When the Pushkin Museum launches a much-awaited exhibit of World War II art booty Tuesday morning, it will also open wide the lid of a Pandora's box involving claims of restitution for thousands of artifacts from Germany, Turkey and even Greece.
For the first time in half a century, the public will be able to view Priam's Treasure, 259 priceless ancient artifacts unearthed by amateur German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in Turkey in the 1870s and captured by the Soviet Army at the end of World War II.
But on Monday at a packed press conference, dozens of Russian and foreign journalists showed little interest in the historical, archaeological and artistic significance of the exhibit.
Instead, they peppered officials with questions on the matter of restitution. At least three governments have an intense interest in some day displaying -- if not possessing -- the treasures ranging from gold jewelry to figurine idols that date back to 2,500 B.C.
"I quite empathize with the Russian loss of material [during the war], but it doesn't give them the right to exhibit this material," said Ali Gitmez, the cultural counselor at the Turkish Embassy, who emphasized that he was not speaking on behalf of his government. He added that he had been asked to stay away from Monday's Pushkin press conference by Turkish officials who did not want to further stir up the debate.
For their part, the Germans are making strong claims under existing bilateral agreements that the Russians must return both Priam's Treasure and other art booty seized during the war. Impressionist masterpieces that were presented for the first time in blockbuster shows last year at the Pushkin and the Hermitage.
The whereabouts of those paintings as well as the works in the new exhibit were unknown until recently. Soviet and Russian authorities had hidden the works so well that they were considered lost.
An early resolution of the international tussle is unlikely. In April of last year, the State Duma passed a moratorium forbidding the further return of art and artifacts seized from Germany until a federal law is passed that covers future exchanges of war booty.
In the case of Priam's Treasure, the Turks' claims that the Germans themselves unlawfully obtained the artifacts further muddies the waters. In a further twist, the Greek government has expressed interest in displaying the Trojan objects after the issue has been resolved by the Russians and Germans.
Although attention at the press conference was focused nearly exclusively on the issue of restitution, the mere appearance of the exhibit, after its items lay in the bowels of the Pushkin Museum for half a century, is an international cultural happening.
The exhibit features 259 items in remarkably good condition. An intricately wrought gold diadem, gold necklaces, gold goblets, a sauceboat, ritual hammer-axes, bronze idol figurines -- all are displayed in a subtle setting under muted lighting in a single hall. Vladimir Tolstikov, chief of the museum's Antiquities Department, said that even the German experts who had been allowed to see Priam's Treasure were surprised at the fine quality of the museum's work in preserving the objects. They "were amazed ... [The items] were in the same condition" as they had been 50 years ago.
Pushkin Museum director Irina Antonova said the Tuesday opening was overdue. Describing Priam's Treasure as "one of the most significant collections of antiquity exhibited in the world," she said: "This exhibit has been long awaited. Perhaps too long ... Perhaps it should have been opened long ago."
Russian Culture Minister Yevgeny Sidorov lauded the museum's display at the press conference, saying that it was an attempt to "reveal what had been hidden."
There also is a certain irony in the display of some of Schliemann's finds in Russia. In his attempts to find a home for his smuggled archaeological treasures in the 19th century, Schliemann approached various museums, including the Hermitage. At that time, according to Gitmez, the Russian museum would not accept confiscated material. "Russians may be proud of that approach," he said.
After all the years of waiting, those interested in viewing the exhibit may wish to wait for a week or two more before going to the museum. In another bureaucratic snafu, catalogues on Priam's Treasure, published by Leonardo Mandadori in Milan, are stuck in customs and thus will not be available at the museum for several days.
For the first time in half a century, the public will be able to view Priam's Treasure, 259 priceless ancient artifacts unearthed by amateur German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in Turkey in the 1870s and captured by the Soviet Army at the end of World War II.
But on Monday at a packed press conference, dozens of Russian and foreign journalists showed little interest in the historical, archaeological and artistic significance of the exhibit.
Instead, they peppered officials with questions on the matter of restitution. At least three governments have an intense interest in some day displaying -- if not possessing -- the treasures ranging from gold jewelry to figurine idols that date back to 2,500 B.C.
"I quite empathize with the Russian loss of material [during the war], but it doesn't give them the right to exhibit this material," said Ali Gitmez, the cultural counselor at the Turkish Embassy, who emphasized that he was not speaking on behalf of his government. He added that he had been asked to stay away from Monday's Pushkin press conference by Turkish officials who did not want to further stir up the debate.
For their part, the Germans are making strong claims under existing bilateral agreements that the Russians must return both Priam's Treasure and other art booty seized during the war. Impressionist masterpieces that were presented for the first time in blockbuster shows last year at the Pushkin and the Hermitage.
The whereabouts of those paintings as well as the works in the new exhibit were unknown until recently. Soviet and Russian authorities had hidden the works so well that they were considered lost.
An early resolution of the international tussle is unlikely. In April of last year, the State Duma passed a moratorium forbidding the further return of art and artifacts seized from Germany until a federal law is passed that covers future exchanges of war booty.
In the case of Priam's Treasure, the Turks' claims that the Germans themselves unlawfully obtained the artifacts further muddies the waters. In a further twist, the Greek government has expressed interest in displaying the Trojan objects after the issue has been resolved by the Russians and Germans.
Although attention at the press conference was focused nearly exclusively on the issue of restitution, the mere appearance of the exhibit, after its items lay in the bowels of the Pushkin Museum for half a century, is an international cultural happening.
The exhibit features 259 items in remarkably good condition. An intricately wrought gold diadem, gold necklaces, gold goblets, a sauceboat, ritual hammer-axes, bronze idol figurines -- all are displayed in a subtle setting under muted lighting in a single hall. Vladimir Tolstikov, chief of the museum's Antiquities Department, said that even the German experts who had been allowed to see Priam's Treasure were surprised at the fine quality of the museum's work in preserving the objects. They "were amazed ... [The items] were in the same condition" as they had been 50 years ago.
Pushkin Museum director Irina Antonova said the Tuesday opening was overdue. Describing Priam's Treasure as "one of the most significant collections of antiquity exhibited in the world," she said: "This exhibit has been long awaited. Perhaps too long ... Perhaps it should have been opened long ago."
Russian Culture Minister Yevgeny Sidorov lauded the museum's display at the press conference, saying that it was an attempt to "reveal what had been hidden."
There also is a certain irony in the display of some of Schliemann's finds in Russia. In his attempts to find a home for his smuggled archaeological treasures in the 19th century, Schliemann approached various museums, including the Hermitage. At that time, according to Gitmez, the Russian museum would not accept confiscated material. "Russians may be proud of that approach," he said.
After all the years of waiting, those interested in viewing the exhibit may wish to wait for a week or two more before going to the museum. In another bureaucratic snafu, catalogues on Priam's Treasure, published by Leonardo Mandadori in Milan, are stuck in customs and thus will not be available at the museum for several days.
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