The Dean of Westminster Abbey in London has decided “in principle” to return a sacred Ethiopian tablet, which was looted over 150 years ago at the height of the British empire.
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Category: Art News
Roman scroll destroyed by Vesuvius read for first time in 2,000 years using AI
Scientists and scholars have joined forces to resurrect a 2,000-year-old charred papyrus scroll using artificial intelligence. The previously illegible text was damaged during the violent eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, which caused the deaths of over 1,500 people and the destruction of Pompeii and Herculeum.
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Hackers attack databases of major international museums
A group of hackers has hit a popular software used by major international museums. Since the cyberattack in December, several cultural organisations like the Rubin Museum of Art in New York and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston are still struggling to access their online collections.
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Medieval ivory of national importance at risk of leaving UK
A small 12th-century ivory carving is currently the subject of an acquisition battle between two art world giants, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A). Both museums are vying for ownership of the exquisite sculpture, which has been on loan to the V&A since 1982.
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Metropolitan Museum of Art announce the repatriation of items to Cambodia and Thailand
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met) in New York has announced that they will be returning 16 sculptures to Cambodia and Thailand. The works have been associated with known antiquities smuggler Douglas Latchford, who was indicted in 2019 prior to his death in 2020. Latchford was a dealer who was charged with “running a vast antiquities trafficking network” in southeast Asia.
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Jess Darling’s dystopian installation wins 2023 Turner Prize
Earlier this month, Artist Jesse Darling has won the 2023 Turner Prize for his dystopian sculptures made of everyday detritus that comment on modern British life. As the winner of the most prestigious British art prize, Darling will receive a £25,000 award. “There’s a lot of humour in the work and you feel immersed in its world,” commented Alex Farquharson, Tate Britain director and chair of the Turner Prize jury.
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A supposedly earlier Mona Lisa goes on display in Turin
On the 24 November, an exhibition titled ‘The First Mona Lisa’ opened in Turin’s Promotrice delle Belle Arti gallery. On display is a painting which, according to some, is an earlier version of Leonardo da Vinci’s famous ‘Mona Lisa’, one which – it is argued – he painted in around 1505.
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‘Forgotten’ Botticelli painting rediscovered after 50 years in Naples
After disappearing in mysterious circumstances, a beloved artwork by the Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) has been discovered at a private residence outside Naples. Valued at around €100 million (£85.7 million), the “forgotten” painting is one of the last known works by the artist.
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Banksy’s real first name supposedly revealed in podcast
Over the summer, BBC Radio 4 released a new podcast The Banksy Story which delved into the mysterious artist and coincided with the first ever Banksy retrospective which was held at the Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art. Ex-employees are featured on the podcast and the series aims to “chart the elusive artist’s compelling journey from street artist to global phenomenon”.
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Lost love letters from The Seven Years’ War opened for the first time
For the first time in over 250 years, a box of love letters sealed during the Seven Years’ War have been opened. They reveal the affection, anxiety, and strife of loved ones attempting to connect with French soldiers onboard a warship. “I could spend the night writing to you,” wrote Marie Dubosc in a letter to her husband Louis Chambrelan, the ship’s first lieutenant.
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