An ancient Roman bust has been seized from a Massachusetts art museum as part of an investigation into antiquities stolen from Turkey.
The Worcester Art Museum announced that it had transferred ownership of the bronze bust to the New York county district attorney’s office so it can be repatriated to Turkey.
The bust, which the museum purchased in 1966, is called Portrait of a Lady (A Daughter of Marcus Aurelius?) and dates back to AD160-180. It is believed to have come from a large family shrine in Turkey of a Roman emperor, possibly Marcus Aurelius or Septimius Severus, and is likely a life-sized representation of one of their daughters, the museum said.
The museum announced that it ceded ownership of the bust after “receiving new information about the object’s history of ownership”. At the time of purchase, the museum was provided with little information about the bust’s history and was informed by the vendor that it was discovered in south-western Anatolia that year.
“Although the museum conducted its own research at that time, it now acquires objects with greater diligence,” the museum said, adding that it had never previously received a claim or learned of any defects in ownership.
Earlier this year, the New York county district attorney’s office provided the museum with additional information. Based on the new evidence that was given, the museum determined that the bust was likely stolen and improperly imported.
“We are very thankful for the new information provided to us,” said Matthias Waschek, the Worcester Art Museum’s director. “The ethical standards applicable to museums are much changed since the 1960s, and the museum is committed to managing its collection consistent with modern ethical standards.”
Describing the bust, the museum said that it has been studied as a “fascinating example of ancient Roman craft”. Various sculptors may have created the bust’s head and shoulders.
“While the bust and shoulders are treated summarily, the head is sensitively modeled and the hair minutely detailed in carefully combed waves. The woman’s heavy-lidded gaze betrays a contemplative personality as distant as the emperors themselves,” the museum said.
The bust is valued at $5m, according to court documents reviewed by the Washington Post.
The New York county’s district attorney’s office announced in July that its Antiquities Trafficking Unit has repatriated over 950 antiquities stolen from 19 countries and valued at over $165m since January 2022.
Last month, Manhattan authorities seized a headless bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius from Ohio’s Cleveland Museum of Art, which was valued at $20m, according to a warrant.
Speaking to the New York Times, an ATU spokesperson said the seizure of the approximately 1,800-year-old statue was part of an “ongoing criminal investigation into a smuggling network involving antiquities looted from Turkey and trafficked through Manhattan”.
