Who Owns History?

As museums crawl out of the blast crater produced by the Rutelli campaign, it may be that the conversation on these possibilities will get seriously under way. In November, U.S. museum professionals met with their Italian counterparts in Rome to discuss ways to increase cooperation, for instance, by simplifying the process for loans from Italy. Meanwhile, the full-court press to enforce the laws continues. In January scores of federal agents raided four museums and an art gallery in Southern California in connection with an investigation into trafficking in Asian and Native American art.

And Italy is still demanding that the Getty return one more of the key works in its collection, an ancient Greek bronze, Victorious Youth. Stately and supple-looking, with his right hand upraised to place on his own brow a laurel wreath that disappeared long ago, he was discovered at sea by Italian fishermen in 1964 and purchased by the museum 13 years later for a reported $3.95 million. The Italians say the bronze was smuggled out of Italy. The Getty insists it was discovered in international waters before being taken to Italian soil. For good measure, the boy was never Italian to begin with. He was probably at sea, perhaps 2,000 years ago, because he was being carted away by the Romans from Greece. Has he found a permanent home at last? Perhaps, but I never look at his upraised hand without wondering if he's getting ready to wave goodbye.

The original version of this article stated that the New Acropolis Museum opens “later this year or early next.” Since then, the Greek Minister of Culture has announced that it will open this fall.