More coverage of the effects that the Greek debt crisis is having on the country’s museums & historic sites. This is a problem, not just for the tourists who are unable to get access, but also for the monuments themselves, which may now have lower levels of security & smaller maintenance budgets than was previously the case.

From:
Reuters

Debt crisis strikes Greek monuments, irks tourists
By Gareth Jones
ATHENS | Tue Dec 6, 2011 8:51am EST

(Reuters) – At the end of a sunny day on the Acropolis last month, Svein Davoy gazed awe-struck at the columns of the Parthenon gleaming in the twilight.

“It’s marvellous. This is where Western civilisation began. I will certainly tell my friends to come to Greece and see all this,” enthused Davoy, 63, an economist from Norway.
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The artefacts that the Met agreed to return in 2010 are now ready to be returned to Egypt.

From:
Reuters

New York’s Met to return 19 artifacts to Egypt: MENA
CAIRO | Sat Jul 30, 2011 6:23am EDT

(Reuters) – New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art has agreed to return to Cairo 19 artifacts dating back to the time of ancient Egypt’s teenage king Tutankhamen, the state news agency MENA said on Saturday.

Egypt has been pushing for the repatriation of major pharaonic treasures it says were plundered by foreign powers, including the Rosetta Stone now in the British Museum and Queen Nefertiti’s bust from Berlin’s Neues Museum.
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In the mid 1980s, when interest in the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles was not as high as it is now, Christopher Hitchens chose to write his second book about the Parthenon Marbles – and why he thought that they should be returned to Greece. This book still is perhaps the text that most eloquently summarises the arguments for the return of the sculptures & refutes those against. It has since been reprinted in three different editions, each time summarising the current status of the case, with introductory passages written by various others involved with the campaign.

His book was the first thing that I read when researching the design of the New Acropolis Museum – which led to my interest in the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles ever since then.

Particularly in his later works, I disagreed with much of what Hitch wrote, but in other cases, his clear understanding of the arguments led me to change my own mind on subjects. Throughout his life though, he steadfastly maintained his assertions that the Parthenon Sculptures should be returned to Greece.

Farewell Christopher, you will be missed.

(Interestingly, I notice that the Reuters obituary was written by Sharon Waxman – herself an author of a book on disputed artefacts in museums)

From:
Reuters

Christopher Hitchens: A salute to intellectual honesty
By Sharon Waxman
Sun Dec 18, 2011 2:42pm EST

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Nothing sharpened Christopher Hitchens’ mind like cancer.

He wrote the best, most piercing, most clarifying prose of his career as he faced down the specter of his own demise.

As he dealt with fatigue and nausea, with the anger, disgust and frustration that must accompany what he knew was a death sentence, Hitch poured it all into words that were as painfully honest as they were hilarious.
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Following the recent unrest in Cairo, museums around the world are looking out for any artefacts that may have been looted from sites there that were ransacked by protesters. An interesting change in approach, as 100 years ago, the museums would have been taking the artefacts for themselves… Interestingly though, this new public-spiritedness doesn’t apply retroactively to other artefacts in their collections acquired in similar circumstances.

From:
Reuters

Museums on high alert for ancient Egyptian loot
By Mohammed Abbas
LONDON | Wed Feb 2, 2011 2:49pm GMT

LONDON (Reuters) – International museums are on high alert for looted Egyptian artifacts and some archaeologists have even offered to fly to the country to help safeguard its ancient treasures, museums said Wednesday.

Egypt has been rocked by an unprecedented nine days of demonstrations against President Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year-rule, and fears are high for the country’s priceless heritage after looters broke into the Egyptian Museum in Cairo last week.
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In a move that will surprise few people, Germany has once again rebuffed requests for the return of the Bust of Nefertiti from Berlin’s Neues Museum.

From:
Yahoo News

Germany Denies Egypt’s Request for the Return of 3,300-Year Old Bust of Queen Nefertiti
Vanessa Evans Vanessa Evans – Tue Jan 25, 5:26 pm ET

The latest round in the debate between Egypt and Germany over the rightful ownership of one of Egypt’s most prized antiquities hit another snag on Monday when Germany again refused to turn a bust of Nefertiti over into Egyptian hands. Currently housed in Berlin’s Neues Museum, where it has been for decades, the 3,300-year-old bust of Queen Nefertiti is at the top of a list of artifacts that Egypt would like returned to their home soil.

Germany, for its part, is maintaining it acquired the bust through legal channels and it belongs to them. It further maintains the artifact is too fragile to travel, so even a temporary loan back to Egypt would not be possible.
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They say that there was no chance that Gianni Versace knew the painting was stolen when he purchased it. At the same time though, without a certain level of due diligence, it is easy to avoid finding out things that you don’t want to know. Its worth bearing in mind that this isn’t the first case of a fashion designer owning looted artefacts either.

From:
Reuters

Versace’s return stolen painting to original owners
LONDON | Mon Nov 22, 2010 1:39pm GMT

LONDON (Reuters Life!) – A painting stolen from a London home in 1979 and which ended up in the collection of late Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace has been returned to its original owners, Britain’s Art Loss Register said on Monday.

The work by 18th century German artist Johann Zoffany had been billed as the star lot in a Sotheby’s auction of the contents of Versace’s Lake Como villa last year, but it was withdrawn at the last moment.
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After years of broken promises, dragging of heels (by the British Museum) & footstomping (By Iran), the loan of the Cyrus Cylinder from the British Museum to Iran has finally gone ahead. Whilst I believe that the Cylinder should eventually be returned to Iran on a longer term basis, I hope that Iran behaves responsibly & honours the terms of the current loan agreement, otherwise any problems will be used as a justification for blocking future loans of disputed artefacts.

From:
Straits Times

Sep 10, 2010
Museum lends ancient artifact

TEHERAN – THE British Museum on Friday loaned Iran an ancient terracotta document called the Cyrus Cylinder, after a row in which Iran said it had cut ties with the institution, a senior official said.

‘Today the Cyrus Cylinder, which has so far been kept in the British Museum, arrived in Iran,’ Vice President Hamid Baghai, who heads the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organisation, told Fars news agency.
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For thirty years, scaffolding has been a prominent feature of the Parthenon. The current stage that the restoration works have reached means that for a few months it will be possible for visitors to see the building unencumbered by scaffold.

From:
Reuters

Athens’ Parthenon scaffold-free for first time in years
By Jon Hemming
ATHENS | Thu May 27, 2010 9:45pm BST

ATHENS (Reuters Life!) – Visitors to Athens have a rare window of opportunity to see the showpiece Parthenon temple on the ancient Acropolis without scaffolding for the first time in nearly 30 years as a major restoration work nears completion.

The Greek government launched a project to restore the Parthenon and other buildings on the world heritage site in 1975, but it was not until 1983 that work started.
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More coverage of the conclusions of the conference in Egypt on the restitution of cultural property.

From:
Reuters

Egypt urges states to cooperate on artefact return
Wed Apr 7, 2010 5:49pm GMT

CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt and other states which say artefacts have been illegally taken abroad should work together and list items they want returned from Western museums, Egypt’s top archaeologist said on Wednesday.

Zahi Hawass, head of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, was speaking to representatives from 21 countries, some like Greece and Syria, seeking the return of artefacts and others like the United States which have returned stolen antiquities.
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As a continuation of their long running dispute over the delayed loan of the Cyrus Cylinder, Iran is now requesting monetary compensation because of the delay.

From:
Reuters

TEHRAN
Mon Apr 19, 2010 6:35am EDT
Iran wants $300,000 in British Museum antiquity row

(Reuters) – Iran wants $300,000 in compensation from the British Museum over its failure to lend the Islamic Republic an ancient Persian treasure, state television reported.

The dispute over the so-called Cyrus Cylinder, named after the Persian ruler’s 6th century BC conquest of Babylon, is a further sign of deteriorating relations between Tehran and London.
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More coverage of the escalating dispute between Iran & the British Museum over the Cyrus Cylinder.

From:
Fars News Agency

News number: 8811171637
18:14 | 2010-02-06
Iran’s National Museum Drops Ties with British Museum

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran’s National Museum on Saturday cut ties with the British Museum in protest at the delayed implementation of an agreement held earlier between the two sides on sending the Cyrus Cylinder to Iran.

“Now Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO) (as supervisor of Iran’s National Museum) makes this official announcement that it will have no relations with the British Museum as of Sunday,” Iranian Vice-President and ICHHTO Head Hamid Baqaei said in a press conference here in Tehran this afternoon.
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There has been quite a bit of coverage over Iran’s decision to block cultural events with the UK following the British Museum’s decision to further delay their planned loan of the Cyrus Cylinder.

From:
Fars News Agency

News number: 8810261670
19:10 | 2010-01-16
Official Warns British Museum against Delay in Sending Cyrus Cylinder to Iran

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Vice-President Hamid Baqaei on Saturday called on the British Museum to put an end to the delayed implementation of an agreement held earlier between the two sides and send the Cyrus Cylinder to Iran, warning that Tehran may drop all relations with the Museum in case the delay is prolonged any further.

“We are currently holding negotiations with the British Museum. We will cut all our cultural relations with the museum if we realize later that the British Museum has been wasting time and seeking excuses to shrug off our requests,” said Baqaei, who is also Head of Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO).
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