Aphrodite of Morgantina
Graphite on paper
30 x 22 inches
The Aphrodite of Morgantina is a larger than life size marble and limestone sculpture which is believed to have been looted from an excavation site in Morgantina, Sicily. The sculpture was purchased by the J. Paul Getty museum from a London art dealer who had bought it from a Swiss family. The swiss family had purportedly been in posession of the sculpture since 1939, which is the same year that the Italian governmen, in an effort to preserve the cultural heritage of the region, passed a law preventing the removal of antiquities from the country.
The J. Paul Getty museum has since reached an agreement with The Italian government to return the sculpture and several other antiquities. It will remain on display at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles until 2010.
More info at the website for the Illicit Antiquities Research Centre. More info about the sculpture at the Getty Museum.
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