Today at the Museum


Pair of shields with head of Acheloos

Pair of shields with head of Acheloos
Date: 6th century B.C.
Dimensions: Height: 3 in. (7.62 cm) Diameter: 17 1/2 in. (44.45 cm)
Medium: Bronze
Credit Line: Lent by the Republic of Italy
Culture: Etruscan
Object Number: 135.2012.5-6

Deaccession Criteria: Restitution/Returned to rightful owner: the work has been legally requested for restitution.

Edoardo Almagià, a former New York antiquities dealer, is currently named in a criminal case for conspiracy to commit the illegal export and smuggling of cultural property pending before the Public Prosecutor of Rome. Almagià has been under investigation since at least 2006, when U.S. Customs officials raided his New York apartment, confiscating photographs, documents, and archaeological material. He was also the subject of a New York Times story in 2010 that revealed he was the focus of an investigation of the illegal export and laundering of Italian archaeological objects. The Italian government named Almagià in the criminal case for having “sold, donated, or lent” nearly two dozen works looted from Italian sites.

PURCHASE INFORMATION: Dealer: Edoardo Almagià, New York (June 4, 1998)

PROVENANCE SUPPLIED: N/A

PUBLISHED REFERENCES:

  • Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection. Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art /Yale University Press, 2012, p. 137.
  • Dallas Museum of Art, 1903–2003: Celebrating 100 Years. Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art, 2003, p. 4 (ill.).
  • "Top 100 Treasures." Art and Antiques, March 1999, p. 94 (ill.).
  • DMA Agenda, members' newsletter, August–September 1998, p. 2 (ill.).
  • Dallas Museum of Art: Year in Review 1997–1998, annual report, p. 35 (ill.).

EXHIBITION HISTORY:

  • DMA collection galleries, June 1998–present

PROPOSED METHOD OF DISPOSAL: Long-term loan to DMA, if approved by Italian government; eventual return to Italy

CRITERIA FOR DEACCESSIONING: A request from the Italian government for restitution, with compelling evidence, including photographs, that object was looted and/or illegally exported

EVIDENCE:
A. Photographs provided that were seized by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
B. Archival evidence seized by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, including records of sales and correspondence currently serving as evidence in the criminal investigation and court case.