Hecht and a calyx-krater attributed to the Achilles painter

Michael C. Carlos Museum inv. 2002.43.56

Among the donations made by Dietrich von Bothmer to the Michael C. Carlos Museum is a series of fragments from a calyx-krater attributed to the Achilles painter (BAPD 9036441). The museum's audio recording appears to suggest that the fragments came from a single pot. 

What is more interesting is to see how Bothmer acquired the fragments:

• Robert Hecht: 1984 / 9; 1988 / 2 
• Jonathan Rosen: 1984 / 1 
• Bruce McAlpine: 1989 / 4; 19**/1 
• Mario Bruno: 1984 / 1

In other words the first pieces of this fragmented krater surfaced through three different routes in 1984: Robert Hecht, Jonathan Rosen, and Mario Bruno. Hecht supplied further fragments in 1988, and Bruce McAlpine in 1989. The sources for the remaining fragments appear to be undeclared.

Where and when was the krater found? When was it fragmented and the pieces dispersed? 

How did the Carlos justify the acquisition of these fragments given what was known (in 2002) about the sources? Why does the Carlos present the fragmented krater as a series of fragments rather than acknowledging in the text of the website that they come from a single piece? 

What do these fragments tell us about Bothmer as a collector given that some of his material has been returned to Italy? 

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Search Warrant for the Met

Castor and Pollux previously on loan to New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art
© David Gill

I have been reading the search warrant issued for objects in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (dated July 11, 2022). It includes material derived from a number of galleries:

• Acanthus Gallery (b, q) [see Getty, MMA, Stanford Place]
• Ariadne Gallery (e) [see Ariadne Galleries]
• Atlantis Antiquities (c) [see Atlantis Antiquities]
• Galerie Antike Kunst Palladion (h, i, j, k, p, t, u) [see Palladion]
• Merrin Gallery (g, t) [see Merrin Gallery]
• Royal-Athena Galleries (t) [see Royal-Athena Galleries]
• Summa Galleries (d) [see Summa Galleries]

Among the names familiar to readers of LM are:

• Aitken, Brian (b) [see Princeton]
• Becchina, Mr & Mrs Gianfranco (l) [see Becchina]
• Bothmer, Dietrich von (d, u) [see von Bothmer]
• Hecht Jr., Robert E. (c, f) [see Hecht]
• McAlpine, Bruce (s) [see Yale, Stamford Place]
• Ortiz, George (t) [see Ortiz]
• Schimmel, Norbert (a) [See Schimmel]
• Symes, Robin (b, r) [see Symes]
• Tchacos, Frieda (d) [see Tchacos]

Some of the pieces on the search warrant have been discussed by LM in the past:

• Head of Athena (b)
• Attic red-figured cup attributed to Makron (d)
• Attic black-figured lekythos attributed to the manner of Elbows Out (h)
• Apulian gold cylinders (l)
• Attic white ground cup attributed to the Villa Giulia painter (p)
• Terracotta figure of a goddess (r)
• Castor and Pollux (t)

It should be noted that the identification of the Castor and Pollux group was made by Associate Professor Christos Tsirogiannis.