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| Photo: Worcester Art Museum |
The Worcester Art Museum has returned two Attic pots to Italy; they are now back on loan to the museum ("Worcester Art Museum Secures Landmark Cultural Cooperation Agreement with Italian Ministry of Culture Following Voluntary Return of Antiquities", January 30, 2025). What is striking about the two pieces is that they were both acquired in the mid-1950s, well before the 1970 UNESCO Convention.
The two pieces are:
a. An Attic black-figured amphora attributed to the Rycroft painter, showing Hermes, Leto, Apollo and Artemis; Dionysos and Maenads. Inv. 1956.83 (BAPD 301829). [Website]
b. An Attic black-figured cup decorated with a gigantomachy. Inv. 1956.91 [Website]
Both the amphora and the cup were acquired from Elie Borowski, though both could be traced back to Robert Hecht.
This will raise concerns for museums that had acquired pieces from both Borowski and Hecht well before the 1970 benchmark date.
