The Cleveland Museum of Art has agreed to return a black basalt Ptolemaic statue it has had since 1991 that was believed to have been looted from the Ptolemais Museum in Libya during World War II.
The museum said that it has reached an agreement with the Department of Antiquities of the State of Libya to return the statue at a later date, with Libya allowing it to stay in Cleveland for the next several years.
“We appreciate the willingness of the Cleveland Museum of Art to work with the Department in accomplishing the transfer of this important work. We look forward to continued cooperation with the Museum,” said Mohamed Faraj Mohamed, head of the Libyan Department of Antiquities of the State of Libya.
While the statue will remain in Cleveland for the time being, it will have a new label on display acknowledging Libya as its rightful owner. Furthermore, the museum said it is exploring future collaboration with Libya that could include additional pieces of art loans brought to Cleveland.
“We are very pleased with the collaboration and open dialogue we have had with our colleagues in Libya and look forward to the opportunity for enhanced cultural exchange that our agreement with them represents,” said Dr. William M. Griswold, director of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
Mohamed will travel to Cleveland to meet with Griswold and sign an official agreement that recognizes the statue belonging to Libya, the museum said.
This isn't the first time the museum has discovered that a piece of art on display rightfully belonged to another nation. According to museum officials, in 2015, a stone carving of the Hindu monkey general Hanuman led to a collaboration between the museum and the Cambodian government.
In 2022, the Italian Senate inquired about a 16th-century piece of art resembling a terracotta altarpiece that was listed on the country's database of illegally stolen cultural assets.
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