AUSTRIA: Grabungsgenehmigungspflicht in Österreich durch Gerichte weitgehend gekippt

Aus dem DGUF-Newsletter vom 13. Oktober 2017: Der seit Jahrzehnten vertretenen Rechtsauffassung des österreichischen Bundesdenkmalamtes (BDA) zufolge galt gemäß § 11 Abs. 1 des Denkmalschutzgesetzes (DMSG) in Österreich eine Genehmigungspflicht für Grabungen und sonstige archäologische Nachforschungen (NFG-Pflicht) – unabhängig davon, ob auf einer konkret betroffenen Fläche das Vorkommen archäologischer Denkmale bereits bekannt ist (BDA 2016,…

ITALY: 200 ancient objects revocered in Grosseto

Four antiquities collectors in Grosseto stand accused of illicit detention and possession of property belonging to the state after officers from Italy’s Guardia di Finanza seized more than 200 undocumented ancient objects uncovered during asset controls in the garden of a villa.  The search and seizure warrant was issued by the Public Prosecutor of Rome.  Some…

London, UK: the world’s largest hoard of looted antiquities

The ARCA blog obtained the permission of London journalist Howard Swains to republish his Medium article, London’s Loot: The Legacy of Robin Symes, in its entirety. Swains is a journalist and feature writer with experience across print and digital titles, including The Times, the Guardian, Independent, Newsweek, the Sunday Times Magazine and CNN. The article discusses in detail…

CROATIA: biggest prehistoric tumulus robbed

The archeological site of Jalžabet has been ruined these days. From the archaeological site of Jalžabet, Croatia, in the district of Bistričak, one of the largest prehistoric tombs in Europe is known. The excavations on site were supposed to start soon, but thieves robbed and damaged the site right before. Dr. Saša Kovačević from the…

SWITZERLAND/TURKEY: Roman sarcophagus held at Swiss Freeport finally returns to Turkey

In December 2010, Swiss Federal Customs Administration authorities, acting under new customs legislation to combat trafficking in works of art, requested access to the inventory of Phoenix Ancient Art SA., a major supplier of museum-quality antiquities, which stores ancient works of art at the Ports Francs et Entrepôts de Genève, a freeport located in a…

Berlin, DE: Art, Crime & Criminals: Free Workshop, 7–8 September 2017

Organised by Professor Duncan Chappell, Dr Saskia Hufnagel, and Ms Marissa Marjos, this is the third of three Art Crime focused workshops, the first two of which were in London. This workshop specifically focuses on the looting, plunder, and destruction of heritage. I’ll be giving a regional case study: trafficking of antiquities in and out…

ISRAEL: After the Hobby Lobby scandal…

This article was published in US today on August 16, 2017. The arrest of five antiquities dealers in Jerusalem, who allegedly helped Hobby Lobby purchase illegally obtained ancient artifacts has shone a spotlight on the sale of antiquities in Israel and revived questions about the ethics of the trade in general. Five Jerusalem-based Palestinian dealers were…

Why archaeological antiquities should not be sold on the open market

The following article was copied from theconversation.com and written by Alice Stevenson, UCL; it was published July 13, 2017. Illicit antiquities are once again in the headlines. US retailer Hobby Lobby was recently fined US$3m (£2.3m) for illegally acquiring antiquities that were most likely looted from Iraq. Collectors and museums are therefore being reminded to undertake…

Zurich, CH: workshop on connections between AMS dating and looted antiquities

Programme The meeting will be held at ETH, Zürich, Switzerland on November 16-17, 2017. Eight presentation will introduce the problems around the antiquities and ilicite art trade. Round of short presentations by representatives of AMS laboratories; sharing experiance and practice in dating antiquites. Organiser, contact ETH Zürich (Hönggerberg) – Ion Beam Physics Otto-Stern-Weg 5, 8093…

US: Looted vase in the Metropolitan Museum of Art

For decades it was proudly displayed in the Greco-Roman galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a 2,300-year-old, vividly painted vase that depicts Dionysus, god of the grape harvest, riding in a cart pulled by a satyr. Today it sits in an evidence room at the district attorney’s office in Manhattan after prosecutors quietly seized…