German High Court Rules Export Permits Not Required for Collectors' Coins in Trade

Germany's highest regulatory court has ruled  that coins in trade will not be treated as archaeological objects requiring an export permit under EU law. The court said that because they are objects created in quantity, they have lost any archaeological value, and to require export permits for them would put an unreasonable restraint on trade. The decision in its entirety can be read here.   

UPDATE 5/4/13:  Not surprisingly, archaeo-blogger Paul Barford is in denial about the implications of Court's ruling and has even implied the court's decision-making was corrupted by "commercial interests."  As to the former, I think a well known numismatist said it best:

Of course Mr. Barford is in denial of the court's actual ruling: �coins coming from Antiquity generally have no archeological value and thus are not archeological objects�. It doesn�t come much clearer than that. Nor is this �the Bavarian judiciary� as Mr. Barford would like to believe; it is the supreme court of Germany for cases involving customs and taxes.

As to the latter, I think Mr. Barford should compare what Transparency International says about Germany and places whose views of cultural property matters he champions, like Greece, Cyprus, Italy and China.

Cash-Strapped Italian Government to Convert Embassy to Food Emporium?

CPO has heard from a reliable source that the cash-strapped Italian Government is in talks with Eataly, the popular Italian Food Emporium, to take over its beautiful, modernistic Palazzo style Embassy in Washington, D.C. As part of the plan, Embassy officials are said to be considering auctioning off the building's impressive display of antiquities through Sotheby�s or Christie�s in New York. Alternatively, they will remain in situ for the enjoyment of Eataly patrons.

Eataly�s fall-back plan is to negotiate with the GSA to lease one of the federal government�s neo-classical buildings for the same purpose. Buildings mentioned include Union Station and the Art Deco style FTC headquarters on Pennsylvania Avenue. Meanwhile, less certain are plans of local Greek entrepreneurs to create �pop up� restaurants in the nearby Greek and Cypriot Embassies. 

Reaction to Hugh Eakin

The New York Times has published a series of Letters to the Editor concerning Hugh Eakin's recent opinion piece regarding repatriations.   Barbara Newsome, the founder of the Archaeological Conservancy, discusses both her organization's efforts here in the US as well as the importance of museums and collectors in preserving the artifacts of others because they value them.    Noted cultural property expert Bill Pearlstein questions whether archaeological looting is really driven by American demand given statements by the Italian police.  Finally, Fiona Rose-Greenland sees repatriation demands as nationalistic in character and part of power politics.   Perhaps, the archaeology-over-all perspective should not be allowed to dominate this debate. 

Just Say No

Hugh Eakin has written a thoughtful piece about the American museum community's capitulation to ever escalating repatriation demands.  Museum trustees have a fiduciary duty to protect their collections from legally deficient claims, but that seems to not be much of a consideration in the face of bad press ginned up by the archaeological lobby and sympathetic journalists aligned with the cultural bureaucracies in places like Greece and Italy.

Eakin rightly notes that repatriation of artifacts that left their supposed countries of origin decades ago does nothing to protect archaeological sites from any current looting.   I would add all the hype about repatriation is in fact a diversion from addressing the problems at the source by tackling over-regulation, choking bureaucracy, under-funding and endemic corruption in places like Greece and Italy.

Perhaps if museums just said no to repatriation claims they might actually encourage some rational discussion of the real issues facing preservation of  artifacts from the past.  Any such discussion should start with some recognition that foreign countries can't possibly preserve, study and display all the artifacts they lay claim to, and protecting artifacts rather than bureaucrats should be the first priority.

Fantasyland

The budget for the Greek cultural establishment has been slashed to the bone.  Appeals are being made to other EU members for yet more cash.  So what better time than to launch a grandiose new campaign to repatriate the Elgin Marbles and other Greek antiquties to the bankrupt Hellenic Republic?

Europe Turns to Corporate Sponsors for Cultural Heritage

Purists are agast, but financial realities have caused cash strapped countries like Italy to turn to corporate sponsors to save crumbling cultural sites. 

Hopefully, the same countries will next work on deaccessioning duplicates they have no funds to adequately care for anyway.

Greek Archaeologists Out of Touch

The New York Times reports that Greek archaeologists are slow to recognize the financial reality of a bankrupt Greek Government.  I've previously blogged about their poster campaign which does absolutely nothing to advance necessary reforms of a system that can no longer assume (if it ever could) that the Greek State and its State Funded archaeologists should monopolize control over all ancient artifacts within Greek borders in order to "protect them."

Numismatic Press Helps Promote Temple Cleanup

Coins Weekly, a German Internet numismatic publication, has spotlighted community efforts in Greece to cleanup the Temple of Aphrodite in Thessaloniki. See http://www.muenzenwoche.de/en/page/4?&id=1157&type=a

Greek archaeological authorities had allowed the temple to be taken over by trash, and had refused private efforts to help.

Apparently, however, an article in Coins Weekly helped embarrass Greek authorities enough that they allowed community members access to the site to clean up the mess.

Perhaps then, coin collecting and what it does to encourage interest in the past should be encouraged rather than suppressed as advocated in archaeological circles, and by cultural bureaucrats in both Greece and the United States.

Greek Archaeologists Point Fingers

Here is more evidence the Greek archaeological community is seriously out of touch. See http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=107369

Expressions of international solidarity will do little to make up for slashed budgets, and fantasies about artifacts being stolen to order by wealthy Western collectors can't justify lax security.

The Greek cultural establishment needs to cope with the economic meltdown facing the country, and stop making excuses.

The first step to salvation is for Greece to end overregulation of everything old, and instead sell off duplicate artifacts. That will free up funds to help protect Greece's true cultural treasures.

Mali MOU Renewal Overtaken By Events?

With one exception, no MOU restricting imports of cultural goods has ever been allowed to expire.

Yet, the assumption behind MOU's -- that the US should help State Parties to the UNESCO Convention control cultural goods found within their borders because nation states are the best protectors of their own cultural patrimony-- has been sorely tested, first by the economic meltdowns in Greece and Italy, and now even more clearly by the descent of Mali into chaos.

A recent military coup and the take over of important cultural sites like Timbuktu by well armed Islamic rebels again raises fundamental questions about whether the State Department and its allies in the archaeological community are really furthering the protection of cultural artifacts or whether their knee-jerk repatriationism does more harm than good.

For more on the situation in Mali, see http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/03/world/africa/rebels-take-timbuktu-in-mali.html

To read the arguments for renewing the MOU wiht Mali, see
http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;dct=O%252BSR%252BPS;rpp=25;po=0;D=DOS-2012-0012

On April 24, 2012, CPAC will conduct a public hearing that will discuss the proposed renewal of the MOU with Mali.

PAS on Tour

Roger Bland of the PAS will be speaking about the PAS and Treasure Act before a number of AIA chapters around the country. See http://finds.org.uk/news/stories/article/id/233

Given the audience, the lectures will touch not only successes of the system but gaps in the system as far as archaeologists are concerned. See http://www.archaeological.org/lectures/abstracts/5775

No system is perfect, but hopefully the AIA grandees will also pause to consider how the system in Britain and Wales compares with the systems (such as they are) in places like Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, and Italy, when it comes to encouraging members of the public to report their finds.

As WikiLeak Diversion Continues, Greece Faces Meltdown

The proposed Wikileak vigilante effort to reclaim lost antiquities for Greece and Italy must be considered a diversion compared to the meltdown facing Greece's cultural establishment. See http://www.pri.org/stories/politics-society/government/greek-antiquities-at-risk-as-budgets-shrink-economy-falters-8929.html

The sad thing is that archaeologists seem as out of touch as ever. They are apparently hoping that a poster campaign will stave off massive budget cuts.

What is actually needed is a dose of reality and recognition that conservation can no longer be associated with control by the bankrupt Greek state. Turkey has finally recognized that not all artifacts should be in museums; it's okay to sell duplicates. Greece should do the same.

It's also interesting to note that Jack Davis, director of the American School of Classical Studies in Athens, argues that collectors in the Middle East and China are the real drivers of any looting.

High Tech Witch Hunt?

The authors of Chasing Aphrodite have now embarked on a new plan. Apparently, they hope to put out documentation received from Italian and Greek law enforcement onto the web, and then rely on activists to play the part of vigilantes in identifying looted material on the market and in museums. See http://chasingaphrodite.com/2012/03/12/introducing-wikiloot-your-chance-to-fight-the-illicit-antiquities-trade/

I agree with the following comment on their blog:

Elizabeth Marlowe March 12, 2012 at 6:33 pm Reply

Has the photo archive been made available to the museums, dealers and auction houses yet? The �gotcha� approach of this project seems unnecessarily antagonistic. If the goal is to embarrass museums, then yes, let members of the public catch them with their pants down. But if the goal is to track down as many of the pieces in the Medici archive as possible, then wouldn�t it be more productive to let the museums check the archives against their own inventories and come clean first? And THEN post the photos of whatever pieces still haven�t been located?

I would also note that this project presumably blurs the lines between investigative journalism and activism. But that is more an issue of journalistic ethics than cultural property law.

A Useful Diversion?

The archaeo-blogger world is on fire over news of a bust of an alleged antiquities smuggling ring in Greece. See http://paul-barford.blogspot.com/2012/03/more-arrested-in-greek-antiquities-bust.html

Yet, it should not be lost on anyone that the alleged ringleader of the smuggling operation is a retired customs official and that municipal workers count amongst his alleged accomplices.

The Greek cultural establishment has been harshly criticised in the wake of thefts from the museum at Olympia. That establishment will no doubt promote these arrests as a diversion from its ongoing funding woes, but this news should not be used as an excuse not to consider a real liberalization of Greece's draconian laws on the subject.

There was never enough money to properly preserve Greece's cultural patrimony even when times were good. Now, there is even less. Yet, the Greek state still insists on claiming title to everything and anything old, even artifacts found on private property.

Greece is certainly entitled to enforce its own laws, but I'm afraid this news will be just another excuse for more of the same rather than a major rethink as to whether Greece's draconian laws really help save the past or only encourage smuggling and public corruption.

Turkey Moves Forward

While Greece is floundering, Turkey is moving forward through a major liberalization of its economy and political life. Now, the Turkish Government also appears to be taking a major step towards rational management of its cultural resources. See http://www.todayszaman.com/news-272221-controversy-over-price-tagging-of--artifacts-continues.html

According to the report,

The changes, which were proposed by the Board of Protection of Cultural and Natural Assets and first announced in the Official Gazette on Jan. 19, dictate that artifacts which are not being used by museums can be valued by a specially formed commission and sold.

Of course, while the Old Guard in the Military has been largely vanquished, the Old Guard in the Turkish Archaeological Establishment fights on:

The head of the Istanbul branch of the Archeological Association, Dr. Necmi Karul, told the Vatan daily in comments published on Feb. 18 that the changes undermine the most basic of archaeological principles, namely that any artifact from any period of history is part of a shared culture and should, thus, remain as such. Karul said the main benefactors of the change in the law will be private collectors who will be able to access valuable items, many of which can still be put to equally good use by being passed on to other museums for display or used in universities or other educational institutes for the purposes of teaching.

Yet, even in good times, there is never enough money to properly preserve, study and display everything. And while passing along artifacts to other institutions may sound reasonable and is probably a good idea for some artifacts, generating funds through sales would likely benefit the cultural establishment as whole much better. Of course, deaccession needs to done with due care, but realistically leaving valuable artifacts in storage is nothing but an invitation to theft or loss due to poor environmental controls.

Respected Greek Newspaper Suggests New Approaches Needed

While archaeologists remain in denial and even hostile to any suggestion that there must be a rethink of the status quo, here is what the Telegraph has reported about what a respected Greek paper has said about the situation:

With Greek morale at rock bottom, the national mood darkened yet further after armed thieves looted a museum on Friday in Olympia, birthplace of the Olympic Games, and stole bronze and pottery artefacts - just weeks after the country's National Gallery was burgled.

One Greek newspaper suggested the state could no longer properly look after the nation's immense cultural heritage. "The Greek state has gone bankrupt, let's face it," the conservative daily Kathimerini said in an editorial.

"If the state cannot guard the country's great cultural heritage for financial or other reasons it must find other ways to do it."

See http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9091021/Germany-drawing-up-plans-for-Greece-to-leave-the-euro.html

When are we going to hear ideas from the archaeological community other than more bail outs of the bankrupt cultural establishment in Greece and more clamp downs on collectors, dealers and museums?

Time for a Major Rethink in Greece

Greece's financial meltdown has prompted calls for its economy to be liberalized by cutting back on excessive government regulations and ending state subsidies for connected insiders.

While the archaeological blogosphere remains in denial, it's time for those without a vested interest in the status quo to make suggestions on how Greece can turn its current challenges into an opportunity by similarly liberalizing its cultural establishment. Here are some ideas, though I'm sure others will have their own views.

In the Short Run:

Deploy the Greek Army to protect archaeological sites and museums.

Reduce the cultural bureaucracy. Greece sent a huge delegation to the US to appear at the State Department's CPAC hearing on Greece. (My recollection is there were 12 people there!) Most countries make do with one or two representatives. This confirms for me other complaints that the cultural ministry's upper management is grossly overstaffed.

Deaccession and sell off duplicates from museum stores to foreigners and wealthy Greeks.

Give tax breaks to individuals that donate money to Greek museums.

Require foreign archaeologists to pay a hefty user fee for the privilege of excavating in the country, but as a quid pro quo reestablish the historic practice of partage.

Require foreign archaeologists to police their own sites when they are not being actively excavated.

In the longer term:

Establish a legal market for ancient artifacts that can be taxed.

Establish a recording system akin to the Treasure Act and PAS.

Require developers to pay for the services of archaeologists to undertake salvage excavations on land likely to contain ruins, but then allow the developer to sell what is found after it is recorded, or give them a tax break if the artifact is worthy of going into a museum.

I'm not expecting any suggestions from the archaeological community other than more clamp downs on collectors, dealers and museums, but perhaps I will be pleasantly surprised.

Greece in Meltdown; Archaeologists in Denial

The Greek financial meltdown has led to further cuts in Greece's already poorly funded cultural establishment, and has contributed to an increase of thefts, including a recent break-in at Olympia.

Here is how the LA Times summarized the problem:

Greece's economic crisis has left the Culture Ministry desperately short of cash, resulting in a near-shutdown of scores of museums, dwindling archaeological work in various parts of the country and, in some cases, severe cutbacks in security.

At the National Gallery, the curator acknowledged that although the safety of its collection "is not in peril," budget cuts have scaled back security personnel by about 50% since 2010, leaving the country's biggest storehouse of fine art with just 19 of the 37 guards it employed before the fiscal crisis."If robbers are breaking in here," said Vassiliki Paraschi, a bystander peering up at the gallery's assaulted balcony door, "then I can't imagine what is happening to small museums in remote locations."

Greece has never been a generous investor in culture. Even in the 1990s heyday of spendthrift policies, Athens allocated just 0.7% of the national budget for the promotion and preservation of Greece's cultural inheritance.

Now nearly bankrupt, the state has halved that figure to 0.35%, allotting 42% of that � about $173 million � to the operation and security of museums, monuments, monasteries and archaeological sites, according to the 2012 budget.

Government officials are emphatic, however, that the financial crisis is not taking a toll on the safety of Greece's fine art and antiquities."We made drastic cuts in 2010. We hired no one, not even a single archaeologist," said Lina Mendoni, secretary general of the Culture Ministry.

"We have now come back, hiring just security personnel to man museums and archaeological sites. Well, doesn't that prove our genuine conviction to safeguarding our cultural heritage?"

About 1,900 government-paid guards protect more than 15,000 museums, monuments and archaeological sites across the country. Of these, 1,350 are full-time staff members; the rest are either contract employees hired during the peak tourist season or civil servants relocated from state corporations that the government shut down last year in a bid to slash public spending.

"What am I supposed to do with a 63-year-old mechanic or bus driver who is clueless about antiquity and is just interested in clocking time until retirement?" asked Giorgos Dimakakos, the head guard at the Acropolis, Greece's landmark monument.In recent months, Culture Ministry guards have heightened demands for permanent employment and an exemption from further austerity cuts, saying the government's Band-Aid solutions to personnel shortages pose grave security and liability risks.

With poverty levels rising and more than 100,000 businesses shuttered or close to bankruptcy, art and antiquities thefts are up by at least 30% in the last year, said Kouzilos of the special police unit. It's hardly a surprise, then, to see a dramatic increase in small-time hoods and first-time crooks trying to join the ranks of seasoned art thieves."

About 95% of the names coming in from our informants are newcomers," Kouzilos said. "Not a single one of the arrested had a euro to show for [their troubles].

All were in financial ruins."In one of the most high-profile cases last year, police arrested a trio of smugglers trying to sell artifacts that included 6th century BC helmets, gold funerary masks and part of an iron sword linked to the dynasty of Alexander the Great. Only one of the gang members had a record in antiquities smuggling; the others were bouncers newly fired from a nightclub in northern Greece.

As the recession deepens, police expect art and antiquities crime to rise, but there is a silver lining."The more amateurs join in, the easier it is to nab them," Kouzilos said.

See http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-greece-antiquities-20120212,0,3742515.story

Yet, it's business as usual in the archaeological blogosphere. Bash the collectors and museums. Call for more repatriations. No one has much as suggested that the real problem facing Greece might be gross underfunding, bureaucratic incompetence, and corruption combined with excessive state controls on everything and anything old.

Athens Burns

Rioting has erupted in Athens over the austerity measures the country now faces. See http://news.yahoo.com/greece-boils-over-120700059.html Apparently, some historic buildings were torched overnight.

Both the Greek and Egyptian national museums are sited right in the midst of anti-government demonstrations. Yet, as Athens smolders and Cairo seethes with discontent, archaeologists and UNESCO are still advocating returning the return of artifacts to their country of origin no matter how unstable or underfunded they might be.

In insurance parlance, this is called "concentration risk," and it is not a good thing if the actual point is to conserve artifacts. After all, disaster is just one petrol bomb away.

Acropolis for Rent

In a move that will no doubt leave archaeological purists aghast, the bankrupt Greek state is considering putting up its major historical sites for rent:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jeUrA6jll-SsuqVTVwl6nmZRk4LA?docId=CNG.f8db7d69218339b9285abcf6567bb20c.471

Hopefully, the next step will be the deaccession of excess museum inventory and the creation of a licit antiquities and numismatic market in the country.

What better way to generate much needed cash and to end a corrupt system that allows only the connected to collect what they want.

Addendum: Perhaps the Acropolis is not for rent after all: http://tom-flynn.blogspot.com/2012/01/greeks-culture-minister-rushes-to-deny.html