US Museums Losing Fine Art to Blackmail

Museums say their mission to display global art treasures is under siege from underhand tactics by foreign governemts. A prime example is Turkey (Dan Bilefsky, 'Seeking Return of Art, Turkey Jolts Museums' NY Times Sept. 30, 2012). Turkey’s culture minister, Ertugrul Gunay is citing a 1906 Ottoman-era law — one that banned the export of artifacts — to claim any object removed after that date as "stolen Turkish property". In September 2011, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, returned the top half of an 1,800-year-old statue, “Weary Herakles,” which the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, triumphantly took home on his government jet.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

The top half of the “Weary Herakles” statue recently taken from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston by Turkey. Stuck in some dusty foreign museum basement, who will see it there?