Examination of Witnesses (Questions 594
- 599)
THURSDAY 8 JUNE 2000
MR GRAHAM
C GREENE CBE, DR
ROBERT ANDERSON
AND MR
VIVIAN DAVIES
Chairman: Gentlemen, I would like to
welcome you here today. I am going to make an announcement which
I hoped I would never have to make but in view of experience at
a meeting earlier this week I will have to make it. Will anybody
with a mobile phone please make sure it is switched off because
if it is not switched off and erupts during our session I shall
have no hesitation in ejecting the person responsible. We are
coming now to the end of this inquiry. We are delighted to have
you here today and we are delighted to have Mr Dassin here again
in the public session following the evidence that he and the Greek
Foreign Minister gave. This is a notable day in the history of
antiquities and art, since we now know that Michelangelo's David
had a squint. I will call on Mr Fearn to open the questioning.
Mr Fearn
594. You state—and I have read through
what you said—that your policy on acquisitions is in accordance
with the 1970 UNESCO Convention. If you were required to look
at an object, or if you acquired it, which transpired later to
have been illegally exported from its country of origin since
1970, would you return it or would you look into the legal title
of it?
(Dr Anderson) First of all, we would look very carefully
into the facts which were presented to us obviously to check them,
to make quite sure that what was said about that object was in
fact true. If the object had been acquired within the statute
of limitations, we would certainly consider the possibility of
returning that object. We have returned objects, not from abroad,
but objects which have been stolen from this country, within that
period in recent years.
595. You say you would consider returning it.
Why would you not just return it?
(Dr Anderson) What I mean by that is that we would
go through the process of presenting all the evidence to the Board
of Trustees and the Trustees would take a decision based on the
evidence the staff of the Museum provided.
596. How many objects in the last 12 months
have you returned?
(Dr Anderson) None.
597. How many investigations have there been
in the last 12 months?
(Dr Anderson) A foreign object which we acquire and
which turns out to be stolen or illegally excavated in recent
years is a very, very rare thing. We try to do our homework beforehand
rather than be landed with something that we do not want to have
in our collection.
598. Do you communicate with the country of
origin or do you go through Scotland Yard or Interpol?
(Dr Anderson) It depends on the circumstances. We
would tend to communicate with the country of origin if it was
from abroad, yes.
(Mr Davies) We also have very close relations with
the country of origin's representatives in London and also with
the art and antiques squad at Scotland Yard, whom we have constant
dialogue with on these issues and very close relations which are
expanding and turning out to be very productive.
(Dr Anderson) Although we have not had anything in
our collection which has been returned in the last 12 months,
the Department of Egyptian Antiquities represented here by Mr
Davies has been involved in the return of objects. We have very
close relations with the police and with the Egyptian Embassy,
which led to a good result.
(Mr Davies) Twice in the last five years we have been
involved in investigations, one of which led to the conviction
of a very serious criminal with an unprecedented sentence, which
sent out a wonderful signal to the illicit trade in general. More
recently, we were involved in returning the sculpted head of an
important queen to Egypt as a result of a civil case in which
the evidence of the British Museum contributed to securing the
result.
599. When you say you would go to certain sources
or persons, are those the embassies?
(Mr Davies) The embassy has a cultural bureau and
a cultural officer. That person in that office would be the first
point of contact if we felt that the investigation needed to be
carried in that direction. Scotland Yard are our very first point
of contact. We always need the advice of the police in these legal
areas.
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