Good book about an important debate
One of my fondest memories is when I took a class to the U of Pennsylvania Museum. It focuses on Archeology. While there, a student who never spoke in class rushed up to me all excited. “Look,” he said, “It’s a cartouche of that female pharaoh we saw that program about. Awesome!” Okay, he didn’t say awesome because he is far cooler than I ever was or will be. But I remember how excited he was. This was an inner city eighteen year old. So if he gets to Egypt (and I hope he does), it isn’t going to be soon.
This story always comes to my mind when people talk about returning works of art to wherever they originally came from.
And let me straight, I am all behind recently stolen or smuggled works of art – say anything post modern accords and treaties. But the Elgin Marbles? The Rosetta Stone?
It’s great to read Waxman’s book because she is really quite fair and truly examines the issue.
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This book was written and published prior to the Arab Spring and Greek monetary problems, so those issues are not touched on.
Waxman picks four major areas – the Elgin Marbles, Egyptian Works, the mess at the Getty, and a Turkish hoard. She puts forward both sides and really, truly, looks at the conflicts surrounding artwork and ownership.
The weakest part of the book, was the last section, about the Getty, possibly because it needs more in depth treatment for the reader to fully grasp it (Waxman does refer to the Medici Conspiracy book), but her access and knowledge make the book a pleasure to read. She points out that some countries, who came art, don’t return art very well, and she does mention the more people who see, just might be a good idea.
In particular, her discussion of ownership is multi-layer because, as she points out with the Rosetta Stone, French and Britain could be seen to have an equal claim because of the work they did on it.
This book is a good selection for any book club that is interested in the issue.
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