[CPProt.net] Elgin Marbles cast dark shadow over looted art

[Museum Security Network / Cultural Property Protection Net (Ton Cremers)]

May 25, 2005 

Elgin Marbles cast dark shadow over looted art
By Sean O'Neill
 
  
MINISTERS could stop the British Museum returning artworks looted by the
Nazis to a Jewish family because of fears that they might pave the way for
Greece to make a legally binding claim on the Elgin Marbles. 
Lord Goldsmith, the Attorney-General, asked the High Court to clarify
whether the museum could exercise a "moral obligation" to return improperly
obtained property. 
 
The specific case at issue is a claim by the heirs of Dr Arthur Feldmann for
the return of four Old Master drawings taken from the Czech lawyer's home in
Brno by the Gestapo in 1939. 

Dr Feldmann was tortured and murdered by the Nazis and his wife, Gisela,
died at Auschwitz. The British Museum, which obtained the drawings at
auction after the war, wants to return them but cannot do so because of
legislation that expressly forbids it to dispose of items from its
collections. 

Its trustees asked the Attorney-General if they had permission to return the
artworks under the terms of the Snowden principle - a legal test that
permits charities to give back items that it would be wrong for them to
keep. 

Lawyers for the museum argue that the case of art looted by the Nazis is
highly exceptional and would not create a precedent. But Lord Goldsmith
asked the court to rule and expressed concern that returning the Feldmann
drawings could lead to claims against the British Museum and other national
collections. In papers submitted to Sir Andrew Morritt, the Vice-Chancellor,
who is hearing the case, lawyers for the Attorney-General said: "There are
other objects to which a moral claim might be made, of which the Elgin
Marbles may be the prime example." 

Will Henderson, counsel for the Attorney-General, told the court that the
circumstances of art looted by the Gestapo appeared unique but were not. He
added: "Once the principle is established, then it could apply to any
objects whatever their provenance. Whether they were looted during the
course of the Holocaust or whether they were acquired in unseemly
circumstances at any other time. What if the moral claim were very different
- if it were a cultural claim rather than a proprietary claim? . . . The
door would be open." 

Mr Henderson was referring to the sculptures removed from the Parthenon by
Lord Elgin at the beginning of the 19th century, which are the subject of a
lengthy dispute between Athens and London. 

The Government's concerns will disappoint the Feldmann family, which has
been negotiating with the British Museum for the return of its artworks
since 2002. 

The drawings are St Dorothy with the Christ Child, 1508, by a follower of
Martin Schongauer, a German engraver; Virgin and Child Adored by St
Elizabeth and the Infant St John by Martin Johann Schmidt, from the 18th
century; An Allegory on Poetic Inspiration with Mercury and Apollo by the
18th-century English artist Nicholas Blakey, and The Holy Family by Niccolo
dell'Abbate, the 16th-century Bolognese artist. 

AT ISSUE 

The British Museum has a number of objects which may be subject to ownership
claims including: 


Benin bronzes: in 2002, Nigerian parliament declared bronzes were plundered
during the colonial era 

Ethiopian tabots: after long campaign, museum agreed to transfer them on
long loan to the Ethiopian Church in London when building is available 


Lewis Chessmen: In 1995, islanders refused to hand back 12th century Celtic
pieces after they were loaned to Lewis, where they were initially found in
1830s 

Aboriginal artefacts: early bark etchings are subject of a claim by
Australian Aborigines 


Rosetta Stone: Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities pursuing a
three-month loan for when museum in Gizeh is completed