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8 p.m. news
Published on September 16, 2023 10:07 p.m. Updated on September 16, 2023 10:55 p.m
Video length: 2 min
France 2
Article written by France 2 – A. Bouleis, C. Madini, L. Soudre
France TV
The British Museum is at the center of a scandal in the United Kingdom. One of its curators is said to have sold almost 2,000 rare antiques on eBay. Back to this matter.
The British Museum in London (United Kingdom) is the oldest museum in the world. Its archaeological collection attracts thousands of visitors every year, but for years it was looted. 2,000 pieces were sold online. The thief would have acted from the inside, an unsuspected employee. Ittai Gradel revealed the museum’s biggest scandal. He is a Danish art dealer who specializes in carved stones from Roman antiquity. On the eBay site, a seller catches his attention. His pseudonym: Sultan1966.
The scandal breaks out
One day he recognized a stone at the spot that he had already seen in a photo. “A few hours before he removed it, he offered a fragment of a cameo for sale. A gem that appeared in the British Museum catalog of 1926,” he explains. It is actually the same stone that appears in the official records. Intrigued, he tries to find out more about the seller. His bank details reveal Sultan1966’s identity. His name: Peter Higgs, an expert in Mediterranean archaeology. He immediately wrote to the museum and denounced the curator.
After months, the museum responded that an internal investigation had found no violation. The curator was promoted. The scandal broke last month. The director resigns. The curator, who denies the allegations, is fired. He is suspected of selling hundreds of pieces online. A police investigation is underway.
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