There is further evidence of the close working relationship between Italy and US authorities. It has been reported that 1700 antiquities have been seized ("Italian police recover hoard of looted artifacts", AP, December 11, 2009). At least 19 people appear to be under investigation.
The objects seem to have been derived from tombs around Naples and in north-eastern Italy. Among the finds was a bronze bust of Augustus.
It appears that some of the material had already been sent to North America. Who were the dealers involved?
The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are reported to have recovered "47 ceramic and bronze statutes that had been looted from a tomb in southern Italy dating between the 6th and 5th centuries B.C."
Discussion of the archaeological ethics surrounding the collecting of antiquities and archaeological material.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The Met returns three antiquities to Iraq
Source: Manhattan DA New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art has returned three antiquities to Iraq ( Manhattan DA Press Release ). The th...
-
Source: Sotheby's A marble head of Alexander the Great has been seized in New York (reported in " Judge Orders Return of Ancien...
-
If international museums can no longer "own" antiquities either through purchase on the antiquities market or through partage , wh...
-
The Fire of Hephaistos exhibition included "seven bronzes ... that have been linked to the Bubon cache of imperial statues" (p. 1...
1 comment:
David- Doesn't this actually suggest US and Italian police forces have the ability to crack down on looting without recourse to import restrictions that require the importer to establish an artifact was outside of Italy as of 2001 for Classical Antiquities under the MOU with Italy? And doesn't the existence of a licit market within Italy that has no internal "provenance requirement" also suggest that import restrictions do little more than penalize importers who want to do things "by the book?"
Peter Tompa
Post a Comment