastern seaboard of North America - or at least sets of their armour can be found there.

The acquisition of a suit of Greek cavalry armour by the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has been noted before. And there is another "set of armor from a burial" in the collection of Shelby White and the late Leon Levy. It consists of:

a. A "South Italian-Chalcidian" helmet
b. A long "muscle" cuirass (front and back)
c. A pair of greaves
d. A chamfron
e. A muzzle of a horse

The Apulian bronze armour appeared in the Glories of the Past exhibition (no. 95). The entry was written by David Cahn who suggested that the "set" should be placed in Apulia, "about 330 BC".

Cahn notes: "The date of the helmet is based on the many finds of armor in Apulia buried with Apulian red-figured vases, for which we have an established chronology".

Again, "Like the helmet, cuirasses of this type have come to light, usually with a wealth of ceramic material, in many monumental chamber tombs in Apulia".

As for the chamfron, Cahn notes its stylistic links with three others that appear to come from "a single workshop". He continues: "All four chamfrons were found with "south Italian-Chalcidian" helmets, long "muscle" cuirasses, and greaves; three of the four come from tombs that also contained Apulian red-figured vases".

No further information (e.g. archaeology, previous owners) is provided in the printed catalogue entry about the White/Levy set. But we can infer from Cahn's discussion and the catalogue entry caption that it came "from a burial" in Apulia.

And there is one more thing. Such sets of cavalry armour from Apulia tended to be found with Apulian pottery.

So does the dramatic increase of Apulian pottery surfacing on the market in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s - so ably and forcefully demonstrated by Professor Ricardo Elia - coincide with the appearance of such sets of armour on the market?

If Cahn is right, and there is no reason to doubt his comments and observations, it would be interesting to know which Apulian pots (if any) were found in the "burial" alongside this "set of armor".

But perhaps such valuable archaeological evidence has been lost and will never be retrieved.

The collecting of such military equipment has material consequences for the funerary record of Southern Italy, and intellectual consequences for the study of both Greek colonial cavalry armour and Apulian pottery.

Gordon McLendon and Fritz Bürki

The returns from the J. Paul Getty Museum have included Apulian pots that were given by Gordon McLendon in 1977 (Inv. 77.AE.14–15). 

Some of McLendon's gifts were derived from Fritz Bürki:
a. Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Baltimore painter. Inv. 77.AE.112. Acquired from Bürki in 1977.
b. Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Baltimore painter. Inv. 77.AE.113. Acquired from Bürki in 1977.
c. Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Patera painter. Inv. 77.AE.114. Acquired from Bürki in 1977.
d. Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Patera painter. Inv. 77.AE.115. Acquired from Bürki in 1977.
e. Apulian bell-krater, attributed to the Patera painter. Inv. 77.AE.116. Acquired from Bürki in 1977.

Note that these Apulian pieces moved almost directly from Bürki to the museum via McLendon.

Collecting Antiquities and Enlightenment Principles

James Cuno has been raising some key issues about the acquisition of antiquities. I was struck by his reaction to the 1983 US Congress implementation of the 1970 UNESCO "Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property".

These actions have been taken to enforce foreign nations' retentionist cultural policies at the expense of the Enlightenment principles on which public museums in the United States were established. [p. 144]

Is it "enlightened" to reject the desire for countries to protect their cultural property and archaeological sites?

Is it "enlightened" to ignore the material consequences to the archaeological record?

Is it "enlightened" to fail to see the intellectual consequences of acquiring newly surfaced antiquities that have no recorded find-spots?

This is not just about acquisition but also the safeguarding of a finite archaeological resource.

Does it matter in our cosmopolitan world if an Attic krater is displayed in Minneapolis or Rome? Or an Athenian marble relief in London or Athens? Or a Cycladic figure in Paris or the Naxos Museum?

At one level the answer is no. If the find-spot is known it makes no difference to the interpretation of the object if the item is on view in Berlin or Istanbul. And if the find-spot is lost, "returning" the item will not restore its context. Cuno makes the helpful observation:

But when an antiquity is offered to a museum for acquisition, the looting, if indeed there was any, has already occurred. Now the museum must decide whether to bring the object into its public collection, where it can be preserved, studied, and enjoyed, and where its whereabouts can be made widely known. Museums are havens for objects that are already, and for whatever reason, alienated from their original context. [p. 155]

But should museums acquire recently surfaced antiquities?

And this brings me back to my series of questions, and which is why at another level I would have to answer, "yes, it does matter where objects are displayed".

Take the massive rise in the number of previously unknown Apulian pots available at auction through the 1980s and 1990s. Their appearance is directly linked to the deliberate destruction of funerary contexts in southern Italy to supply a market. And the buyers have been public institutions and private collectors. So it does matter if there is active acquisition of Apulian pots because there is a material implication for the funerary record (see "An Italian Cavalryman in Manhattan") and an intellectual implication for their interpretation.

Discouraging the acquisition of Apulian pottery unknown prior to 1970 is one way to discourage looting. The pieces of Apulian pottery attributed to the Darius painter and returned to Italy from Boston, Malibu, Princeton, as well as New York, have lost their contexts; but their transfer of ownership will probably make those museums think twice about acquiring newly surfaced Apulian material.

Cuno would, no doubt, argue that the contexts had been lost: so does acquisition matter? But when we realise that these returning Apulian pieces are associated with individuals and galleries such as Giacomo Medici, Fritz Bürki, Robert Hecht, and Atlantis Antiquities, it can be appreciated that these are unlikely to be chance finds.

And I am left thinking that the "Enlightenment principles on which public museums in the United States were established" have perhaps contributed to the irreversible destruction of our universal, or cosmopolitan, cultural heritage.

Reference
Cuno, J. 2005. "Museums, antiquities, cultural property, and the US legal framework for making acquisitions." In Who owns the past? Cultural policy, cultural property, and the law, edited by K. Fitz Gibbon, pp. 143-57. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press / American Council for Cultural Policy.

Image courtesy of the Princeton University Art Museum

Red figure loutrophoros (ceramic), attributed to the Darius Painter. South Italian, Apulian, ca. 335-325 B.C. One of four objects to be transferred in title to the Italian government but to remain on loan to the Princeton University Art Museum.

Princeton antiquities and Italy: the Darius painter

One of the features of the recent returns of antiquities from North American collections to Italy has been the presence of Apulian pottery attributed to the Darius painter.

It started with the return of Boston's amphora (1991.437) showing the murder of Atreus. This had surfaced through Atlantis Antiquities in New York and Fritz Bürki & Son of Zurich. It had been semi-purchased by Shelby White and Leon Levy with a half share by the MFA (purchased "with funds given by the Jerome Levy Foundation").

Then there was the pelike from the Getty (87.AE.23) showing the return of Andromeda. This had been purchased from Fritz Bürki & Son of Zurich.

And now there is the Princeton loutrophoros (y1989-29) with the mourning of Niobe. This was acquired as a "Museum purchase, anonymous gift". (Who sold it to Princeton?)

The three have been listed together before. The Boston catalogue Vase-painting in Italy (1993) noted in a discussion of a work attributed to the Darius painter (no. 41),

Recent years have seen a host of new vases by the Darius Painter with rare or unique mythological subjects ...

The catalogue then gave a list of pieces that included the three that have been, or will be, returned to Italy. It is now becoming clear how these "new vases" were surfacing.

The Boston MFA catalogue list also includes "three volute-kraters in Berlin, one with the raid on the camp of Rhesus (1984.39), one with the rape of Persephone (1984.40), the third with Phrixos, Helle, and the ram (1984.41)". These had all passed through Switzerland and are part of a much larger grave-group.

The MFA, Getty, Princeton (and Berlin) pieces were acquired between 1984 and 1991. Professor Ricardo Elia has noted in a study on the "Looting of Apulian Red-Figure Vases",

An additional 31 per cent of the total corpus [of Apulian pots], more than 4200 vases, has surfaced between 1980-1992. Virtually all of these additional vases are undocumented and unprovenanced and are likely to have been looted from Italian sites.

I have noted before that there has been the (misplaced) suggestion that Elia has overstated the scale of the problem of looting in South Italy ("Apulian Pots and the Missing Memorandum"). But this latest agreement from Princeton (which includes an additional Apulian piece) seems to confirm Elia's research.

Image courtesy of the Princeton University Art Museum

Red figure loutrophoros (ceramic), attributed to the Darius Painter. South Italian, Apulian, ca. 335-325 B.C. One of four objects to be transferred in title to the Italian government but to remain on loan to the Princeton University Art Museum.

Cleveland: the List

Further to my earlier posting here is the detailed list.

Greece
1. Donkey-Head Rhyton, Greece, 5th Century BC c. 475 BC (1977.92).

Corinthian
2. Column Krater, Greece, Late Early Corinthian-Early Middle Corinthian c. 600-590 BC (1990.81).

Apulian
3. Apulian Volute-Krater, Darius Painter c. 330 BC (1988.41).
4. Apulian or Campanian Red-Figure Lid with Bowl, South Italy, Apulia, 4th Century BC 4th century BC (1986.200). Gift of Jonathan P. Rosen.
5. Apulian Gnathia Flat-Bodied Epichysis, Italy, Middle Gnathia, 4th Century BC 340-320 BC (1986.201). Gift of Jonathan P. Rosen.
6. Apulian Gnathia Round-Bellied Epichysis, Italy, Middle Gnathia, 4th Century BC c. 340-320 BC (1986.202). Gift of Jonathan P. Rosen.
7. Apulian Gnathia Lekythos, Italy, Middle Gnathia, 4th Century BC 340-330 BC (1986.203). Gift of Jonathan P. Rosen.

Campanian
8. Campanian Red-Figure Acorn Lekythos, South Italy, Campania, 4th Century BC c. 350-320 BC (1986.204). Gift of Jonathan P. Rosen.
9. Campanian Bird Askos, South Italy, northern Campania, late 4th-ealy 3rd Century BC c. 310-280 BC (1987.209. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence A. Fleischman.

Sicilian
10. Sicilian Plastic Vase in the Form of a Pig, Sicily, provincial Greece, 5th Century BC c. 425 BC (1975.91).

Etruscan
11. Red-Figure Duck Askos, Italy, probably Chiusi (ancient Clusium), Etruscan, 4th century BC c. 350 BC (1975.23).
12a. Bracelet, Italy, Etruscan, 6th Century BC 6th century BC (1996.16). Gift of Edoardo Almagia and Courtney Keep in honor of Arielle P. Kozloff
12b. Bracelet, Italy, Etruscan, 6th Century BC 6th century BC (1996.17). Gift of Edoardo Almagia and Courtney Keep in honor of Arielle P. Kozloff

Sardinian
13. Warrior, Sardinia, 9th-8th Century BC 900-700 BC (1990.1).

There is one later piece:
14. Processional Cross, Italy, Tuscany, Siena, 14th century c. 1350 (1977.75).

The Graham Geddes Collection: Previous Loans

The lots withdrawn from the sale of the Graham Geddes collection at Bonhams on October 15, 2008 had previously been on display in four separate locations in Melbourne, Australia. Indeed, other parts of the collection had been on loan to different museums (e.g. Apulian pottery at auction in October 2008; earlier material sold through Christie's).

What were the loan policies of these museums? Do the museums require loans to have a recorded history that can be traced back before the 1970 UNESCO Convention?

Melbourne, the National Gallery of Victoria

• Lot 6. Attic black-figure column krater, attributed to the Swing painter. Loan: April 2005 - April 2008.
• Lot 10. A large early Apulian red-figure hydria, attributed to the painter of the Berlin Dancing Girl. Loan: April 2005 - April 2008.

[Website]

The University of Melbourne

• Lot 6. Attic black-figure column krater, attributed to the Swing painter. Loan: March 1988 - February 1994
• Lot 26. A small Campanian red-figure bell krater, attributed to the Danaid painter. Loan: March 1995 - July 2003
• Lot 36. A Campanian red-figure neck amphora, attributed to near the Chequer and Dirce painters. Loan: March 1988 - July 2003.
• Lot 133. A South Italian terracotta figure of Eros. Loan: March 1988 - July 2003.

[website]

• See Peter Connor, 'Greek vases from the Geddes' Collection on loan in Melbourne University Gallery', Iris, 1988, pp. 21-42. [Reference]

• History of the pottery collection
  

Melbourne, La Trobe University, the Borchardt Library

• Lot 9. A large Attic red-figure bell krater, attributed to the Retorted painter. Loan: March 1995 - April 2008.
• Lot 15. An Apulian red-figure trefoil-lipped oinochoe. Loan: February 1997 - April 2008.
• Lot 28. A small Apulian red-figure bell krater, attributed to the Perrone - Phryxos group. Loan: March 1988 - April 2008.

[website]

• See also the Trendall Research Centre for Ancient Mediterranean Studies
• For a Lucanian nestoris previously on loan to the collection but subsequently acquired by Boston, MFA
  

Melbourne, Monash University, Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities

• Lot 10. A large early Apulian red-figure hydria, attributed to the painter of the Berlin Dancing Girl. Loan: March 1995 - April 2005
• Lot 26. A small Campanian red-figure bell krater, attributed to the Danaid painter. Loan: November 2005 - April 2008
• Lot 36. A Campanian red-figure neck amphora, attributed to near the Chequer and Dirce painters. Loan: November 2005 - April 2008.

[website]

Princeton and the Hecht Trial

My comments ("Will Princeton Follow Yale?") on the Attic psykter and the Apulian loutrophoros in Princeton were apparently timely. One of my contacts in Rome sent me an update of the September 26, 2007 hearing of the Hecht / True trial in Rome and is happy for me to share it with you.

Apparently:

"The witness, Daniela Rizzo of the Villa Giulia museum, brought up two works she said were at Princeton: an Apulian amphora and a terracotta panel depicting a horse."

It is reported that a Polaroid of the "amphora" seized from Giacomo Medici's store in the Geneva warehouse was shown.

"On the bottom of the Polaroid Medici had written "V-BO," a frequent notation of his that the prosecution contends means Medici sold an object "via Bob" Hecht."

Rizzo continued:

"during the June 2001 deposition of True at the Getty, the Italian team showed True various photos from Medici's archive and that True identified the amphora in that photo as being at Princeton. According to the Italian transcript of True's deposition, prosecutor Paolo Ferri showed True a photo, asking if she knew where the object was, and she responded, "At Princeton, the Apulian amphora, I know of that amphora from photographs... I knew that one from photos that Dale Trendall had.""

Is the Apulian "amphora" the same as the Apulian loutrophoros acquired in 1989 as an "anonymous gift"? Can a leading university museum afford to remain silent on what has become such a controversial acquisition? Or was True mistaken?

Please could somebody clarify?

Cleveland Museum of Art: Announcement

The announcement about the return of antiquities from the Cleveland Museum of Art has been made this afternoon.

• 1) Pig-shaped Feeding Vessel/Vaso plastico a porcellino.
• 2) Mule Head Rhyton/Rython a testa di mulo.
• 3) Sardinian Warrior/Bronzetto nuragico.
• 4) Apulian Volute Krater by the Darius Painter; Departure of Anphiaros/Cratere a volute a figure rosse.
• 5) Etruscan Red-figure Duck Askos/Askos ad anatra a figure rosse.
• 6) Bird Askos/Askos campano ad uccello.
• 7) Dog “Lekanis” Bowl with Lid/Coppa e coperchio a figure rosse.
• 8) Apulian Gnathia Flat-Bodied Epichysis/Epichysis tipo Gnathia.
• 9) Apulian Gnathia Round-Bellied Epichysis/Epichysis tipo Gnathia.
• 10) Apulian Gnathia Lekythos/Lekythos tipo Gnathia.
• 11) Acorn Lekythos: An Eros Serving a Lady/Lekythos campana a figure rosse.
• 12) Corinthian Krater/Cratere a colonnette corinzio.
• 13) Pair of Bracelets/Due coppie di armille in argento.
• 14) 14th Century Italian Processional Cross/croce processionale in rame dorato del sec. XIV.

• Steven Litt, "Cleveland Museum of Art strikes deal with Italy to return 14 ancient artworks", Cleveland.com November 19, 2008.
  

Image
An Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Darius painter (Formerly Cleveland Museum of Art 1988.41). Image source: MiBAC.

The ownership trail of an Apulian krater

Apulian volute-krater
attributed to the Virginia Exhibition painter
Source: Fordham University

In February 2018 I drew attention to the Fordham Apulian volute-krater, attributed to the Virginia Exhibition painter, and its association with Edoardo Almagià (formerly inv. 8.001). I subsequently asked the question, 'Has the curatorial team at Fordham contacted the Italian authorities to check the history of the Apulian krater?' One of my concerns was that the name of the pot-painter is derived from the display, at Virginia, of five pieces all said, according to Dale Trendall, 'to come from the same tomb'. We do not, however, know the location of that tomb.

The krater was presented to Fordham in 2006 by William D. Walsh. Walsh had declared that it had been purchased from Arte Primitivo in 1994. Yet Trendall and Cambitoglou recorded the krater in 1992 as residing with Almagià on the New York market.

What other pieces from the Walsh collection were acquired from Arte Primitivo? When did the Apulian krater pass from Almagià to Arte Primitivo?

| |

Apulian pottery: the significance of the Darius painter

The limited information being released by Princeton on the objects being transferred to Italy is raising questions ("More on the Princeton Give-Backs: "Looting Matters" Digs for Provenance", CultureGrrl).

Yesterday I drew attention to the three Apulian pots attributed to the Darius painter which will be returned to Italy from Boston, Malibu and Princeton. The three were significant because all had been listed as recent surfacings of the "painter's" work in Boston's catalogue of South Italian pottery.

But I did not mention the Apulian dinos, also attributed to the Darius painter, which had been returned from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (inv. 1984.11.7). The piece, showing Herakles and Busiris, was a purchase from "The Bothmer Purchase Fund, Rogers Fund, and Norbert Schimmel and Helen H. Mertens Gifts, 1984; Anonymous Gift, 1989" [see press release]. The piece was apparently identified by Polaroids seized during a police raid in Geneva (see Elisabetta Povoledo and Randy Kennedy, "Confrontation With Italy Looms at the Met", New York Times November 21, 2005).

Nor did I note that a volute-krater, attributed to the same painter, in the Cleveland Museum of Art (inv. 1988.41) is also apparently under suspicion (Suzan Mazur, "Italy Will Contest Medea Vase At Cleveland Museum", Scoop.co.nz, October 9, 2006).

What these pots appear to indicate is that there was a brisk movement of Apulian pottery from previously undisturbed tombs in Southern Italy to North American institutions. And the details of the transactions are beginning to emerge.

Image courtesy of New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art (www.metmuseum.org).

Dinos with Herakles and Busiris, ca. 340–320 B.C.; Red-figure. Greek, South Italian, Apulian. Attributed to the Darius Painter. Terracotta; H. 9 3/4 in. (24.79 cm). Purchase, The Bothmer Purchase Fund, Rogers Fund, and Norbert Schimmel and Helen H. Mertens Gifts, 1984; Anonymous Gift, 1989 (1984.11.7).

The Graham Geddes Collection and Apulian Pottery

The sale of the Graham Geddes collection at Bonhams on October 15 will include a number of Apulian pots. (For earlier Apulian pottery at auction see here; for the publicity of the South Italian pottery in this sale see here.)

Lot 10: Hydria. Attributed to the painter of the Berlin Dancing Girl. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, May 21st, 1984, lot 384. On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (March 1995 - April 2005); the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (April 2005 - April 2008).

Lot 12; Calyx-krater. Attributed to the Judgement Group, by the Painter of Naples 2289. Purchased: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. Formerly from Christie's. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003).

Lot 15: Oinochoe. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 8th, 1986, lot 185. On loan: the Borchardt Library, La Trobe University, Melbourne (February 1997 - April 2008).

Lot 16: Oinochoe. Previous history: "Ex Dean Collection, Melbourne, acquired in 1990." On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (March 1995 - April 2008).

Lot 17: A pair of oinochoai. Attributed the group of the Virginia Exhibition Painter. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003).

Lot 18: Hydria. Attributed to the Truro painter. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 375. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003); the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (November 2005 - April 2008).

Lot 19: Volute-krater. Attributed to the Tenri painter. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 13th, 1981, lot 354. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003); the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (November 2005 - April 2008).

Lot 20: Hydria. Attributed to the Patera painter. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, May 21st, 1984, lot 222. On loan: the Borchardt Library, La Trobe University, Melbourne (March 1986 - April 2008).

Lot 21: Spherical pyxis, Attributed to the Painter of Berlin F 3383. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 371. On loan: the Antiquities Museum, University of Queensland, Brisbane (March 1995 - April 2005).

Lot 22: Volute-krater. Attributed to the Geddes painter. Previous history: "Ex private collection, acquired in 1976. This is the name vase of the Geddes Painter. It was named as such by Dale Trendall as a token of his friendship with Graham Geddes." On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003); the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (November 2005 - April 2008).

Lot 23: Gnathian volute-krater. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 378. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1985 - February 1994).

Lot 25: Gnathian Oinochoe. Previous history: Ex Amati collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1995 - July 2003).

Lot 27: Bell-krater. Attributed to near the Late Lampas painter. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the Borchardt library, La Trobe University, Melbourne (March 1988 - April 2008).

Lot 28: Bell-krater. Attributed to the Perrone - Phryxos group. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 8th, 1986, lot 188. On loan: the Borchardt Library, La Trobe University, Melbourne (March 1988 - April 2008).

Lot 29: Fishplate. Attributed to the Cuttlefish Painter, the Binningen Group. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (December 1989 - April 2008).

Lot 30: Fishplate. Attributed to the Tadpole painter. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (November 1996 - October 2006).

Lot 34: Amphora. Attributed to the Baltimore and Stoke-on-Trent Painters. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 12th, 1983, lot 604. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1995 - July 2003); the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (November 2005 - April 2008).

Lot 35: Amphora. Attributed to the Wolfenbüttel Painter. Previous history: Christie's South Kensington, Antiquities - The Axel Guttmann Collection of Ancient Arms and Armour, Pt II, April 28th, 2004, lot 109.

Lot 146: Column-krater. Attributed to the Split Mouth Group, associated with the Amphorae and Armidale Painters. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 14th, 1981, lot 293. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003).

Lot 147: Amphora. Attributed to the Amphorae Group. Previous history: Ex Downeys Collection, Melbourne, Australia, acquired in 1982. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - February 1994).

Lot 148: Bell-krater. Attributed to the Wolfenbüttel Painter. Previous history: Ex Amati collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1995 - July 2003).

Lot 149: Skyphos. Attributed to the Liverpool painter. Purchaed: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 14th, 1981, lot 251. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1995 - July 2003).

Lot 151: Lekanis. Attributed to the Kantharos painter. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1988 - July 2003).

Lot 152: Oinochoe. Attributed to the Baltimore painter. Purchased: Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 13th, 1981, lot 343. On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (March 1988 - April 2008).

Lot 156: Plate. Attributed to the Kantharos painter. Previous history: Ex Amati Collection, London, acquired in the mid-1970s. On loan: the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities, Monash University, Melbourne (December 1989 - April 2008).

Lot 158: Squat lekythos. On loan: the University of Melbourne (March 1995 - July 2003). Other information: "Accompanied by a label from Christie's London, stating 16 November 1999, lot 451."

Twelve of these Apulian pots had been acquired at Sotheby's in London.

• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 13th, 1981, lot 343.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 13th, 1981, lot 354.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 14th, 1981, lot 251.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 14th, 1981, lot 293.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, July 12th, 1983, lot 604.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, May 21st, 1984, lot 222.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, May 21st, 1984, lot 384.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 371.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 375.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 9th, 1985, lot 378.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 8th, 1986, lot 185.
• Sotheby's London, Antiquities, December 8th, 1986, lot 188.

Most of the Apulian pots have been on loan to public collections in Australia.

Apulian pots and the missing memorandum

One of the most important studies of the scale of looting in Southern Italy has been conducted by Professor Ricardo Elia of Boston University ("Analysis of the looting, selling, and collecting of Apulian red-figure vases: a quantitative approach." In Trade in illicit antiquities: the destruction of the world's archaeological heritage, edited by N. Brodie, J. Doole, and C. Renfrew, pp. 145-53. Cambridge: McDonald Institute, 2001). Elia quantified the recent surfacing of Apulian pottery and suggested that perhaps as little as 5.5% of the corpus had come from scientific excavations. (Compare this with the figure for Cycladic marble figures where some 85% of the funerary record of the Early Bronze Age has been lost, i.e. only 15% either came from scientific excavations or had been provided with some sort of reported find-spot.)

Elia's study was cited as the first of three case studies --- the other two were on Cycladic figures and hoards of Greek coins --- in the final report of The Illicit Trade Advisory Panel. This panel, chaired by Professor Norman Palmer, reported to the UK Government's Department of Culture, Media and Sport. Its role was 'to advise on how the UK can prevent and prohibit the illicit trade in cultural objects'.

In the report the conclusions of Prof Elia were 'contested' by a named British archaeologist 'in written comments circulated to the Panel'. Such comments may have influenced the Panel to think Elia's comments were too high (though they are in keeping with the figures emerging from our own research) - and they certainly gave encouragement to the collector George Ortiz. In the published version of his 2004 Oxford lecture, Ortiz ("Overview and assessment after fifty years of collecting in a changing world." In Who owns objects? The ethics and politics of collecting cultural artefacts, edited by E. Robson, L. Treadwell, and L. Gosden, pp. 15-32. Oxford: Oxbow, 2006) notes with approval the dissenting voice and comments,

'A difference of opinion is one thing but, with respect to archaeology, there is total cleavage, with the successful attempt of the few to mobilise public opinion resulting in the present legislation'.

It would be interesting to read this refutation of Elia's sensible and careful research. A request to see this document met with a blank: the committee had apparently failed to keep a copy and one was not available from the secretariat of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. The museum curator had unfortunately replaced his computer. So there is, reportedly, no copy.

Neil Brodie, who had separately tried to secure a copy of the document, has recently (in Who owns objects? The ethics and politics of collecting cultural artefacts, edited by E. Robson, L. Treadwell, and L. Gosden) made the forceful comment:

'if there is information that potentially refutes Elia’s work, normal academic protocol would suggest that it should either be released into the public domain for critical review or else excluded from consideration'.

Was the Panel keen to play down looting in Apulia?

I hope that there were no conflicts of interest. I note that on the gallery website of one of the Panel members is an Apulian red-figured dish, attributed to 'the Lampas painter', which had resided in a 'Private Collection, Switzerland'; it came to public attention as a loan to Le Musee d'Art et Histoire in Geneva (April-August 1986). It has now been sold.

And if anybody has a copy of the missing memorandum ...

For further comments on these issues:
D.W.J. Gill, review of Robson, E., L. Treadwell, and L. Gosden. Editors. 2006. Who owns objects? The ethics and politics of collecting cultural artefacts. Oxford: Oxbow; and Brodie, N., M. M. Kersel, C. Luke, and K. W. Tubb. Editors. 2006. Archaeology, cultural heritage, and the antiquities trade. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida. In Journal of Field Archaeology 32.1 (2007) 103-06.

Raising an Eyebrow over an Apulian Fishplate

Apulian fishplate before and after restoration apparently in 1998.

I was very interested in the images of an Apulian fishplate in the files of a Swiss-based dealer. The fishplate is shown before and after restoration. There is clearly damage on the face of the striped perch, on the body of the bream, and next to one of the scollops. There are small details to notice like the comma-shaped patch in the central recess for the fish sauce.

The fishplate was apparently restored soon after March 14, 1998 (and apparently before February 10, 1999).

It is remarkable that this fishplate appears to be the same one, attributed to the Eyebrow painter, that was sold at Christie's for £3750 earlier this week (April 14, 2011, lot 242). The Christie's fishplate has a declared collecting history:

With Eduard Burkhard, Basle, 1976.
Walsch Collection, Germany.

I presume that Eduard Burkhard is the same as Eduard Burkhardt Antiken of Basle.

And this raises a question. Who consigned the fishplate for restoration?

Did Eduard Burkhardt Antiken send it for repair 22 years after acquiring it? Or was it when it was in the Walsch collection in Germany? But then why would the fishplate appear in the file of another Swiss-based dealer who is unmentioned in the Christie's collecting history? Indeed, why should this additional dealer note the apparent price of the fishplate (70 Swiss Francs)?

The fishplate was one of three pieces from the Walsch collection that were sold at Christie's this week. The other two are:

• Lot 221 An Attic black-figured neck-amphora, attributed to the Dot Band class. £7500. Previous collecting history: "With Maxburg Galerie Antiken, Munich, Germany, 1970."
• Lot 243 Apulian red-figured askos attributed to the White Sakkos group. £11,875. Previous collecting history: "With Eduard Burkhand, Basle, Switzerland, 1977."

Did the staff at Christie's conduct a rigorous due diligence search on the fishplate? Was there a documented (and authenticated) collecting history?

Interestingly I have noted that objects that passed through the hands of the same Swiss dealer have been provided with creative collecting histories. And this raises a further serious point. Are the collecting histories as stated in the sale catalogue entries accurate? Are they no more than reported "provenances"? How do such creative collecting histories corrupt the corpus of knowledge?

Did Christie's check with the Italian authorities as part of their "incredibly thorough" due dilgence process? If not, why not? (And Christie's were aware of concerns prior to the sale.)

And if Christie's due diligence is so thorough, why did nobody spot that that two adjacent lots apparently from the same German collection have similar but not the same [note spelling] collecting histories? ("With Eduard Burkhard, Basle, 1976"; "With Eduard Burkhand, Basle, Switzerland, 1977"). [See also a Roman bronze jug apparently from this same source - "ex. Swiss private Collection, acquired from Eduard Burkhardt Antiken, Basel, 1970" - that passed through Medusa Ancient Art.]

All this suggests that staff at auction houses need to improve and strengthen their procedures. Failure do so will see toxic antiquities undermining confidence in the market.

I am grateful to Christos Tsirogiannis for his contribution to this identification.