Tag: Antiquities

New York’s Met Returns Looted Morgantina Treasure to Italy

It’s not often that stories of looting have a happy ending, but at the weekend a collection of illegally excavated silverware from the third century BC went on display for the first time back in their home-country of Italy. The treasure of Morgantina, as the collection is known, has been returned to Rome by New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it has been housed since 1982.

How the pieces got to the Met is a dramatic and nebulous story of illegal antiquities smuggling and dodgy dealing. American antiquities dealer Robert Hecht sold the pieces to the Met in two batches in 1981 and 1982 for a total sum of $2.7 million. He is now on trial in Rome for his part in the scandal. In other cases related to looted antiquities, Marion True, former curator of the Getty museum in California, is also defending charges brought by the Italian government of conspiracy in trafficking, while Italian art dealer Giacomo Medici has been sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in trafficking.

Morgantina’s Treasure and Destruction

The Morgantina collection consists of 16 pieces of intricately-worked silver objects, some gilded, many of which would have been used at the banquet table. They include two large bowls for mixing wine, honey and spices, three drinking bowls with embossed and gilded patterns inside, a two-handled silver cup for drinking, a small silver altar, a pair of silver horns that may have been attached to a helmet, a ladle and small boxes with beautiful bas-relief lids depicting a woman and a child.

The items weren’t all made by the same artist, which suggests they had been collected over time. They may have been hidden from plunderers during one of the periods of chaos at Morgantina.

Although today there is little to see at the site, Morgantina was once a bustling and powerful town in Sicily’s interior. Near Aidone, 5km east of Piazza Armerina (home to the stunning mosaics of Villa Romana del Casale), there is also evidence of several plush Classical villas at Morgantina. It was conquered by the Romans in 263 BC and definitively came under Roman rule in 211 BC. It was also involved in Sicily’s two slave rebellions during the second century BC, but by the first century BC, nothing the town had been completely destroyed and nothing was left of it.

Archaeologists who later excavated at the site say that a 100 lira coin from 1978 was found at the scene, suggesting the looting took place at the end of the 70s or early 80s.

An agreement between the Met and Italy’s Ministry for Heritage in 2006 has meant that the ancient silverware is now on its way back to Sicily (with a short stop-over in Rome), where it will go on display in Palermo from 4 June.

But is this really a story with a happy ending? There are two sides to the argument. Some argue that justice has now been done (better late than never) and that historical artefacts should be displayed in or near to the context in which they were found. The other side of the coin is that Italy has possibly the highest density of Classical heritage on the planet, so is it possible that a wonderful collection of silverware from ancient Sicily may not have the attention or impact that it would get if it was displayed abroad?

The Case of the Euphronios Krater

Italy is pushing hard for many objects to be repatriated and the Morgantina treasure is just the latest in a flurry of antiquities that are making their way back to Italy having been illegally exported and sold to high-profile museums in the 1970s and 80s. The Euphronios krater was repatriated from the Met in 2008, while the Venus of Morgantina is due to be sent back to Italy from the Getty museum soon.

The Euphronios krater, a 515 BC painted vase by Greek artist Euphronios looted from an Etruscan tomb in Cerveteri, north of Rome, in the early 1970s caused some debate when it was returned in 2008. Like the Morgantina silverware, this vase also passed through the hands of Robert Hecht and was sold to the Met in 1972. It is now on display at Villa Giulia, the national Etruscan museum in Rome.

But Michael Kimmelman, in the New York Times, argues that while the krater was the star piece in the Met’s collection of ancient vases, at Villa Giulia it is overshadowed. While the Met has visitor numbers of around 5.2 million per year, I suspect Villa Giulia’s visitor figures are much lower, although those visitors may be there because they are specifically interested in the Etruscans and no doubt really appreciate being able to see such an important vase in the context of an Etruscan collection.

The director of Villa Giulia, Anna Maria Moretti, told La Repubblica that, on the contrary, the Euphronios vase is on display in one of the museum’s central rooms near to the famous Etruscan statue Apollo from Veio. Far from being overshadowed, it is now the primary exhibit in a museum dedicated to Etruscan culture and art, in the heart of Rome (so accessible to the millions of tourists who visit each year) and also not more than about 50km from the tomb that was originally robbed by the tombaroli 40 years ago.

Next Stop Palermo

The final destination of the Morgantina treasure is Palermo’s Archaeological Museum of Antonino Salinas where it’s due to go on display from 4 June 2010. It may not have the grand surroundings of New York’s Met, but it will now be housed on the island where it was illegally dug up and the Italian authorities feel as though justice has been done.

In the meantime, it will be on display at Palazzo Massimo alle Terme in Rome until 23rd May. Click here for details of prices and opening times.

Georgiana Aitken from Christie’s on Auctioneering Antiquities

The Jenkins Venus Georgiana Aitken, Head of Sale, Antiquities at Christies South Kensington, was kind enough to answer my questions about auctioneering.

HK:Is it possible for an ordinary person to acquire items from antiquity? If you had, say, a few thousand pounds to spend?

GA:Yes absolutely, antiquities are much more affordable and accessible than people would think. Estimates in our sales start at 500.

HK:How healthy is the antiquity market at the moment from the point of view of the vendor and auctioneer? Has it been hit by the global economic downturn?

GA: The Antiquities market has remained buoyant with strong results in 2009 and higher demand than ever for material with good provenance. In October 2009 (Christies most recent sale) the top lot sold for 169,250 tripling the low estimate. Antiquities offer a tangible store of value that can be cherished and enjoyed, and that can also provide significant financial returns in the medium to long term.

HK: What kinds of people are buying antiquities? Is it mostly inter-museum trading? Could you give a rough estimate as to the percentage of sales going to museums or collectors?

GA: In Christies October 2009 sale private buyers bought 73% of the sale by lot, continuing the trend seen in the previous sale in April 2009 with a shift away from trade buyers.

HK: How does the process work to get things to auction? If I came to you with a statue and claimed it to be from classical Greece, for example, what is done to assess its authenticity and then value?

GA: Our team of specialists have many years’ experience assessing objects and would be able to tell in some cases instantly if a piece is wrong or right. There are specific tests we can perform on terracotta and wood, and in a case of doubt we would call upon the British Museum or a specialist in a particular field for a second opinion. Value is determined by rarity and quality. We bear in mind market trends and where possible take into account prices that similar pieces have realized at auction.

Learn more about the most famous, fascinating and – expensive – ancient artefacts Christie’s has auctioned:
Top 10 Antiquity Sales at Christies.

HK: I would imagine it’s pretty rare to see new and previously unknown artefacts come to sales, or can experts be surprised by the objects which arise from private collections?

GA: Due to the nature of the industry (we do not sell recently excavated or newly discovered material) it is true that completely new discoveries are rare as many important pieces in private collections are known from catalogues and publications, like for example Michaelis’s Ancient Marbles in Great Britain, pub. 1882, or have been exhibited. Occasionally undiscovered pieces do come to light from private collections where the owner was unaware of what was in their possession, but this is the exception rather than the rule.

HK: Aside from at auction, what are the best places to shop for genuine antiquities?

GA: Auctions tend to be the safest way to buy antiquities as you can be certain the auction house has performed full background research for each object. However, other options include registered dealers, Portobello market in London and the internet but it is always important to make sure the seller is reputable before making a purchase.

Antiquities sales at Christie’s are held four times a year; twice in New York and twice in London. The next sale at Christie’s South Kensington, London will take place on Thursday the 29th of April 2010.

ArchaeoVideo: Dr Alain Zivie Reveals the Treasures of the Tomb of Aper-el

French archaeologist Dr Alain Zivie, Director of Research at the French National Centre of Scientific Research (CNRS), has devoted many years to investigating the 18th dynasty rock-cut tomb of Aper-el an Egyptian New Kingdom high priest and vizier from the Amarna Period, who served both Amenhotep III and the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten. Zivie discovered it at Saqqara in 1987. In an exclusive video interview, shot by Nico Piazza, he shows Heritage Key some of the abundant treasures hes found there.

As Zivie explains, since the tomb which dates from the latter part of the 18th Dynasty, around 1353-1335 BC is so hard to access, it hasnt been plundered in the modern period, only in ancient times, when the grave robbers werent looking for antiquities. Therefore, many fine pieces have been left undisturbed for centuries, and Zivie and his CNRS team have enjoyed archaeologically rich pickings.

We are not looking for treasure. Personally Im looking for history, for facts, for better understanding of this civilization, this culture and this period.

Among the beautiful artefacts he introduces us to from their display case at the Imhotep Museum at Saqqara are two royal cubits (one of which bears an engraving describing Aper-el as “the two eyes of the king”), a hand-painted fish spoon in ivory, and a wonderfully preserved wooden bust probably used for supporting a womans wig.

Support for a Feminine Wig at the Emhotep Museum Saqqara - photo by Sandro Vannini This is a miracle, he says of the bust. One season later it would have been disappeared because water was falling down like the Niagara on this, and everything was melted. But we discovered it in time. It is a masterpiece.

Theyre fine artefacts one and all, but Zivie is eager to stress that archaeology, for him, is about so much more than treasure hunting his interest lies in seeking out the stories behind such items, and the light they can shed on the people they were made by and for. We are not looking for treasure; we are not looking for objects, he says. Personally Im looking for history, for facts, for better understanding of this civilization, this culture and this period.

Certainly there are fascinating stories behond the building of the Tomb of Aper-el. Amarna period ruins at Saqqara are extremely rare; Aper-els tomb the entrance to which is through an area known as Abwab el-Qotat (Doors of the Cats), where hundreds of mummified cats had been found interred is perhaps the finest example, and an indicator of the high esteem in which this Egyptian prime minister was held. It bears elegant art work that illustrates the unique style of the Amarna period, a controversial phase of Egyptian history when Akhenten (who was quite possibly King Tuts dad) instituted a controversial rule under one god, which succeeding dynasties attempted to erase from history. Built on four levels, the tomb took years for Zivie and his team to clear completely.

The Vizier of Aper-el - Two Eyes of the King (The Messenger of the King) Aper-el was found buried with his wife, Tauret and his son Huy, who was a pominent general. Both were laid to rest next to Aper-el in similarly beautiful coffins, all of which were located in the funerary chamber of the tomb, which was found concealed behind a staircase. Various articles of funerary equipment and other items were found in the chamber too, including alabaster canopic jars, many jewels and various items of religious and daily use. Paintings elsewhere in the tomb reveal that Aper-el had two other sons who had previously been unknown to ancient historians. They were Seny, who was a high official, and Hatiay, who was a priest.

ArchaeoVideo in HD – The Tomb of Aper-el (Featuring Dr. Alain Zivie)

(Transcription of this video.)

Check out more great archaevideos many of them shot by eminent photographer Sandro Vannini here on Heritage Key. Highlights include Dr Zahi Hawass discussing the restoration of the Synagogue of Moses Ben Maimon in Cairo, a look at prehistoric paintings in Gilf Kebir, Dr Mark Lehner talking about the lives of pyramid builders in ancient Egypt and Dr Salima Ikram describing how Egyptian animal mummies were made.

We regularly release new videos on the site, so sign-up to the Heritage Key RSS feed to be first to hear about each new release(or follow us on Twitter and Facebook), and visit our Youtube channel.

Turkey a Base for Antiquities Smugglers? Shocking Numbers on Illegal Trade

While Turkey has managed to reclaim some major historical artifacts smuggled from Turkey to the US and the UK, it is still unable to implement effective measures against the smuggling of new ones. According to the “Cultural and Natural Assets Smuggling Report” prepared by the Culture and Tourism Ministry based on figures provided by the KOM – the Anti-smuggling and Organized Crime Bureau of the police department – Turkey sees higher statistics related to the smuggling of historical artefacts every year; in 2008, when authorities seized 42,073 historical artefacts and detained 4,077 suspects in 1,576 operations. In 2003 security authorities seized 3,255 historical artefacts that smugglers were attempting to take abroad. With a steady rise over years, this figure rose to 17,936 in 2007. As only the amount of seized items can be measured, there is no reliable, if any, information about the number of historical and cultural artefacts illegally taken outside the country.

Of course the smuggling of historical artefacts happens most often in conflict zones – like Iraq and Afghanistan – where the ongoing wars allow smugglers to operate freely. But Turkey is surely not a conflict zone? That is true, but still the majority of historical artefacts smuggled out of these conflict zones are shipped to Western countries via Turkey, to eventually end up in collections in the US, the UK, Switzerland and Japan. Antique coins make this trip most often; small and thus relatively easy to take abroad without detection – you can even smuggle one out in your wallet – they are the smuggler’s ‘favourite’ objects.

To counteract the increasing cases of smuggling of historical artefacts, security authorities asked for measures to be taken. There should be better security in museums to prevent theft, a sufficient and clear inventory of historical artifacts in the country should be composed and a bill to limit and inspect the use and sale of metal detectors should be passed. The Culture Ministry is likely to convey this proposal to the government in the coming days.

Probably the most significant item that was taken outside of Turkey is the Bergama Zeus-Athena Altar; however, this altar cannot be reclaimed as it was sold by an order from the Ottoman sultan of the time (sounds familiar?) at a very low price to Germany. The South Agora Portal of Miletos, too, had been taken out of the country in the same manner.

But for other artefacts, there’s still hope for return; there does exist a minor list of ‘artefacts abroad’ and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has already spent $17 million on reclaiming these artifacts and continius its efforts to repatriate more. According to todayszaman.com these artefacts were illegally taken out of Turkey and were – or were not yet – returned:

Germany – The Aphrodisias Old Fisherman Statue, the mihrab (niche) of Konya’s Beyhekim Mosque, the Hac Bayram Veli tomb and Troy artifacts. (Returned: Boazky tablets and Sphinxes, an Antiochos head fragment, artifacts from the Henkel collection, a terracotta statue, a marble bas-relief tablet and artifacts seized in Bremen and Tutlingen were returned to Turkey.)
United Kingdom – (Returned: The Ottoman tombac, the pulpit door stolen from zmir’s Birgi Aydnolu Mehmet Bey Mosque, artifacts from a sunken ship in the English Channel, artifacts seized at Heathrow Airport and a bronze Dionysus statue were returned to Turkey.)
Russia – Troy artifacts.
Austria – The artifacts seized at the Suben border crossing and triple Hekate statue still have not been returned. (Returned: The marble head of a woman was able to be reclaimed.)
The US – The Heracles statue, the Kumluca artifacts. (Returned: A 93-piece collection of Ottoman apparel, a seaman’s lantern, the Meleager head from the historical site of Aphrodisias, a lead seal, Atatrk’s silver cigarette case, a Quran stolen from the Nuruosmaniye Library and 1,676 Elmali coins were returned to Turkey.)
Denmark – (Returned: The Sphinx figure from the Diyarbakr Museum, the sarcophagus (sanduka) from the Akehir Seydi Mahmut Hayrani tomb, the Cizre Ulu Mosque doorknob, several Quran pages from the Nuruosmaniye Library and the screens of the portal of Konya’s Beyehir Erefolu Mosque were returned to Turkey.)
Italy – The process of the reclamation of an ancient inscription tablet seized by the Italian Interpol is under way. (Returned: a bronze vase was returned.)
Switzerland – (Returned: The Elmal coins, the statue of a woman stolen from the courtyard of the zmir Museum Directorate and some artefacts from the Roman era seized in Zrich were returned to Turkey.)
France – Many Lydian artefacts are still in this country.

Archaism in Roman Art Explored in Los Angeles Pompeii Exhibit

Each time I visit Pompeii I discover something new that I had not seen before. Likewise, with exhibits about Pompeii and the ancient Roman communities surrounding Mount Vesuvius, I learn something about Roman culture that I had not encountered before. Last week when I attended the exhibit, “Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around The Bay of Naples” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, I was fascinated by information about and examples of archaeized Roman art of the 1st century BCE – 1st century CE.

many indigenous looters had abandoned scrabbling in the dirt for authentic finds and set up shop cranking out forgeries because it was more profitable

Archaism is the term applied to art produced after 480 BCE that incorporates stylistic elements used in Greek art of the archaic period (700-480 BCE). These elements include facial features, such as hair with spiral or corkscrew or tight curls across the forehead, high cheekbones, heavy lidded eyes or a slight smile.

I was particularly fascinated by this 1st century BCE bronze bust of a youth or the god Apollo found in the remains of the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum. Not only does he exhibit the corkscrew curls and faint smile but displays the rounded eyes with flat irises and wears a taenia, or ancient Greek fillet or ribbon, below a skull cap often seen on Kouros-type 6th century grave monuments. I smiled when I read that the curators of this exhibit speculated if the Roman patron who purchased this beautifully executed work actually knew it was contemporary and not an authentic Greek antiquity. They drew attention to the irregularly-shaped lower edge of the bust and said this “defect” might have This girl stares straight ahead without even looking at the brooch she is trying to secure. been purposefully used to give the impression the bust was broken off from a larger authentic work.

Faking it

It reminded me of an article I read in Archaeology Magazine a few months ago discussing how quality-made forgeries sold on eBay were becoming so lucrative that many indigenous looters had abandoned scrabbling in the dirt for authentic finds and set up shop cranking out forgeries because it was more profitable.

Scholars also identify several archaeistic poses. Figures sculpted during the Greek archaic period often stand stiffly straight, although occasionally one leg will be placed slightly forward. They usually stare straight ahead without the more casual incliniation of the head seen in later Hellenistic pieces. Women are attired in a Greek peplos instead of the Roman stola with the folds of the fabric hanging straight with a broad central pleat. This 1st century BCE – 1st century CE bronze example of a girl fastening her peplos, demonstrates the stiff posture of typical archaic art. She stares straight ahead without even looking at the brooch she is attempting to secure. Emulating the archaeic style of 5th century Greek art, the sculptor poses her stiffly to lend an otherworldy aspect to her appearance.

Scholars speculate that artists like those of the period hightlighted in this exhibit may have used retrospective style elements to lend their work a divine or otherworldly aspect. Archaeism also represented a steadfast or enduring quality.

Head Boys

Herms – heads carved on a shaft of stone – served as boundary markers in both ancient Greece and Rome. Although the first herms depicted Hermes, the Greek god of boundaries and patron of travellers, later herms, several included in this exhibit, represent popular figures like the playwright Menander. Herms often included archaistic elements to provide the impression of stability and authenticity.

This herm of Dionysos with tight snail shell curls above his brow can be seen nearby at the Getty Villa in Malibu, California. Visitors to the Pompeii exhibit at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art are given a ticket for admission to the Getty Villa. Although admission is always free at the Getty, reservations are normally required. That stipulation is waived with the ticket from LACMA.

Scholars also think older styles were used in religious iconography to imbue the sculptures of gods and goddesses with venerability. Of course, Romans also liked to emulate their own celebrities and the art they admired. The emperor Augustus was widely known to be a big fan of classical Greece and his influence was still evident even 65 years after his death.

Fruity Frescoes

I couldn’t help but compare the beautiful garden fresco from the House of the Golden Bracelet displayed in this exhibit with the frescoes from the triclinium of the Villa of Livia I had seen at the Palazzo Massimo Alle Terme of the Museo Nazionale Romano in Rome this past March. Enclosed by a simple wicker fence, Livia’s garden contains a luxuriant mixture of trees and plants including laurel, palms, fir, and fruit trees like pomegranates as well as many different species of birds and flowers. Although both are beautifully rendered, I think I prefer Livia’s version without the intruding herms and theater masks.

Towards the end of the exhibit I also enjoyed seeing “A Sculpture Gallery” painted by one of my favorite artists, Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, in 1874. Although a renowned painter in Victorian Britain, he was actually born in The Netherlands in 1836. By the age of four he was attempting to draw his first sketches and when he joined his older brothers’ drawing classes, he had the audacity to correct his tutor’s perspective.

His only other passion was history (a man definitely after my own heart!) and he produced 26 little pencil sketches of Greek gods and goddesses at the age of 12 that survive to this day. Although he attended the prestigious Royal Academy of Antwerp, he rejected the formal structure of the Classical school and developed a naturalistic approach instead that he applied to depictions of Roman patricians.

Alma-Tadema eventually applied his unique perspective to a variety of scenes of Roman life from the Baths of Caracalla to the discovery of Claudius hiding behind the drapery after the assassination of the emperor Caligula. If you’re interested you can view dozens of his images online at the Art Renewal Center.

“Pompeii and the Roman Villa: Art and Culture Around The Bay of Naples” will be exhibited at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art until October 4, 2009. The exhibit was prepared by the National Gallery of Art with support from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The National Gallery of Art also published a fascinating brochure in pdf format about the objects selected for inclusion in the presentation. Their feature-rich website also includes a video narrated by Sir Derek Jacobi (Claudius to you “I, Claudius” fans) and teaching “Discovery Guides”.

Who Owns Antiquities?

On a recent trip to the British Museum, it occured to me:”Who owns all this?”

It’s a pretty complex question to be asking though. As I wandered past the Elgin Marbles, I overheard a couple of tourists discussing how Greece wanted the ancient relics back. Apparently hacking the marbles off the Parthenon and shipping them over to show in the British Museum doesn’t sit too well with our Greek friends. Go figure.

Should the museums of the world, packed full of “stolen” ancient treasures and permanently borrowed artefacts from around the globe start returning the wares back to the countries where they originate?

Archaeologists and Museums have often been at loggerheads over the matter. Archaeologists want to see national and international laws which will restrict, if not prevent, the international movement of antiquities. Some museums, surprisingly, are against any such legislation as it would result in their treasure chest suddenly becoming rather bare.

Unprovenanced antiquities is the hot potato – items whose whereabouts in modern times aren’t fully documented. The liberation of Iraq saw the National Museum, Baghdad looted in April, 2003 with tens of thousands of artefacts removed. International reaction condemned the looting, but the items stolen turned up around the world on the black market.

It’s somewhat a stark contrast to the days of Lord Elgin, who along with his crew of men, set about working on the Acropolis as per their permit with the Ottoman Rulers. Allegedly, an Ottoman firman allowed Elgin to remove some items and take them back to Britain. In removing the marbles and transporting them to England, Elgin may well have saved them from the sorry state that was the Parthenon in the early 1800s. And then the British Government paid Elgin for them to the tune of a cool 39,000.

So wait – essentially Elgin did what a FOXNews employee did in 2003, and bring back some antiquities with him in the hope of selling it on for a handsome profit. Except the employee got arrested at Customs – apparently that’s the sort of thing you’re supposed to declare. Elgin, on the other hand, never had to deal with Heathrow Airport Customs.

That said, Elgin did lose his wife to his best friend, lost a chunk of his nose after a particularly bad infection and came close to bankruptcy after his wife took him to the cleaners in the divorce settlement.

But who really owns the antiquities? Can the museums really lay claim to something when the originating country wants them back?Or do ancient artefacts lose all ownership?Lets face it – it’s not as if anyone can directly lay a claim to say it belongs to them personally. So in fact, do antiquities belong to us all?

Simply put, it’s a huge grey area. The Elgin marbles have been the subject of debate for the past 200 years since they first came to British soil, and they’re still here! The argument with many such antiquities is that they’re better off in the museums of developed nations where they can be properly conserved. Which is fair enough. But then the counter argument comes that countries are being denied the rights to their own heritage. Which is another good point. And which is also why this whole thing seems to keep going around in circles.. again, and again, and again..

Frederick Schultz was a New York art dealer jailed for three years in 2002 for smuggling Egyptian antiquities into America on the pretence that they were cheap souvenirs. Having violated the United States law of the National Stolen Property Act, he attempted to plead that he was not guilty as the law stated it was illegal to import or subsequently come into the possession of items which were stolen property. And Egypt’s 1983 law on national patrimony did not share the definition of “stolen” as is commonplace within the United States.

And of course he lost. Mainly because he was citing a law which said all antiquities discovered in Egypt are property of the Egyptian State, and hence belong to the nation.It continues, detailing that any such artefacts that come into the possession of a person, or institution, without the permission of the state means you’re handling stolen goods, and breaking the law. So really, citing that was a bit silly.

But it brings about an interesting point – in particular with regards to the commercial value of such artefacts. Archaeologists will argue that the best way to stop this sort of trade is for everyone to just stop buying antiquities, and hence making them all worthless. Leave it to the archaeologists to sort out, and that then, the blackmarket trade will cease. Wishful thinking, methinks..

So who owns antiquities?The origin country who claims their national soul has been taken from them, and demand for it to be repatriated? The foreign museums who claim the countries of origin are unable to preserve the artefacts as well as they can?Is there any gain from moving a treasure from a museum where it will be seen by millions to a museum where it will be seen by a handful?

Needless to say, it’s a topic with no easy answer.

I find it remarkable that in this age where globalisation and modern technology is making the world smaller and smaller, and we’re all learning much more about one another, sharing information freely, the subject of antiquities hasn’t changed. Nations and museums still bicker and argue about who owns what, and mankind’s heritage is being restricted in the process.

So what is to be of it all?Well for a start, Heritage Key is cataloguing the world’s collection of historical antiquities and bringing it to life for anybody with a computer and an internet connection to enjoy.

For me, this is where the future for accessing antiquities will lie.