Once again, Italy is on the warpath claiming the return of another four artifacts back from the Getty Museum, besides the famous Lysippos mentioned earlier (see: The hassle about the Victorious Youth at the Getty Museum).
This time, the Italian Ministry of Culture is claiming two Roman marble lions that stood in the Palazzo Spaventa in Preturo (near Aquila); a mosaic of Medusa taken from the Museo Nazionale Romano in Rome; and a painting of the Oracle of Delphi from the 19th century that was stolen from the Istituto San Lorenzo in Aversa near Naples during WW2.
As always, endless legal battles are unfolding as both the Getty Museum and the Italians claim they are the rightful owners of these works of art.
In earlier blogs, I pointed out that looting already existed in antiquity (see: Massive plundering of art in the early years of the Roman Empire and Wartime looting in antiquity) and examples of illegal digging and transactions on the black market abound during recent decennia all over the Middle-East (see: Loss of our Cultural Heritage in the Middle-Eastern conflicts), including Syria see: How Syria is Loosing its Precious Heritage), Iraq (see: Museum of Bagdad, what’s new?), and Afghanistan (see: Saving Afghanistan's Incredible Heritage) as well as in other war-thorn countries like Pakistan (see: Hidden treasures in northern Pakistan), Egypt (see: Looting of antiquities in Egypt) or Libya (see: Still hope, though scant, for Libya’s cultural heritage) to name just a few.
Of course, these examples do not justify the claims expressed by either party.
It was and still remains an open question as to what to do with archaeological finds. Leaving them in situ is not always an option, and it may be safer to transfer them inside the protective walls of a museum. Which museum in the end is entitled to safeguard these treasure is another matter for debate. I am afraid there is no clear cut answer to any of these possibilities.
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