A recently published article by Nick Romeo at the National Geographic’s webpage describes the work of Dr. Christos Tsirogiannis who detects regularly illicit objects in museum’s collections and auction houses. The article is cited in the following. A few years ago, Christos Tsirogiannis was looking through the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s online collection when he…
Syria and Iraq: Culture at Risk. Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Goods – 31/03/2017, Stockholm (Sweden) In the footsteps of war and unrest, antiquities are being looted from ancient sites and museums. These objects are sold illegally on a growing international market. This trade is a strong threat to proper documentation of our cultural heritage and…
Illegal excavations that have been continuing for the last three months in the ancient city of Myndos in Bodrum’s Gümüşlük neighborhood have elicited the anger of locals due to the lack of any action to halt the activity. “They’re doing whatever they want in the ancient city. Treasure hunters are looting the national treasures…
The UNESCO Doha Office in partnership with Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority is organizing a workshop on “Ethics of collections and fight against illicit traffic of cultural heritage in the GCC” from the 2nd to the 4th of April in the Bab al Qasr hotel in Abu Dhabi. The illicit import, export and transfer…
“Working with Cultural Objects and Manuscripts: Provenance, Legality, and Responsible Stewardship” Monday 5 and Tuesday 6 June 2017, National Museum of Finland, Helsinki In this international conference we will address the topic of trafficked cultural objects in Finland, in order to generate awareness and kick-start a national debate. The conference is organised with funding from…
Eight crates containing 33 archaeological artifacts and 600 coins, including some ancient masterpieces dating to the 12th and 13th centuries B.C., arrived at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens from Munich end of March 2017. The remarkable finds, most in very good condition, included amphorae, bird-shaped vases, a pottery statue of a chariot driver and…
In an international conference, organised by Working with Cultural Objects and Manuscripts (WCOM), which will take place at the National Museum of Finland, Helsinki, on June 5-6, 2017, the topic of trafficked cultural objects in Finland is adressed. This in order to generate awareness and kick-start a national debate. The conference is organised with funding…
The annual meeting of the Centre for Digital Heritage (CDH) will take place at the Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University on 15-16 June 201. The theme will be Heritage under Threat. During two days, five keynotes, 19 papers and seven posters on this topic will be presented. For a list of accepted papers and further…
In a joint US-UK initiative financed by the SmartWater Foundation, the not-for-profit arm of the international crime-fighting company, SmartWater, a team of undercover operatives and trained Syrian Archaeologists have successfully applied SmartWater’s unique ‘traceable liquid’ to some of Syria’s most treasured historical artifacts, including two precious mosaics from the UNESCO World Heritage designated site of…
A whole illegal excavation campaign was reported by tourists and locals in Noto/Siracusa (Sicily), Italy. A Greek cemetery in the region of Eloro, a few kilometres from Noto, was completely robbed. Excavators and other heavy equipment was used to reach the objects buried in the tombs in order to sell them later on the international…
EAA-Community on the Illicit Trade in Cultural Material 