00:00:00:00 - 00:00:19:23 Unknown Hi everyone! I'm Lulu, a third year classic student at La Trobe University, and you're listening to my podcast. Today we're going to be talking about repatriation. So for those who are unfamiliar with repatriation in this context, repatriation is when a museum returns an artifact to its country of origin. And I can hear you asking, why would an artifact ever need to be returned to its country of origin? 00:00:19:24 - 00:00:46:24 Unknown Well, it's a great question. So this issue is actually a little bit of a sore spot for museums. So of course, when we go to a museum, we expect that the artifacts that we see have been acquired by the museum in a legal and ethical manner. But it's actually a little bit of an open secret that many of the artifacts that we see in museums were actually obtained in a manner that was illegal, or in a manner that is at odds with the ethical standards that museums abide by today. 00:00:47:00 - 00:01:11:19 Unknown Okay. So the way that it's normally found out that an artifact is stolen is because someone will look into an artifacts background or provenance, which is a fancy term that archeologists use to refer to the place that the artifact was found. So by looking into this information, people who work with the museum, other scholars, and sometimes even law enforcement are able to determine whether or not an artifact was stolen or obtained in an unethical manner. 00:01:11:22 - 00:01:28:24 Unknown It's actually quite common for large museums to work with law enforcement on this issue. For example, the Metropolitan Museum has actually worked with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office on quite a few occasions to look into the background of some of the artifacts, and it's actually led to the repatriation of quite a few artifacts quite recently, which is pretty exciting. 00:01:29:00 - 00:02:02:19 Unknown For example, the Safran Creta, which is actually a pretty famous case of repatriation, the Safran craters, a red figure calyx crater, which is basically a ball that was made for mixing wine and water. It was made in Athens around 515 BCE, and it was bought by the met in 1972 for $1 million. It was thought to have been illegally excavated in 1971, and it’s find spot and early provenance were actually never firmly established, so it ended up being confirmed that it was smuggled into Switzerland by Medici, who was an art dealer who was actually convicted of dealing in stolen ancient artifacts in 2004. 00:02:02:20 - 00:02:31:07 Unknown So in 2008, the Met actually restored ownership of this artifact to Italy and it was repatriated. Another recent case of repatriation was actually last year, in August 2022, when the Getty Museum announced that they were going to return a group of sculptures known as Orpheus in the sirens. So these cultures date to around 350 to 300 BCE. So it was actually determined by Getty and independent scholars that these sculptures were either stolen or illegally excavated. 00:02:31:08 - 00:02:51:21 Unknown So the Getty, working with the Ministry of Culture, were able to organize the repatriation of these sculptures back in September 2022. Okay, so now that we understand the background of repatriation, I'd like for us to play a little game. Imagine you're the head of a museum. You've just received a formal request for an artifact in your collection to be repatriated as the head of the museum 00:02:51:23 - 00:03:19:03 Unknown it’s your job to make the decision. What would you do? I'm sure as the head of the museum, you'd have a lot of concerns and questions. Such as how legitimate the basis of this request is. But legally and ethically, there is a high chance that on paper, your museum legally owns these items, and you may even have documents that state that that's the case, or the artifact may have been acquired at a time where it was difficult to confirm the origin of the artifact due to turmoil leading to a lack of records or even a government to check with. 00:03:19:04 - 00:03:38:13 Unknown In addition to this, you have to keep in mind that at the end of the day, a museum is a business and repatriation is quite expensive. Not only is the museum at risk of losing revenue, as they would have to pull these items from display, but it also costs quite a bit of money to transport the items, as it requires especially tailored equipment and highly skilled staff to facilitate transport. 00:03:38:13 - 00:04:01:04 Unknown There are also quite a few risks that you would need to consider as the head of a museum. It could be quite dangerous to transport such old and delicate items as they could easily be damaged during transportation or due to changes in environmental conditions. There's also the chance that this artifact has been in your collection for a long time, and that your museum has put a lot of time and effort and money into looking after this item from your point of view 00:04:01:05 - 00:04:20:24 Unknown it's nearly like this artifact has become a part of your museum's heritage. As the head of this museum, you know that your museum has the money and facilities to care for this artifact, and you're worried that the museum in the artifacts home country may not have the same resources that you have, and they may not be able to look after the item to the same standard that you've been able to. 00:04:21:00 - 00:04:38:12 Unknown So now you're worried that by sending the artifact back, you may be sending it to an early grave. For a long time museums felt that it was their responsibility to ensure the safekeeping of artifacts. So you feel justified in your decision to have this item in your collection as you know that there is a chance that it may not have survived until today. 00:04:38:12 - 00:05:00:03 Unknown If it wasn't for your museum looking after it. This loss of artifacts is due to the destruction caused by warfare, political instability, and natural disasters. You know that sometimes the only surviving cultural trace of societies that are no longer around is from what's left in museums. And you know that having artifacts in many different museums across the world greatly reduces this risk. 00:05:00:04 - 00:05:28:08 Unknown You also know that by having these artifacts in your collection, you've greatly contributed to the development of archeology and classical studies throughout the years. Lastly, you know that at the end of the day, it's your job as the head of the museum to create a collection of works that promote community, culture and understanding. And it's your fear that by repatriating these artifacts, you could accidentally set an unwelcome precedent that would trigger an avalanche of claims and would end up depriving all major galleries of their greatest treasures. 00:05:28:14 - 00:05:42:17 Unknown Okay, so that part of the game is over. So what was it like pretending to be the head of a museum, trying to figure out whether or not you should repatriate an item? There were obviously quite a few concerns and things that you had to consider. But I do want to make it known that I do think that these museums are being a little bit dramatic. 00:05:42:18 - 00:06:00:12 Unknown I don't think the repatriation is going to mean the end of all museums, especially because calls for repatriation have been going on for longer than museums have actually been, can even considering returning items. So now I hope you're excited because a second part of the game begins. I would now like you to imagine that you're on the other side of the argument. 00:06:00:12 - 00:06:18:18 Unknown Maybe you work for a museum in Rome or Athens, or maybe you're the minister for culture or an academic, and you're calling for the repatriation of a significant cultural item. How would you respond to what you've just heard? It's likely that you are extremely frustrated as these items are of cultural significance to you, and they represent a link between antiquity and modernity. 00:06:18:19 - 00:06:38:16 Unknown You are calling for the repatriation of these artifacts because not only do they represent your culture's history and national identity, but you know that your right to possess and have access to your cultural heritage is recognized by Unesco, who recommend the return of cultural property to a country of origin. So you know that it's unethical for this item to be held in a foreign museum. 00:06:38:20 - 00:07:04:04 Unknown The main obstacle that you face in cases of repatriation is legality. As mentioned before, the museum that holds the artifact in question may hold the legal title to the artifact, so it's up to you to find out if there is a legal or ethical reason for you to dispute their claim to the artifact. The easiest way to dispute that claim is if you can prove that the item was acquired illegally, either through illegal excavation or if it was smuggled out of the country via black market trade. 00:07:04:04 - 00:07:23:11 Unknown Or it may be a situation where a museum or archeologist was given permission to obtain an artifact, but they violated their agreement. For example, not returning a loaned artifact, or in a situation where they were given permission to excavate certain artifacts and not others. But they went against their agreement and took other items, meaning that these items were obtained illegally. 00:07:23:13 - 00:07:42:03 Unknown Another way would be if permission to acquire the artifact was granted by someone who, it can be argued, didn't have the right to give away the artifact. For example, an occupying power. But it's also important to look into the provenance of an artifact, as you may be able to prove that the buyer of the object took advantage of a legal system that was complicated due to colonialism. 00:07:42:03 - 00:08:03:06 Unknown Another reason that you want these artifacts repatriated is because you know that these artifacts are currently being represented incorrectly and outside of their cultural context. For example, many Greek sculptures were designed to be displayed upside up, high in the sun, and are currently being displayed inside of a museum low to the ground. This means that people are unable to appreciate them in their proper context. 00:08:03:06 - 00:08:20:10 Unknown By displaying these items outside of their original location and cultural context, it demeans their value as art or as a historical object. And you know that if they were displayed in their country of origin, they would be seen as an important part of that country's culture and history. And this would be a great opportunity for people to better understand your cultures, art and history. 00:08:20:10 - 00:08:46:19 Unknown Another barrier to repatriation that is a little bit more difficult to navigate than legality is neo colonialism. Neo colonialism is subtle socio economic and political acts by former colonial rulers aimed at reinforcing cultural subjugation of their former colonies. Many museums are old institutions that benefited from colonialism in the past. Nowadays, you're definitely able to see that many of these famous museums have a neo colonial attitude towards the repatriation of artifacts. 00:08:46:20 - 00:09:14:10 Unknown This can be seen when these famous museums unjustly discredit smaller museums or conservation institutions, or when they disregard international agreements, such as the ones provided by Unesco. Despite these barriers, I believe that it is important to push for repatriation, as the repatriation of artifacts means that museums can foster relationships across cultural and national boundaries, and repatriating artifacts enriches the work of both museums that are involved and leads to the benefit of communities. 00:09:14:11 - 00:09:36:01 Unknown It is the duty of museums to promote the sharing of knowledge, culture and community, and by continuing to not return significant cultural artifacts, they are damaging international co-existence and cooperation. So that wraps up our game. I was able to adequately explore and explain the topic of repatriation from two very different points of view. So what would my advice be to the museums going forward? 00:09:36:02 - 00:09:57:19 Unknown I'd recommend that the best thing to do, regardless of what side of the argument you're on, would be the museum should avoid purchasing artifacts if there isn't a clear provenance. They should do their due diligence in not purchasing artifacts that have been obtained in an illegal or unethical way. I would recommend, and a lot of museums have actually already started doing this, but they've hired provenance research teams. 00:09:57:19 - 00:10:17:04 Unknown So for example, the met did this. They had quite a large provenance research team. and that means that they can build upon the efforts of the curators and conservators that they already work with. They should review their current collection to see if there are any artifacts that might need to be returned, and if there are any, they should begin communications with their country of origin. 00:10:17:04 - 00:10:42:12 Unknown I would also recommend that museums use their platforms to support and contribute to public discourse on the topic of repatriation, and it would be really good if big museums were to do this. And now some solutions compromise these alternatives, whatever you'd like to call it. So I'm sure you've gathered this by now, but this topic is very difficult with a lot of nuance, and it really should be handled on a case by case basis. 00:10:42:13 - 00:11:07:14 Unknown So the first solution I would offer surprise, surprise, repatriate items properly. If you don't want to do that, I really not ideal solution. But it's a solution is to repatriate items on a long term loan. So essentially the museum that has an item that has been requested to be repatriated would still technically own the artifact, but it would be in its country of origin on a long term loan. 00:11:07:18 - 00:11:39:09 Unknown The flip side to that would be that they repatriate the items properly, and maybe in a couple of years, the Museum of Origin might be happy to learn the item to the other museum, so this could be helpful in a case where a museum is worried about a loss of income or prestige regarding a specific famous item. Another thing that these bigger museums could do because they've said that they're worried about, like level conservation, could be that they establish programs that promote partnerships with museums across the world. 00:11:39:09 - 00:12:07:19 Unknown And these programs would promote learning collections and exhibitions. It means that these bigger museums would be able to oversee the training of these smaller museums and conservation, curating and archiving. They can also create grant funds so that in return, they would build relationships with other museums and also get access to their artifacts and resources and loans. There's also the option of digital exhibitions through like photogrammetry or 3D modeling, and also casts. 00:12:07:19 - 00:12:31:08 Unknown So currently in the Acropolis Museum, they have casts of the Parthenon Marbles and the Parthenon Marbles are being held in the British Museum. So my solution would be that they just swap them and the British Museum can have casts that look just as beautiful as the original, and the original pieces can go home. But of course, the British Museum wouldn't accept that. 00:12:31:10 - 00:12:52:23 Unknown But, you know, I think casts if they're done. Well, you know, if they're painted and detailed, a layman can't really tell the difference. At the Hellenic Museum in Melbourne has heaps of casts of famous statues, and they're super beautiful. So in conclusion, the issue of repatriation is a really big topic, and I really hope that I have adequately explored this topic. 00:12:52:23 - 00:13:12:21 Unknown But there is just so much information and artifacts out there. So I really would encourage you to check out my sources below if you're interested in looking any further. There will also be links and timestamps for the artifacts that I was talking about earlier. But yeah, I would call for museums to be a little bit more sympathetic towards the museums in these artifacts 00:13:12:21 - 00:13:34:03 Unknown country of origin. And if you're interested in looking into a case of unsuccessful repatriation, I would look into the Parthenon Marbles, which are being held at the British Museum. That's a case that gets me pretty riled up. So if you're interested in looking for more, I definitely start by looking that you can look on their controversial and contested artifacts page on their website. 00:13:34:05 - 00:13:38:20 Unknown but definitely also in the resources below. Thank you so much for listening. I hope you've enjoyed it.