This book was truly enlightening. I am so happy that I picked it up. I had never given much thought to museums, unless I was within the walls of one. Even then, as I was looking at artifacts, I never thought "Where did this artifact come from? How did it get here?". Sharon Waxman's book shines a light on the somewhat shady antiquities trade in a language that is readable and understandable for all. I highly recommend this book! An even-handed treatment of a tricky subject. Where do the artifacts in museums come from? Who previously owned them? Under what circumstances were they acquired? Were they looted in modern time (or a couple hundred years ago?) Who really owns what, and who has a moral claim on what? This is the tangled thicket that Sharon Waxman waded into, dealing with the provenance of antiquities, the preservation and conservation of those same antiquities, and fraught high-profile cases such as the "Elgin" marbles and the bust of Nefertiti in which the country of origin would quite like to have its ancient artifacts back. (The book concludes that Greece has the strongest case for return of the Parthenon marbles looted- or rescued, in the British telling- by Lord Elgin.) It also explores the strange case of Marion True, the Getty curator charged by Italy with trafficking in looted artifacts, and what the changing attitude toward provenance and looting means for the future of museums. Clearly the author is only just scratching the surface of a complicated issue- the book confines itself to the Mediterranean world, so anyone looking for mention of Latin/Native American, Asian, or African artifacts will be disappointed. But as someone who has gone to many of the museums mentioned, I found it a thought-provoking book and appropriate for anyone who had not previously been exposed to the issue in more than a passing way, such as seeing news items about the latest installment of the long-running campaign by the Greeks to have the Parthenon marbles returned.
Do You like book Saqueo. El Arte De Robar Arte (2012)?
I read this years ago, but I remember loving it. I should get a copy and re-read it.
—Kelsey
Interesting. I guess I will never see a piece in a museum in the same way.
—MrsCullen
