MADRID, Spain, July 18, 2002
Investigators have recovered thousands of artifacts, including a sculpture of an ancient goddess and precious jewelry, plundered from sites across Spain, police said Thursday. They also have arrested more than 100 people suspected in a network of illegal collectors that is believed to have unearthed the estimated 200,000 artifacts dating back to 3,000 B.C. In a statement, police described the recovered pieces as having "incalculable artistic, historic and scientific value." The treasures, illegally excavated from 530 sites around the country date from several historical periods - when Visigoths, Iberians, Romans, Greeks and Phoenicians inhabited the Iberian Peninsula. Among the most valuable pieces were a statue of Calliope, the Muse of epic poetry in Greek mythology; two important collections of silver coins from a fourth-century Arab treasure; and hundreds of sculptures and pieces of gold jewelry. Investigators also recovered official mercantile stamps that will help historians study Roman trade routes, the statement said. Police said they grew suspicious last summer when paramilitaries with the Civil Guard found a resident of the southern city of Seville who was collecting artifacts without authorization.
The recovered pieces are being donated to Spanish museums, police said. A police spokeswoman said it was not known if the group sold artifacts outside Spain. http://www.cbsnews.com/
Priceless artwork nicked from Joburg gallery
By Philippa Garson
A valuable and famous 17th century artwork has been stolen from the Johannesburg Art Gallery. The Apostle Thomas, an oil-on-canvas from the studio of El Greco, was yanked out of its frame sometime shortly before July 3, the first time it was found to be missing. The right- hand bottom corner of the frame was damaged, indicating that an object was used to lever the painting out of the frame, said David Brodie, one of the museum's curators. 'It was obviously someone who knew what they were looking for' The painting, on display in the gallery's lecture theatre for many years, was bought from Dutch art dealer Peter de Boer in Amsterdam in 1955. "It will be almost impossible for this painting to be sold as it is well known and extensively documented in major catalogues," said Brodie, who described the painting as "historically very significant".
"Anyone with art training will recognise it immediately. There is a good chance that someone will try to smuggle it out of the country." The Endangered Species Protection Unit of the SA Police Service is working on the case. Inspector Charmaine Swart from the unit said: "It was obviously someone who knew what they were looking for." The painting, measuring only 62,2cm by 49,8cm, could have been concealed fairly easily. There were no immediate leads, she added, because no fingerprints were left on the frame.
Anyone who knows anything about the painting's disappearance or who visited the gallery on June 29 and 30 should contact Swart on 083 556 7618, or Rochelle Keene at the Johannesburg Art Gallery on (011) 725 3130.
photo: http://www.iol.co.za/data/picdb//newspic3d33bbe5067fd http://www.iol.co.za/
Artifact-rich Israel finds looting on the rise
By JASON KEYSER, Associated Press
SHEKEF, Israel (AP) - Against a moonlit sky, six dark figures cast silhouettes as they crept along a rocky hill and disappeared down a 2,000-year-old tunnel in search of coins, oil lamps, jewelry, pottery and other precious artifacts. Hiding in thick bramble and weeds, three agents from Israel's Antiquities Authority watched the Palestinians through night-vision goggles before tracking them down in three-hour search through tiny passageways, caves and cisterns deep below the Judean foothills. Archaeologists say an increase in looting of ancient sites is a consequence of the worsening economy and collapsed law and order in Palestinian areas that has resulted from nearly two years of roiling conflict. In the past, Israeli authorities have nabbed about 90 thieves each year for pilfering tombs, ruined cities, palaces, forts and other sites in Israel. This year, however, 80 arrests have been made in the first seven months. About 30 suspects were Israeli citizens - some Jewish and some Arab Bedouins. The rest were Palestinians from the West Bank who told investigators they were driven by poverty and unemployment. "Because of the economic situation, they don't have anything to lose," said Israeli Antiquities Authority agent Alon Klein, who is responsible for a portion of central Israel rich in ancient sites and just across the unmarked boundary with the West Bank.
Many Palestinians have been unable to reach the jobs they once held inside Israel because the military has sealed off their cities and towns in hopes of keeping militants out of Israel. Armed with metal detectors and farming tools, some have taken to the hills in search of artifacts that might bring them a few hundred dollars from antiquities dealers. In the West Bank, near Hebron, ancient Persian and Hellenistic settlements have been especially hard hit, emptied of precious writings inscribed on pottery shards. "Almost every inch has been looted," said Hamdan Taha, director of the Palestinian Antiquities Authority. The region's unrest has ended cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli antiquities policing, Taha said, and looting in the West Bank is up 20 percent this year, with 50 reported cases. So far, there have been no arrests, Taha said. The Judean hills in central Israel, south of Jerusalem and just across the West Bank boundary from Hebron, are also heavily plundered. There are thousands of sites, dating from the Iron Age, on through the first millennium B.C. to the Roman and Byzantine eras. None of the officials could put a value on the damaged or plundered antiquities, but they agreed the losses were great - and unrecoverable.
"This is the richest area," Klein said. "On every hill ... you find something." Bandits, some traveling by donkey from nearby Palestinian villages, are also after cars, tractors and cows. But the prize, for many are the artifacts. Many sites, undiscovered by archaeologists, are well-known to Palestinians. "They know," Klein said. "Their fathers know. Their grandfathers know. They feel it with the hands, the feet." Some of the plundered goods end up in shops in the West Bank and Jerusalem's Old City, sold to tourists or other traders overseas. "Merchants have to produce proof of where they got the items," said Gideon Foerster, head of Hebrew University's Archaeology Institute. "So, they say they bought it from another dealer or that it came from Jordan. They always have prepared stories." Klein and a colleague patrolled the hills this week, looking for signs of digging. They scrutinized maps and talked to farmers and shepherds, sifting for clues. Carrying a pistol, flashlight and walkie-talkie, Klein scanned the hills through binoculars, moving along a dirt road running between Israel and the West Bank. On this spot two millennia ago, the charismatic leader Bar Kochba led a band of Jews in a failed three-year rebellion against the Romans, who sent them into exile. Hiding from the Roman legionnaires, families carved underground shelters linked by narrow tunnels.
It was in one of those tunnels that the six Palestinians were caught last month, after a three-hour search by Klein and two other agents, peering through "Rat" nightvision scopes. The thieves, from the nearby Palestinian village of Deir Samet, had used rocks to seal themselves in a tiny niche in the ceiling of the tunnel, which burrows about 30 feet below ground. "We moved the rocks and saw their shoes and pulled them down," Klein said. Before they were apprehended, the robbers used their axes to collapse a ceiling, filling the tunnel entrance with dirt. The six men were sentenced to eight-month prison terms and were fined $430 each. "I think most of the time we don't succeed to catch them," Klein said. "But we are trying." http://www.bakersfield.com/
Vandals damage 12th century Indian ruins at national monument in Arizona
The Lomaki Ruins, which contains remnants of a 12th century Anasazi village, has been closed after the site was vandalized. The vandalism at Wupatki National Monument was discovered Tuesday, and the National Park Service said it could be months before site reopens. Stone walls around the pueblo structure were smashed and 800-year-old granaries also were damaged. Park Service investigators are searching the grounds for evidence, said Mary Blasing, a park service law enforcement ranger. Archaeologists will have to assess the damage, draw up repair plans and receive approval from the State Historic Preservation Office before restoration work can begin, Blasing said. (Wupatki National Monument: www.nps.gov/wupa/ ) http://www.sfgate.com/
British Museum willing to discuss return of Elgin Marbles
ATHENS (Reuters) - A British group championing the return of the Elgin marbles to Greece says the tide is beginning to turn in favour of sending back the priceless relics. "There are some suggestions of a rethink," said Professor Anthony Snodgrass, an archaeologist and chairman of the support group. He said the British Museum, which has housed the marbles since 1816 and refused point blank to return them, has signalled it is willing to meet with the group to discuss the issue. No one at the British Museum was immediately available for comment. Public opinion polls have also suggested a shift in views particularly among young people. "When we first became involved in this 20 years ago we were treated as an eccentric minority, but not any more," Snodgrass told Reuters. Greece says British diplomat Lord Elgin illegally hacked the 2,500-year-old friezes from the ruins of the ancient Greek Parthenon temple in Athens two centuries ago after bribing Ottoman rulers.
Britain says the marbles are in its possession legally.
The fate of the carved marbles depicting gods, soldiers and animals has often soured relations between Britain and Greece. The government says Elgin had legitimate ownership papers in 1816 when he sold the marbles to the British Museum. But group members said they detected a change in favour of returning the marbles among members of the Labour government. "I do believe there are members of government who are very positive in sending them back," said group member and former Labour parliamentarian Christopher Price at a news conference at the Acropolis, site from which the marbles were taken. Greece plans to house the marbles in a museum being built at the foot of the Acropolis. http://www.reuters.co.uk/
Pres Release: ARTS MINISTER ACTS TO PROTECT HISTORIC SHIPWRECK
Arts Minister, Baroness Blackstone, has today ordered urgent action to protect a North Yorkshire shipwreck believed to be the 18th Century American warship Bonhomme Richard. The ship, lying off Flamborough Head in Filey Bay, has caught the eye of salvors and there are concerns that it may be stripped within days. Tessa Blackstone has today made an urgent Designation Order which prevents interference with the site without DCMS permission.
Tessa Blackstone said:
“Designation of shipwrecks ensures their protection and helps to safeguard our rich marine heritage for the future. I felt it was vital to urgently protect what is believed to be the Bonhomme Richard while further investigations take place by our experts."
“This designation does not mean that divers will never be able to visit this wreck. It is our policy to protect the best examples of underwater heritage while encouraging greater access to them. We, however, need to ensure that any activities carried out on or near historic wrecks are appropriate.”
The Bonhomme Richard, commanded by John Paul Jones, was part of a small fleet of ships fighting the British in UK waters during the American Revolution. It was involved in the 1779 Battle of Flamborough Head with the Serapis and the Countess of Scarborough. After a long engagement, Jones captured the Serapis but the Bonhomme Richard sank. The engagement led to Jones becoming a national hero in the United States. He is now considered the ‘father of the US Navy’.
Today’s Order, made under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, will be reviewed before the end of this year, and enables the wreck to be protected while further investigations take place and while wider consultation is held on whether the ship should be permanently designated as a historic wreck. As a result of the Order it is an offence to interfere with the wreck, or to carry out diving or salvage operations within the protected area, without the authority of a licence granted by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Licensed divers are able to visit the site following the approval of written applications to DCMS.
The protected area extends 300 metres radius centred on Latitude 54E 11'.502 North, Longitude 000E 13'. 481 West.
Notes to Editors
1. The Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 gives the Secretary of State power by order to designate as a restricted area, the area around a site, if she is satisfied that: i) it is or may prove to be, the site of a vessel lying on or in the seabed; and ii} on account of the historical, archaeological or artistic importance of the vessel, or of any objects contained or formerly contained in it which may be lying on the seabed in or near the wreck, the site ought to be protected from unauthorised interference. The DCMS is advised in its work by the Archaeological Diving Unit of the University of St Andrews and the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites.
2. Diving on a designated site is only possible under a licence issued by the Secretary of State. Applications for licences are available from: The Department for Culture Media and Sport, Branch AHED 2, 2-4 Cockspur Street, London SW1Y 5DH, telephone 020 7211 6935. Further information on the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 and the designated wrecks can be found on http://www.adu.org.uk and http://www.culture.gov.uk/heritage/archaeology.html.
3. It is a legal requirement that any material recovered from a wreck (of any age) is reported to The Receiver of Wreck, Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Spring Place, 105 Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1EG, telephone 023 8032 9474.
Press Enquiries: 020 7211 6272/6276 Out of hours telephone pager no: 07699 751153 Public Enquiries: 020 7211 6200 Internet: http://www.culture.gov.uk