Turkey has been very active in pursuing foreign museums that it claims are illegally holding Turkish artefacts in recent months. Now, there are claims that tiles on display in the Louvre formed part of a mosaic illegally removed from a Turkish Mosque, although it is unclear how & when the pieces were removed from their original setting.

From:
France 24

Latest update: 02/11/2012
Louvre – Paris
Louvre denies Turkish tiles ‘stolen’ from historic mosque

Paris’s world famous Louvre museum denied accusations on Friday that it was exhibiting tiles stolen from Turkey hundreds of years ago, following claims made in a Turkish daily that the tiles were pilfered from a historic mosque.

The Louvre museum in Paris on Friday said there had been no official demand from Ankara to return tiles that a Turkish daily claims were stolen from a historic mosque, adding they had been acquired legally.
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Many experts feel that China’s attempts to catalogue (with the aim of eventually recovering) the artefacts looted from the Summer Palace in Beijing is unlikely to be successful.

From:
France 24

01 November 2010 – 17H15
China bid to regain looted relics a tough task: experts

AFP – China’s call on museums and antique collectors around the world to return relics looted from the Old Summer Palace in Beijing 150 years ago is unlikely to yield any significant results, experts say.

The Army Museum in Paris and London’s Victoria and Albert Museum are just two of the institutions that possess items taken from the former resort for Qing dynasty emperors — and are not about to give them up easily, they say.
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Following the earlier decision by the Louvre to return various fresco fragments, the actual return of these objects has now taken place.

From:
Agence France Presse

France returns stolen Louvre relics to Egypt
(AFP) – 22 hours ago

PARIS — France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy handed his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak a stolen ancient relic on Monday, ending a row between France and Egypt over artefacts taken from a Luxor tomb.

“Thank you very much,” Mubarak said as Sarkozy presented the painted wall fragment to him, following a formal lunch at the Elysee presidential palace.
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Despite earlier predictions that the New Acropolis Museum would open this Autumn, it appears that the opening date has now shifted to early 2009. It is unclear if there is a specific reason for this dealy.

From:
France 24

Fresh delay for Acropolis Museum
Tuesday 16 September 2008

Inauguration of Athens’ “ultra-modern” new Acropolis Museum has once again been delayed, Greek authorities announced. The brand-new facility features an empty room reserved for the Parthenon’s “Elgin marbles”, owned by the British Museum.

The opening of a new, ultra-modern Acropolis museum located below the ancient Athens landmark has been pushed back until February or March next year, Culture Minister Michalis Liapis said Tuesday.
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This article puzzles me slightly, as there has in the past been damage to the Parthenon from earthquakes. However, it appears that the damage that has been sustained is significantly less than one would have expected.

From:
France 24

Parthenon seismic resistance intrigues Japan
Friday 22 August 2008
By AFP

Japanese scientists will next month look into seismic resistance secrets in the design of the 2,500-year-old Parthenon which has withstood scores of quakes, a senior Greek archaeologist said on Friday.

“The Parthenon had great resilience to earthquakes, as did most classical Greek temples,” Maria Ioannidou, the archeologist in charge of conservation on the ancient Acropolis citadel where the Parthenon stands, told AFP.
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