In what seems to be a real-life Indiana Jones storyline, artifacts have reportedly been stolen from the British Museum — allegedly by one of the museum's own employees.
Of the artifacts stolen, the newest date from the 19th century, while the oldest date back to the 15th century B.C. Yes, you read that correctly.
The theft was allegedly found out when a Freedom of Information Act request was filed, revealing that "one Greek silver coin, a 4th-century Roman coin, and a German coin had disappeared from the museum."
The worst part? The thief has reportedly been selling the artifacts on eBay.
The British Museum theft relates to broader problems in antiquities market
Illegal sale of antiquities are rampant. From unreported metal detecting finds to looted finds without provenance on international markets. Scholars who authenticate/publish such materials are complicit https://t.co/WhDY5yr1a6
According to the BBC, the British Museum was allegedly first notified in 2021 by antiquities dealer Ittai Gradel that he had seen antiquities held by the museum listed on the site. The museum's deputy director reportedly waited five months to reply to Dr. Gradel, then told him that there was "no suggestion of any wrongdoing."
Upon hearing the news, many on social media were quick to call the museum hypocritical because the British Museum is arguably famous for housing many of the world’s greatest treasures from countries who’d like their stuff back.
One current high-profile example of this is Greece demanding the return of the Parthenon Marbles, which were taken in the 19th century by the British Lord Elgin, with "permission" from occupying Ottoman forces.
Earlier this year, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak doubled down on the UK's commitment to never return the Marbles, calling them "a huge asset to this country" and saying, “We share their treasures with the world, and the world comes to the UK to see them." It's unclear whether Mr. Sunak has considered how huge an asset these Greek artifacts would be for the country of Greece.
It's worth noting that the UK's chief defense for keeping controversial stolen artifacts from all over the world — China, Greece, Nigeria — is the claim that these artifacts are "safer" within the United Kingdom than they would be in their countries of origin, where they may get lost, destroyed, or stolen.
The British Museum has released a statement detailing current actions they are taking to deal with the situation, but told BuzzFeed they are currently unable to comment further as they work with police on the ongoing investigation.
Not only is the loss of these artifacts a huge loss to the archaeological community, but it's also unlikely that this situation will result in the UK deciding to repatriate artifacts. Let me know what you think about this down in the comments — there's a lot to talk about here!
