Getty Lions from Preturo

Fabio Isman has identified the origin of two lions in the J. Paul Getty Museum (inv. 58.AA.7, 58.AA.8; Roman Funerary Sculpture nos. 45-46; "Due leoni all corti di Getty", Il Messaggero January 24, 2013). The pair appear in a photograph in the archive of the German Archaeological Institute (DAI) in Rome. They feature in a 1912 photograph of the square of Preturo near Aquila.

The Getty apparently acquired them from an old Parisian collection; they are reported to have been handled by the dealer Koutoulakis.

Will the Getty be contacting the Italian authorities about the return of this major pieces of sculpture now that their true collecting history has been identified?