It appears that Fordham University is not a stranger to "illicit antiquities". It appears that an impasto "cinerary hut urn" (inv. 4.021) given to the university by William and Jane Walsh (presumably in 2006) had an interesting collecting history. Jennifer Udell has stated that the urn was "illegally excavated, exported, and sold at auction". In fact, the urn was not "excavated" but rather "dug up" or "looted". And where was it sold at auction?
In 2010 the legal title to the hut was handed over to Italy, and the Italian authorities have placed the hut on long-term loan at Fordham.
Interestingly there does not appear to be anything in the press releases for Fordham or the Italian Ministry of Culture. But credit to Udell for making this information public.
We should not forget the bronze
Villanovan hut in Princeton. Will that be handed over to the Italian authorities?
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