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After how many matching fragments arrive in the lab should a conservator become concerned that they are working with looted material?

By Rebecca Rushfield posted 04-24-2023 15:36

  

An Ancient Cup’s Bit-By-Bit Rebirth and The Story That’s Behind It”, an article by Graham Bowley and Tom Mashberg in the Sunday, April 23, 2023, issue of The New York Times discusses a   very significant and complete terra cotta kylix in the Metropolitan Museum that entered the museum’s collection in small groups of fragments over a 16 year period. The kylix was reconstructed by curator Dietrich von Bothmer and all of the fragments were purchased from or donated by him or people connected to him. The completed vessel was seized by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office in September 2022 as a looted artifact. It is not stated in the article whether the MET’s conservators had any part in the reconstruction of the kylix. In a similar situation, after how many matching fragments arrive in the lab should a conservator become concerned that they are working with looted material?   
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