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Leslie Ritten
Dr. Ann McCleary & Ms. Erica Hague
Collections Management in Museums
June 29, 2022

Establishing provenance of ancient antiquities has been one of the most difficult issues and time-consuming

tasks facing museums and governments around the world in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Starting

with the 1907 Hague Convention, continuing with the 1954 Hague Convention, 1970 UNESCO Convention and

the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects, museums have struggled with

the question of who owns an antiquity and where did it originate from. 1 That being stated, multiple guidelines

have been established by The International Council of Museums which, “stands as the sole international

organization representing museums and museum professionals”, and decisions for international court cases

have been published. 2 In the United States, The American Alliance of Museums puts out standards for codes

of ethics as well. With the abundance of information available, why do the issues surrounding who owns and

where should ancient antiquities reside still consume so much of a museums time and resources? Perhaps the

answer lies in the interpretation of history and the ever-changing international legal system.

There are many pros and cons for the repatriation of antiquities. Some people argue that repatriation is,

“morally correct, and reflects basic property laws”, and “to not return objects under colonialist regimes is to

perpetuate colonist ideologies”. While those against repatriation feel that, “most objects in museums and

collections, at the time of their acquisition, were legally obtained and therefore have no reason to be

1
Senta German, “Repatriating Artworks,” Kahn Academy, Accessed June 25, 2022.
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/special-topics-art-history/arches-at-risk-cultural-heritage-education-series/whose-art/
a/repatriating-artworks.
2
International Council of Museums. Accessed June 26, 2022. https://icom.museum/en/.
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repatriated” and “returning cultural objects which were obtained under colonial regimes to their countries of

origin does not make up for the destruction of colonialism”.3

John Merryman, Stanford Law School Professor Emeritus, feels you can not rewrite the past as to how

museums and individuals obtained many antiquities because when the transfer of ownership occurred, it was

often legal and/or ethical.4 Does this mean that donations and purchases museums have acquired in the past

should not be reevaluated? There is not one answer to this ongoing dilemma except museums, governments

and individuals in these situations need to assess each case separately by using a set of guidelines that

upholds their mission, adhering to laws, as well as any professional organizational standards they have

committed to uphold.

In James Cuno’s book Who Owns Antiquity?: Museums and the Battle Over Our Ancient Heritage , he

describes an idea originated by John Merryman which shifts attention from the idea of “ownership of

antiquities to their stewardship”. In adopting this mindset, three fundamental principles have to be applied

and analyzed when issues arise and a final decision has to be rendered. They are how can an antiquity be

physically protected and safeguarded against misinterpretation, how to further the growth of knowledge

culturally, scientifically and historically in order to understand the human past, and lastly how available is the

artifact to study the past or simply just to be admired. In the following two cases either the ownership or how

to best preserve ancient antiquities has been in the spotlight in which at least one of John Merryman’s

principles could be applied to help guide a museum or government in their decision-making process. 5

3
Senta German, “Repatriating Artworks,” Kahn Academy, Accessed June 25, 2022,
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/special-topics-art-history/arches-at-risk-cultural-heritage-education-series/whose-art/
a/repatriating-artworks/.
4
“Buying, Selling Owning the Past.” Inter Action: One In An Occasional Series of Articles About Multidisciplinary Teaching and
Research. Stanford Report, January 28, 2009, https://news.stanford.edu/news/multi/features/heritage/ .
5
James Cuno, Who Owns Antiquity?: Museums and the Battle Over Our Ancient Heritage, (Princeton: Princeton University Press,
2008), 13.
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In 1964 an Italian fisherman “caught” the bronze statue Victorious Youth dating most likely back to Greece

anywhere from 300-100 B.C. while fishing in the Adriatic Sea off the coast of Pesaro, Italy. In 1977, The Getty

Museum purchased it, and placed it in a climate-controlled environment for all to admire. Since 1989, the

statue’s provenance has been in question and has been the center of court battles in Italy. Italy claims that the

moment it was captured in the fisherman’s net, it was property of Italy. The Getty disputes that argument and

claims that the object was found in international waters and most likely Greek. The Getty has appealed the

Italian courts decisions at least three times and has no intention to give it back. 6 In reflecting on the three

principles, both protecting the statue from misinterpretation not knowing its history and having it easily

accessible for many to see are two that can be considered. What would happen if the statue was returned to

Pesaro, Italy? Could it be visited, studied, and admired easily even though it is not close to any international

airports, and would it be in an environment that was conducive to its preservation if it was on display in a

location without H.V.A.C in a coastal town which has humidity and salt air?

Provenance has also come into question numerous times when antiquities looted from the war-torn Middle

East appear in reputable museums. Iraq has been under siege in 1991 and from 2003 to 2011. Unfortunately,

many of their antiquities have been looted, especially during the war in 1991. The Gilgamesh Dream Tablet,

one of the oldest religious texts was looted from Iraq in 1991. The tablet eventually was sold by Christies after

being bought and sold multiple times in 2014 to the owner of Hobby Lobby, Steve Green for his Washington,

DC, Museum of the Bible.7 Eventually the Department of Justice fined him $3 million and made him return

11,500 objects to Iraq and Egypt. Steve Green admitted he knew very little about collecting early on. Does this

excuse his behavior being the guardian of his own museum? No, it is obvious that Museum of the Bible did

not have a comprehensive collection policy in place if 11,500 objects had to be returned. 8 Professor
6
“Editorial: The Getty Bronze Belongs Here in Its Climate Controlled L.A. Villa,” L.A. Times. June 14, 2018,
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-getty-bronze-fight-20180614-story.html.
7
James Doubeks. “An Ancient Tablet, Stolen Then Acquired By Hobby Lobby, Will be Returned to Iraq,” National Public Radio,
September 21, 2021, https://www.npr.org/2021/09/21/1039380004/gilgamesh-dream-tablet-hobby-lobby-iraq-return.

8
Mirian Berger, “U.S. Returns Thousands of Looted Ancient Artifacts to Iraq,” Washington Post, August 4, 2021,
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Merryman’s principle of furthering growth of humanity through an antiquity has been ignored, as the museum

appears to have the tablet on view among many “religious” objects and does not represent it as being one of

the few tablets still in existence.

Unfortunately, the example above is one of thousands. Again in 2003, the United States tried to secure

Baghdad’s National Museum before they invaded but were unsuccessful. In just days after the invasion, it is

estimated that over 15,000 items were taken by looters and many of the items ended up being sold. How can

countries combat this problem? Hopefully in the future, museums become more suspect of treasures from

countries who have been involved in a war. In February 2022, the U.S. State Department has restricted the

import of cultural and historical artifacts from Afghanistan. The state department said, “these import

restrictions are intended to prevent illicitly trafficked materials from entering the US art market, thus reducing

the incentive for pillage of Afghanistan’s cultural heritage and combating profit from the sale of these cultural

objects by terrorists and criminal organizations”.9 This may be one step to solve this massive problem by

forbidding individuals who eventually could sell or donate to a museum. It will take years though to see if this

strategy was successful. In the meantime, museums need to continue to question each and every object that

enters their doors and make sure it compliments its mission.

Bibliography

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/08/04/us-returns-tens-thousands-looted-ancient-artifacts-iraq/ .
9
“US Restricts Import of Afghan Cultural Items to Prevent ‘Pillage’,” Al Jazeera, February 22, 2022.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/22/us-restricts-import-of-afghan-cultural-items-to-prevent-pillage .
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Berger, Miriam. “U.S. Returns Thousands of Looted Ancient Artifacts to Iraq.” Washington Post. August 4,
2021.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/08/04/us-returns-tens-thousands-looted-ancient-artifacts-
iraq/ (accessed June 27, 2022).

“Buying, Selling Owning the Past.” Inter Action: One In An Occasional Series of Articles About Multidisciplinary
Teaching and Research. Stanford Report. January 28, 2009.
https://news.stanford.edu/news/multi/features/heritage/ (accessed June 26, 2022).

Cuno, James. Who Owns Antiquity?: Museums and the Battle Over Our Ancient Heritage. Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 2008.

Doubek, James. “An Ancient Tablet, Stolen Then Acquired By Hobby Lobby, Will be Returned to Iraq.” National
Public Radio. September 21, 2021.
https://www.npr.org/2021/09/21/1039380004/gilgamesh-dream-tablet-hobby-lobby-iraq-return
(accessed June 27, 2022).

“Editorial: The Getty Bronze Belongs Here in Its Climate Controlled L.A. Villa.” L.A. Times. June 14, 2018
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-getty-bronze-fight-20180614-story.html (accessed June 26,
2022).

German, Senta. “Repatriating Artworks.” Kahn Academy. Accessed June 25, 2022.
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/special-topics-art-history/arches-at-risk-cultural-heritage-
education-series/whose-art/a/repatriating-artworks.

International Council of Museums. Accessed June 26, 2022. https://icom.museum/en/

“US Restricts Import of Afghan Cultural Items to Prevent ‘Pillage’.” Al Jazeera. February 22, 2022.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/22/us-restricts-import-of-afghan-cultural-items-to-prevent-pillage
(accessed June 25, 2022).