Wasous

The Syrian Foreign Ministry condemned what it said were illegal excavation works by US, French and Turkish troops as well as their local allies in areas of Syria under their control, including ancient sites at Manbij, Afrin, Idlib, Hasaka, and Raqqa.

Credit: FARS News Agency

Speaking to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), a ministry official said that there had been an increase in excavation work, looting, and theft of ancient cultural artifacts.

"These actions represent a new war crime added to the crimes committed against the Syrian people and Syrian heritage", the official said. According to Damascus, the looting of Syria's historical treasures is part of a deliberate plot by terrorist organizations and their backers to rob the Syrian people of their past and destroy the country's civilizational and cultural heritage.

The Foreign Ministry called on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to condemn the alleged violations and expose those who stand behind them.

Syria is home to some of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world, and contains cultural artifacts from numerous ancient empires. Amid the war in Syria archeologists worldwide have looked on in horror as terrorists looted and destroyed priceless artifacts in areas under their control.

The Foreign Ministry statement follows remarks by Mahmoud Hammoud, director general of Syria's museums and antiquities, alleging that the US, France, and Kurdish militias were carrying out illegal excavations in northern Syria in areas under their control, including "archeological tombs in the eastern side of Manbij".

"We hope that the Syrian Army will return peace and security to all those areas soon because it's the only force capable of protecting our heritage", Hammoud stressed.

The Syrian government has devoted considerable resources to the search for looted artifacts, and is working with international authorities to recover treasures illegally smuggled abroad by criminal enterprises during the terrorist occupation. In late October, authorities reopened the National Museum of Damascus, touting it as a symbolic "political, cultural, and economic victory", a symbol of the return to normal life and defiance of efforts by terrorists to loot and destroy the country's treasures. In September, authorities began a major project to restore the Krak de Chevaliers, an 11th century castle in Homs.

Source: FARS News Agency [December 11, 2018]

What's a feast for the human eye may be a literal feast for microorganisms that colonize works of art, according to a new study in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Elisabetta Caselli of the University of Ferrara, Italy, and colleagues. The researchers characterized the microbial community on a 17th century painting and showed that while some microbes destroy such works of art, others might be employed to protect them.

Carlo Bononi, Incoronazione della Vergine: 1616-1620, oil on canvas, 280 cm in diameter, Ferrara, Basilica of Santa Maria in Vado: a) painting (sampling points are indicated by asterisks, *); b) damage due to biodegradation (verso); c) craquelures network; d) lacerations, deformations, and gaps corresponding to the cloth stitching (recto). Details of the damage are reported on the side [Credit: MuseoinVita biannual journal, 2018]

The wide variety of organic and inorganic materials that comprise a painting, such as canvas, oil, pigments, and varnish, can provide an ideal environment for colonizing bacteria and fungi, increasing the risk for biodegradation. To characterize the microorganisms on one such painting, "Incoronazione della Virgine" by Carlo Bononi, completed in 1620, the authors removed a 4 mm2 section of the painted surface adjacent to a damaged area.

Using a combination of microscopy and microbial culture techniques, the authors identified a variety of microbes which had colonized the painting. They isolated multiple strains of Staphylococcus and Bacillus bacteria as well as filamentous fungi of the Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium, and Alternaria genera.

Bacteria detected on the painting: Samples were collected from the recto (a, b, c) and the verso (d, e, f) of the painting. a) colonies of Staphylococcus spp. on a Mego agar plate; b) the same Staphylococcus spp. viewed by OM after Gram staining (original magnification 100X) and c) by SEM. d) colonies of Bacillus spp. on a TSA agar plate; e) the same Bacillus spp. viewed by OM after Gram staining (original magnification 100X) and f) SEM [Credit: Caselli et al., 2018]

The authors note that some of the 17th century paint pigments used, notably red lac and red and yellow earths, may be nutrient sources for the microbes. They also tested a decontaminating biocompound which contained spores of three Bacillus bacteria and found that these could inhibit growth of both the bacteria and the fungi isolated from the painting.

The authors conclude that a wide range of bacterial and fungal species may inhabit such ancient paintings, but biocompounds potentially represent a novel approach for preserving works of art at risk of biodegradation.

The authors add: "Clarification of biotederioration processes in artworks is important, as it could help in preventing or solving the associated damages. This study investigated such aspects in a 17th century painting, by analyzing both microbial communities and chemical composition of painting, also evaluating a possible biological way to counteract these phenomena."

Source: PLOS [December 05, 2018]

The ancient Greek Statue of a Victorious Youth by fabled sculptor Lysippos belongs to Italy, the supreme Cassation Court said Tuesday, saying the Getty Museum in California must hand it back.

The disputed 'Statue of a Victorious Youth', 300–100 BC  [Credit: Dave & Margie Hill/WikiCommons]

The top court rejected an appeal by the US museum against a Pesaro judge's order to confiscate the fourth-century BC bronze statue.

"The Lysippos (as it is known in Italy) must return to Italy, it's the last word from Italian justice," Pesaro prosecutor Silvia Cecchi told ANSA after the long legal battle.

Culture Minister Alberto Bonisoli told ANSA "now we hope the US authorities will act as soon as possible to favour the restitution of the Lysippos to Italy".

He said he was happy that "this judicial process has finally ended and the right to recover an extremely important testimony of our heritage has been recognised.

"Let's hope the statue can soon return to be admired in our museums".

But the Getty said in a statement that "we will continue to defend our right to the Lysippos.

"The law and the facts do not justify the restitution to the Italian government of a sculpture that has been exhibited to the public in Los Angeles for almost half a century". In June the Pesaro prosecutors announced that the order issued to seize the statue for years disputed by Italy and the Getty Museum in Malibu was "immediately executive".

"The Lysippos statue must return to Italy," prosecutors told ANSA, accompanied by Tristano Tonnini, the lawyer for the association "Cento Citta'", which has been fighting the legal battle for 11 years.

"We expect politicians to play their part," they said.

The Italian judge rejected an appeal by the Getty Museum, ruling that the fourth-century BC Greek statue - known as Lysippos or Lysippus after its creator and fished out of the sea off Pesaro in 1964 - must be seized wherever in the world it is.

Commonly referred to as the Getty Bronze and formally named Statue of a Victorious Youth, the statue is one of the best-known works in the Los Angeles-based museum.

The Lysippos has been contested ever since the Getty bought it for almost four million dollars in 1977 from German art dealer Herman Heinz Herzer, paying nearly 800 times the $5,600 that Italian dealers paid the fishermen for it in 1964.

Italy has long claimed the statue was smuggled out of the country and has demanded that the Getty hand it back.

Lawyer Tonnini said he was satisfied by the judge's ruling, but said he is also convinced that "the California museum always knew that it was buying a smuggled and illegally exported artifact".

Pesaro prosecutor Cristina Tedeschini said she expected a favourable ruling from the Court of Cassation.

"But the fact is that three different judges have reaffirmed that the statue belongs to the Italian state and that it must be given back," Tedeschini said.

In November 2007, a court in Fano, near Pesaro, cleared the Getty Museum of wrongdoing in the case.

But prosecutor Silvia Cecchi said the judge "affirmed that the statue was taken in Italian national waters and therefore belongs to Italy," which has been the sustained argument since 2007 to get the statue back.

"It must be very clear that the order is immediately executive and we will apply this principle by notifying the American authorities," Cecchi said.

The Getty said it would lodge an appeal at the Cassation Court to "defend our rights".

Source: ANSA [December 04, 2018]

How can we protect and preserve cultural heritage? Researchers from 16 Fraunhofer Institutes are collaborating on the executive board's cultural heritage project to develop the technologies needed for this undertaking.

Researchers use a laser scanner to scan the frieze of the Pergamon Altar [Credit: Fraunhofer IGD]

Whether it is visible in historical temples, ancient statues, or paintings by the great masters, cultural heritage must be preserved. But maintaining historical art treasures is not solely the responsibility of restorers – this task calls for research and the high-tech solutions it can provide. A glance inside some of the Fraunhofer labs reveals numerous researchers working on just these kinds of solutions.

A total of 16 Fraunhofer Institutes are collaborating on the cultural heritage research project, together with their partners, the Dresden State Art Collections and the Saxon State and University Library Dresden (SLUB). The Fraunhofer executive board is supporting the project with €1.5 million in funding.

"That makes it one of the largest German research projects in the field of cultural heritage," says Dr. Johanna Leissner, the Brussels-based coordinator of the executive board project and spokeswoman for the Research Alliance Cultural Heritage. The project results were presented this past September at the closing event in Dresden – as a contribution by the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft to the European Year of Cultural Heritage.

3-D digitization on a conveyor belt

One way to save our cultural heritage for posterity is to digitize works of art in 3-D, so that they can be used at any time, even in parallel: while research teams are examining a digitized temple online, museum visitors all over the world can simultaneously take a virtual stroll through the ancient building.

Until now, this 3-D digitization was a time-consuming undertaking. "Now, for the first time, our CultLab3D automated scanning facility makes it possible to transfer entire museum collections to the digital world," explains Pedro Santos, department head at the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD in Darmstadt. Simply scan an object's QR code and lay the piece on a tray – the rest happens automatically. The result is a three-dimensional digital replica, and it is produced at quite a high speed: a new artifact can be digitized every five minutes. Nine cameras photograph the object from multiple sides.

Combining surface scanning and ultrasound tomography [Credit: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft]

Special software processes these images to generate the three-dimensional digital replica. This method also works with large statues, although it must then be performed manually rather than automatically. This is how the Fraunhofer IGD researchers digitized the Pergamon Altar – using a lightweight laser scanner.

Now the research teams are taking it one step further: "In the future, we will not only depict the geometry, texture and optical material properties – in short, an object's exterior – but will also include its interior," says Constanze Fuhrmann, scientist and coordinator of the subproject "Sculptures: Novel damage and material analysis in 3-D" at Fraunhofer IGD.

"The data on an object's interior and exterior, obtained using various technologies, will be uniformly combined to form a 3-D model that is then visualized in 3-D in space in front of the monitor." This first-time combination of digital Fraunhofer methods enables completely new damage and material analyses in 3-D (see box "3-D digital analysis of material and damage").

3-D digitization meets ultrasound

For instance, the experts expanded the CultLab3D approach to include an ultrasound analysis. "In other words, in the digital representation, the restorers can zoom in to the object's interior, enabling them to see immediately whether there are any hidden instabilities, corrosion or holes," says Peter-Karl Weber, a group manager at the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering IBMT. What's more, these analyses can now be completed in just a few seconds.

Test application of the new ORMOCER® on damaged enamel models  [Credit: © Fraunhofer ISC]

This is made possible by an elastic belt fastened to the object. "An ultrasonic transducer is attached to each belt. Special electronics enable these transducers to switch between transmitter and receiver. Now, instead of having to constantly reposition the ultrasonic transducer, one needs only place the belt on the work of art. Thanks to QR codes on the transducers, a camera can identify the position at which the ultrasound tomogram was recorded, and software inserts the ultrasound images into the digital scan.

For ultrasound examinations, doctors apply a gel to patients' skin to transmit the ultrasonic waves into the body, but this gel would damage works of art. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP are therefore developing a material that enables dry-coupled ultrasonic testing. This material has the same properties as the gel and can be removed without leaving any residue.

Enameled gold in the Green Vault

The Green Vault in the Dresden Castle is one of the most famous museums in Saxony. It also houses court jeweler Dinglinger's filigree enameled gold treasures depicting the court of India's Great Mogul.

CultLab3D: The scanning facility, which received an EU Prize for Cultural Heritage/ Europa Nostra Award 2018, digitizes artifacts of different sizes in a fully automated process, scanning both geometry and texture as well as optical material properties to generate a faithful representation with micrometer accuracy [Credit: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft]

For decades, the pieces were exhibited in showcases that, unbeknownst to the museum, were off-gassing many harmful substances. As a result, the intricate en-ameling gradually began to peel off. The fragments were meticulously collected, but how would restorers be able to reattach them? Any suitable conservation material must meet some extremely strict requirements: it has to be transparent, highly durable and have similar properties as glass, and it must also firmly bond enamel and metal.

"We developed a suitable material for this at the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC in Würzburg twenty years ago: enamel ORMOCER ," explains Dr. Gerhard Schottner, who heads the department for glass research there. Besides its suitability for lasting conservation of enameled treasures, it can also permanently bond ivory and rock crystal, as was discovered in the restoration laboratory at the Dresden State Art Collections. Unfortunately, over the years, the raw materials supplied by industry sources became unavailable in the required quality, and even the slightest impurities can lead to differences in the synthesis of these silicon-organic compounds. So what now?

"We need the best material for preserving cultural heritage, but the amounts required are fairly small," explains Schottner. This makes material development and sales unprofitable for business-oriented companies. The executive board project and funding from the German Federal Environmental Foundation offered a way out of this dilemma.

The ISC team analyzed the raw materials and the individual steps in their production down to the last detail of the chemical reactions, including moisture and temperature levels, and examined the impact of the various solvents on the final product. Now the process is nearly complete: the material is in the final testing phase, and the restorer in charge, Rainer Richter from the Dresden State Art Collections, is extremely satisfied.

Source: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft [December 04, 2018]

The Charter for the Protection of the Byzantine Heritage Monuments was uninanimously ratified after a three-day debate held in Thessaloniki over the weekend. The officials agreed on a framework of commonly accepted principles for the protection of the Byzantine heritage monuments for all states which own and manage monuments of the former Byzantine Empire, which spanned 11 centuries and three continents and whose monuments are now spread out among 23 countries with different cultures, languages and religions.

Ceiling mosaics from the baptistery of San Giovanni in Naples, Italy [Credit: Cambridge University Press]

The voting of the Charter was the culmination of a lengthy process conducted over four meetings held in 2001, 2003, 2006 and this year, organised by the European Centre of Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Monuments.

It is a charter of principles that aims to be a useful scientific tool to the countries that have Byzantine-era monuments in their territories. The principles encourage the inclusion into countries' national law of measures to protect, study, record and incorporate the monuments into modern societies, in order to tell their story to citizens and visitors.

Representatives from Egypt, Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Jordan, Spain, Israel, Italy, Croatia, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestine, Romania, Serbia, Syria, Bahrain and Morocco participated in Thessaloniki meeting, which was concluded on Sunday. The participation of Tunisia and FYROM, which was initially scheduled, was cancelled.

The Charter will be submitted to UNESCO for ratification and will remain open for other countries with Byzantine monuments in their territory to join.

Source: ANA-MPA [December 03, 2018]

Twelve pieces of ancient mosaics in Bowling Green State University’s art collection are being packed for their return to the Republic of Turkey. Representatives of BGSU and the Turkish government marked the return of the artifacts at a news conference Nov. 20 in the University’s Wolfe Center for the Arts, where the mosaics have been on display.

Bacchanante cut from same floor with cleaned up edges [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

BGSU and the Directorate General for Cultural Heritage and Museums of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey reached an agreement for the return of the mosaics last May.

Acquired by the University in 1965, the mosaics had long been thought to have originated in the ancient city of Antioch, in modern-day Turkey. In 2012, research by then-BGSU faculty member Dr. Stephanie Langin-Hooper and Dr. Rebecca Molholt of Brown University suggested that the mosaics did not come from Antioch, but instead were from the ancient city of Zeugma, also in Turkey.

Mosaic of Pan [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

Mask Mosaic [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

That new research raised questions about both the origin of the mosaics and the circumstance of their excavation prior to BGSU’s acquisition, as some mosaics from Zeugma were removed through unauthorized excavation and put into the international art market. Additional research and consultation with scholars, art experts and representatives from the Republic of Turkey have confirmed that the mosaics are very likely from Zeugma and that the provenance of the pieces prior to BGSU’s acquisition will likely never be known.

Under the agreement, the mosaics will be returned to the Republic of Turkey to be exhibited at the world-renowned Zeugma Mosaic Museum in the city of Gaziantep. This will allow the historic artifacts to be appreciated and studied where they originated and be enjoyed by a much wider audience. According to BGSU President Rodney Rogers, this was a key consideration for the University.

Mask Mosaic [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

Bird panel with geometric and floral fragment [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

“As a public university, we have a special obligation to contribute to the public good. That obligation extends to the global community,” Rogers said. “The preservation and care of the mosaics has been a priority for BGSU for the last 53 years. We have relied upon the expertise of scholars to guide us, both when we acquired the pieces and now. Thanks to the work of Dr. Langin-Hooper and others, it is clear today that the best place for these precious artifacts is back in the Republic of Turkey at the Zeugma Mosaic Museum. We greatly appreciate the collegiality of the Turkish Ministry of Culture in working with us through this process.”

The Directorate is paying for the costs of the transfer and BGSU will be receiving high-quality replicas of the mosaics.

Owl Mosaic [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

Bird Mosaic [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

The University acquired the mosaics for about $35,000 under the direction of then-BGSU President William Jerome and faculty in the BGSU School of Art. The limited records available show that the University purchased the artwork from Peter Marks, of the New York gallery Peter Marks Works of Art. The University acquired the mosaics in compliance with the law at the time and it made the purchase in good faith.

Since acquiring the mosaics, the University has had them restored and constructed a permanent display for them in The Wolfe Center for the Arts.

Zeugma mosaics installed at BGSU's Wolfe Center for the Arts [Credit: Bowling Green State University]

Dr. Langin-Hooper is currently an assistant professor and Karl Kilinski II Endowed Chair of Hellenic Visual Culture in the Department of Art History at Southern Methodist University. Dr. Molholt passed away in 2014.

Source: Bowling Green State University [December 02, 2018]

The bicommunal Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage completed the restoration of two more monuments, located in the old city of Turkish-occupied Famagusta, the Church of Saint Anne and Tanner’s mosque. A ceremony will be held on December 7, to mark the completion of the two projects.

The small and well-proportioned Church of St Anne presents a number of distinct Gothic elements. It closely resembles  the Carmelite church in style and therefore, likely dates to the same period between the early 1320s and 1363. Due to  its location in what is thought to have been the sector of the city inhabited by Oriental Christians, it may well have been a Maronite church [Credit: WikiCommons]

Speaking to CNA, Takis Hadjidemetriou, the Greek Cypriot Head of the Technical Committee, referred in particular to Saint Anne, which dates from the 14th century BC, and said that the Maronite Patriarch from Lebanon will also attend the ceremony.

He also noted that a religious service was held in Saint Anne in May 2016, for the first time after almost five centuries, adding that the church is now completely renovated.

It is thought that Tanners Mosque was built in the 14th century by the Jacobites, as a small church dedicated to St Kathrena.  In Ottoman times, it was used as a mosque by the leather tanners, who worked nearby, thus it became known as the Tanners' mosque or Tabakhane Mosque [Credit: Famagusta Walled City]

Next week’s event will be held in the presence of Technical Committee, UNDP and EU representatives, as well as members of the Maronite community of Cyprus. A religious ceremony will follow.

Hadjidemetriou noted finally that Famagusta continues to figure in future restoration plans of the Technical Committee, due to the various churches, monuments and parts of the city wall that exist in the old city.

Source: Cyprus News Agency [November 30, 2018]

The Syrian authorities recovered several artefacts that were stolen inside the Daraa province over the last six years, state-owned news reported this morning.

Credit: SANA

According to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the local authorities in Daraa confiscated 103 stolen archaeological pieces from a home in the Daraa Governorate town of Al-Jiza on Monday.

Credit: SANA

The SANA report said that the thief was preparing to smuggle these artefacts outside of Syria before he was apprehended by the Syrian authorities.

Credit: SANA

The SANA reporter added that the confiscated archaeological pieces included 75 basalt and marble stones, and 28 pottery pieces; all of them date back to the Roman era.

Credit: SANA

The confiscated archaeological pieces are believed to have been stolen from the Basra Archaeological Museum, when the rebel groups were controlling the town.

Author: Leith Aboufadel | Source: AMN [November 29, 2018]

The Acropolis Museum in Athens is perfectly capable of hosting its original sculptures of the Parthenon instead of the well-crafted copies it exhibits, said Deputy Editor of the Sunday Times, Sarah Baxter.

Plaster casts from the east pediment sculptures of the Parthenon at the Acropolis Museum against  the backdrop of the Athenian Acropolis [Credit: The Acropolis Museum]

The original sculptures of the east pediment in the British Museum [Credit: Kevin Gessner/Flickr]

“I simply can’t think of a sound reason for refusing Greece’s claim for their return,” said Ms Baxter in a column she wrote for the British publication.

Plaster casts from the east pediment of the Parthenon at the Acropolis Museum, as well as original metopes  and both orginal and casts of the Ionic frieze [Credit: The Acropolis Museum]

The original sculptures of the east pediment in the British Museum [Credit: ANA-MPA]

“It is hard to deny that they belong to their original place, why not exchange them? We are fighting a losing battle to maintain our looting when there are innovative ways to share our knowledge,” added the Deputy Editor, who defends the return of the Parthenon Marbles and agrees with the opinion of which Labor leader Jeremy Corbin has also made publicly known.

Original segments of the Ionic frieze from the Parthenon bordered by paster casts  of those found in the British Museum [Credit: The Acropolis Museum]

Section from the original Ionic frieze of the Parthenon displayed in the British Museum [Credit: ToVima]

The Sunday Times also observes that modern technology can provide perfect replicas and representations of ancient cities such as ancient Rome and the Arc of Triumph of Palmyra and raises the question if Britain could return the Parthenon Marbles and reproduce with technology the grandeur of the Parthenon for the new generations of visitors to the British Museum, why not do it?

Finally, she notes that a similar replica policy is followed by the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Source: Greek City Times [November 26, 2018]

When President Emmanuel Macron of France received a report he had commissioned on the restitution of African treasures, he wasted no time in announcing that the Quai Branly Museum in Paris would return 26 objects, looted by French colonial forces in 1892, to Benin.

Three large royal statues of the Kingdom of Dahomey on display at the Quai Branly Museum in Paris. President Emmanuel Macron of France announced on Friday that 26 items taken by force from the kingdom would be returned to Benin [Credit: Philippe Wojazer/Reuters]

But that was as far as the president went in publicly endorsing the report on Friday. Its authors, Bénédicte Savoy of France and Felwine Sarr of Senegal, recommend that all objects removed without consent from Africa and sent to France be permanently returned if the countries of origin ask for them.

Mr. Macron instead assigned his culture and foreign ministers to help fulfill an objective he set a year ago: to ensure that the cultural treasures of sub-Saharan Africa be accessible in Africa through restitutions, but also exhibitions, exchanges and loans. He also called for an international conference in early 2019 on the return of African artifacts.

In Europe, the restitution announcement drew tepid reactions from museum directors, as it sets a tricky precedent. Leaders of cultural institutions were quick to emphasize that Mr. Macron was speaking for France and France alone, but acknowledged that his actions and pronouncements on African heritage had energized and accelerated discussions on the subject elsewhere.

In Africa, the announcement was met with a mix of enthusiasm and caution.

The restitution of 26 objects to Benin “does not change the policy of the British Museum, nor legislation in Great Britain,” said Hartwig Fischer, the director of the London institution, which has 73,000 objects from sub-Saharan Africa in its collections, many obtained in colonial times. The museum has been in a decades-long dispute with Greece over the so-called Elgin marbles, which came from the Parthenon, and the governor of Easter Island requested last week the return of Hoa Hakananai’a, a statue that is among the British Museum’s most popular items.

Mr. Fischer said that while the British Museum’s trustees were open to all forms of cooperation, “the collections have to be preserved as whole.”

He recognized that Mr. Macron’s announcement would “intensify the debate” about access, and would contribute to “the next dimension of cooperation” as African countries develop their cultural and museum infrastructure.

King Ghezo’s throne from Abomey, which dates from the early 19th century, is among the items France will return, Mr. Macron said [Credit: Gerard Julien/AFP/Getty Images]

Hartmut Dorgerloh, the director of the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, a giant museum of non-Western art set to open next year, said in an interview that Mr. Macron’s pledge to return the 26 objects had made issues of Africa’s heritage “more obvious, more visible and also more urgent.” In the future, he said, European museums would “have to return” objects in some cases, while in others, the inclusion of artifacts in collections would have to be viewed as “the result of European or global history.”

“How far back will you go? Until Roman times?” he said. “Because many items in Rome were robbed somewhere in Greece or in ancient Egypt.”

The objects that Mr. Macron is giving back to Benin are a star attraction of the Quai Branly Museum. Seized when French colonial forces ransacked the capital of the 300-year-old Kingdom of Dahomey, they were royal treasures that the fleeing king left behind: statues, thrones, and even the carved polychrome doors of his palace.

Although the report by Ms. Savoy and Mr. Sarr advises against measures such as long-term loans, Mr. Macron has spoken favorably in the past of “temporary restitution.” One example of the kind of cooperation that Mr. Macron could be looking for is the Benin Dialogue Group, which includes representatives from Nigeria and from major European museums that own treasures of the Kingdom of Benin, in what is now southern Nigeria.

Those artifacts — mostly sculptures and relief plaques — were looted from royal palaces during a British expedition in 1897. They were taken to Britain or sold on the open market, and eventually ended up in museums in Europe and the United States. Some are now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago.

Edo State in Nigeria hopes to open a museum by 2021 to house several hundred of the artifacts, lent short-term by the British Museum, among others.

Doors from a Kingdom of Dahomey palace, on display at the Quai Branly Museum. The items had been buried underground when the kingdom was ransacked by French colonial forces in the 19th century [Credit: Michel Euler/Associated Press]

Prince Kum’a Ndumbe III of the Duala people in Cameroon, who runs AfricAvenir International, a nonprofit that calls for the restitution of artifacts taken without consent, said that the French report was “the first step in the right direction.” He added that such a political commitment had been awaited since Cameroon and much of the rest of Francophone Africa gained independence from France in 1960.

“This is not just about the return of African art,” he said. “When someone’s stolen your soul, it’s very difficult to survive as a people.”

He invited Britain and Germany to follow the French example and commission their own restitution reports.

Stéphane Martin, president of the Quai Branly Museum, which has 70,000 objects from sub-Saharan Africa in its collections, said in an interview with the French daily Le Figaro that last week’s report was “a bad answer to the courageous question posed by the president.” While restitution was “not a word that I’m scandalized by,” he added, there are “other ways to engage in cultural cooperation with Africa.”

In a separate interview with Europe 1 radio on Sunday, Mr. Martin said it was he who had suggested that the 26 objects from his museum be returned to Benin. “Museums must not be hostages to the painful history of colonization,” he said.

Mr. Martin did not respond to repeated requests for comment for this article.

Plaques that form part of the Benin Bronzes on show at the British Museum in London. The plaques were taken by British troops in 1897 [Credit: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images]

Mr. Fischer of the British Museum described the French report as “a radical proposal” that made a “moral argument” against colonialism, whereby “everything that took place under the conditions of colonialism is eligible for restitution.” He also noted that Mr. Macron’s statement on Friday was “much more nuanced” than the report, and left open the door for options other than returning objects.

The ball is now in the court of France’s culture minister and foreign minister, who have been asked to bring together African and European museum managers and cultural professionals to ensure that works of art circulate not only among the major museums of the world — which hold 90 percent to 95 percent of sub-Saharan Africa’s cultural heritage, according to the report — but also on the African continent.

The Paris conference next year will be a test of that process.

Sindika Dokolo, a businessman from the Democratic Republic of Congo who runs an art foundation in Angola and who has bought back looted African art, said the French president’s restitution offer had “no precedent.”

“Macron has opened a Pandora’s box,” he said.

At the same time, Mr. Dokolo urged African leaders to respond quickly, before a change of government or mood in France — to “put their foot in the door before it closes.”

Author: Farah Nayeri | Source: The New York Times [November 27, 2018]