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MOLA

@museumofloot.bsky.social
1.3K followers 949 following 1.5K posts

Museum of Looted Antiquities is a virtual gallery that collects, displays and studies looted antiquities – and the trafficking networks behind them. MuseumOfLoot.org

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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
New Case: Four Gold Foil Birds of Prey from the Chinese Eastern Zhou culture’s Spring and Autumn period, contributed by Allison Casaly.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
NEWS: Among 180 objects valued at $70 million seized by the Manhattan DA, four antiquities were from Michael Steinhardt, one of the world’s largest ancient art collectors. Three of the objects are female Syro-Hittite Idols crafted in northwest Syria during the 2nd millennium B.C.E.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
The Manhattan DA has seized and returned 36 antiquities, collectively valued over $5 million, to the people of Syria. Among the returned objects, including a Palmyrene sculpture and mosaics, are 31 Middle Eastern and North African antiquities allegedly trafficked into New York by Georges Lotfi.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
NYT: The Met worked with a collector, Ceil Pulitzer, and with officials of the Nigerian National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) to return three African masterworks with insufficient provenance while ensuring that they will be accessible to audiences and scholars in New York.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
NEWS: The Met Museum has returned eight additional antiquities to Greece. Three of the objects were returned after new evidence emerged through the Manhattan DA’s ongoing investigations of antiquities dealers.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Among a new wave of seizures from the Metropolitan Museum of Art is a remarkable group of 34 terracotta fertility figurines from Mehrgarh, donated by Jonathan Rosen in 2001 with no documented provenance.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
New Case: An Apulian Volute Krater attributed to the Darius Painter, contributed by @livelizabeth.bsky.social The 2008 return of this krater attributed to the Darius Painter from the Cleveland Museum of Art shows that antiquities smuggled through the notorious Medici ring continue to surface.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
New Case: A Hattian Golden Ewer from the Gilbert Collection, contributed by Simon Dade. Sir Arthur Gilbert, a British-born American real estate developer, acquired this golden ewer, a funerary vessel from the Anatolian culture of Hatti, in 1989 from the Los-Angeles antiquities dealer Bruce McNall.
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Damien Huffer @damienhuffer.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
www.nytimes.com/2026/09/05/w... (paywalled) @museumofloot.bsky.social
nytimes.com
English Museum to Repatriate Colonial-Era Human Remains
The skeletal remains will go back to the Indigenous Naga people of the Indian subcontinent, six years after formal repatriation efforts began.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
New Case: The Nashville Parthenon Pre-Columbian collection, contributed by Jasmine Gloria The Parthenon in Nashville Tennessee, an art museum and life-sized replica of the temple in Athens that was plundered by Lord Elgin, has been proactive in returning looted antiquities in its collection.
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Damien Huffer @damienhuffer.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/art... @museumofloot.bsky.social
ctvnews.ca
2,000-year-old Peruvian cultural artifact recovered in Montreal
A small, pre-Hispanic bowl, believed to be roughly 2,000 years old, is returning to Peru after being located in Montreal.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
New Case: Two Akkadian cylinder seals, contributed by Roma Aatifi. These two stone cylinder seals are more than 4,000 year-old and date to the Akkadian Empire, circa 2350-2150 BCE. Both were stolen from Iraq's Duhok Museum in 1991 during the first Gulf War.
mola.omeka.net
Two Akkadian Cylinder Seals · Museum of Looted Antiquities
The Museum of Looted Antiquities collects, displays and studies ancient art and artifacts that have been repatriated to their countries of origin since 1950.
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Damien Huffer @damienhuffer.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Very cool paper by Dr. Schattke and colleagues on Colonial violence and human remains acquisitions for early museums. @museumofloot.bsky.social www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
cambridge.org
Assessing Violence in a Museum Collection of Human Remains | Cambridge Archaeological Journal | Cambridge Core
Assessing Violence in a Museum Collection of Human Remains
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
New Case: A Neo-Assyrian relief depicting a winged genie, contributed by Emily Primmer-Pyke This sandstone relief depicts a human-headed winged genie figure next to a sacred tree. It was scientifically excavated at King Ashurnasirpal II's palace at Nimrud, near Mosul, Iraq, in the 1970s.
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Damien Huffer @damienhuffer.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-07... @museumofloot.bsky.social
abc.net.au
Unlawful excavation of river cliff disturbs Aboriginal ancestral remains
A cliff site in South Australia's Riverland, home to Aboriginal ancestral remains, has been excavated without authorisation.
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Getty @gettymuseum.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Ancient mosaics in the Mediterranean faced an uncertain future until organizations around the world came together to protect them. Called MOSAIKON, this initiative supported training for 200+ conservation specialists. A new report on the impact of this 15-year initiative: gty.art/mosaikon-report
A person crouches on a floor mosaic to examine its condition. Text: How to keep ancient mosaics safe. Reflecting on a 15-year initiative to protect these vulnerable treasures in the Mediterranean. Read full report: gty.art/mosaikon-report
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
New case: A dancing Nayika figure with a parrot, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos. This case represents the first repatriation of cultural property to India from Canada, and highlights the role eBay and other online auctions play in the illicit antiquities trade.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
NEWS: The Manhattan DA has returned three looted antiquities to Mexico, including one seized from the Met Museum, tied to Merrin Gallery and Eugene Alexander, a Bulgarian-American antiquities dealer who has alleged ties to Bulgarian organized crime. manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-an...
manhattanda.org
D.A. Bragg Announces Return Of Three Antiquities To The People Of Mexico
“I am pleased that we have now been able to return more than 50 antiquities back to Mexico. We believe that the trafficking networks we have identified are responsible for other pieces looted througho...
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
New Case: The Lava Treasure, contributed by Patrick Boyle. The case of the Lava Treasure reveals the challenges of repatriating looted shipwreck treasure, especially when the wreck itself has never been found.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
NEWS: Erin Thompson @artcrimeprof.bsky.social takes a deep look at Hicham and Ali Aboutaam’s antiquities gallery Phoenix Ancient Art, the source of 9 looted artifacts recently seized from The Met, worth nearly $5 million, as well as hundreds more over the years. hyperallergic.com/why-do-so-ma...
hyperallergic.com
Why Do So Many Museums Hold a Convicted Antiquity Dealer’s Treasures?
After The Met returned a Roman bust connected to Phoenix Ancient Art, the question of what will happen to other works sold by the gallery to dozens of US institutions remains open.
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Erin L. Thompson @artcrimeprof.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Among the details in the DA's latest repatriation press release is that an auction house disguised a red-flag name of a known trafficker of Iraqi antiquities (Hassan Rihani) by describing pieces as from the "R. Family Collection." Genius! They'll never know! manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-an...
Screenshot of text reading "A Sumerian Gypsum Male Worshipper and the Sumerian Gypsum Female Worshipper, dating to Iraq’s Early Dynastic II Period, approximately 2750–2600 B.C.E., are among the earliest known sculptural depictions of the human figure in the round. Both sculptures first appeared on the market in 2015 after Ariadne Galleries sold them as part of the “Rihani Family Collection.”Thereafter, this Office seized and repatriated eleven antiquities smuggled by Hassan Rihani from Iraq, Jordan, Israel, and Syria. Earlier this year, an auction house offered both statues for sale, changing the provenance to “R. Family Collection.”Nonetheless, this Office identified both statues as stolen and received a warrant for their seizure in June 2026."
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
News: The Manhattan DA’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit just announced the return of 59 more looted antiquities, valued at more than $600,000, to the people of Italy, Iraq, and Indonesia. They include 45 more Italian objects seized from the Met…
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
NYT: Decades Late,The American Museum of Natural History said it would repatriate 2,700 hair clippings to tribes under NAGPRA. The clippings were originally collected by anthropologists for an installation at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/08/a...
nytimes.com
Decades Late, Museum Scrambles to Return 2,700 Native Remains
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
New case: Male and female terracotta heads from Iraq, contributed by Tai Sherman and reviewed by Roma Aatifi. These 2 Babylonian heads, ca. 2000–1600 BCE, were among three antiquities repatriated from the US to Iraq in 2025.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
NEWS: Manhattan’s Antiquarium Fine Ancient Arts Gallery has returned to Cambodia 20 artifacts acquired from Douglas Latchford between 1995 and 2005, according to The New York Times, citing a forfeiture complaint filed in the Southern District of New York on June 25. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/02/a...
nytimes.com
New York Gallery Surrenders 20 Artifacts Thought Looted From Cambodia
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
New case, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos: Moche Gilded Mask Ornament On May 15, 2025, the Manhattan DA’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit returned 8 Pre-Columbian antiquities to Peru, including this Moche gilded copper mask ornament looted from Loma Negra and dating to about 400 BCE.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
New Case: A fragment of a fresco from Paestum's Tomb 53, contributed by Jason Felch.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
News: Cambodia has recovered three more looted sculptures from New York, including two seized from the Metropolitan Museum of Art that were trafficked by gallery owner Doris Wiener and seized this year. Details below >
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
New Case: A Palestinian cosmetic spoon, contributed by Michela Herbert. This ivory cosmetic spoon from the Assyrian period, dating c. 800—700 BCE, was allegedly looted from an Iron Age Jewish tomb at the site of El Kom, near Hebron in the West Bank.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
New Case: Horse and Boar bronze heads from the Old Summer Palace, Beijing. Contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos. This case documents the return of two more of the original twelve zodiac heads that formed part of the water clock in the gardens of the Old Summer Palace.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
News: Manhattan DA returned 20 cultural objects valued at more than $100k to Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and New Zealand. The objects had been laundered through museum donations in an alleged tax-fraud scheme by Subhash Kapoor. manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-an...
manhattanda.org
D.A. Bragg Announces First-Ever Return Of Antiquities To Pacific Island Nations
“I am thrilled that we are able to make these historic returns,” said District Attorney Bragg. “These incredible objects have been in New York illegally for far too long, and I commend our team for th...
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
New Case: An embroidered panel of Saint Vigilius, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos. This 14th-century embroidery, one of six panels from the archbishop’s vestments showing the death of St. Vigilius, was stolen from the Sacristy of the Cathedral of Trent between 1939 and 1944.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
New Case: Gweagal Aboriginal spears, contributed by Madalyn Grant. This case demonstrates that even so-called utilitarian objects taken during the British Empire's rampant collecting continue to have deep significance for descendant communities.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
New Case: Neo-Assyrian Gold Earrings, contributed by Isabelle Marie Gomez. When the Iraq Museum was looted during the US invasion of Baghdad in April 2003, this ancient pair of earrings disappeared, along with tens of thousands of other artifacts.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
New Case: An Etruscan bronze statuette of Herakles, contributed by @jasonfelch.bsky.social. On January 7, 1964, thieves broke into the Museo Archeologico Oliveriano in Pesaro, Italy, and stole dozens of ancient artifacts, including this Etruscan statuette of Hercules from the 6th century BCE.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
New Case: Bayeux Tapestry fragments, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos In 2023, officials at the Schleswig-Holstein Federal State Archives in Germany discovered two fragments taken from the Bayeux Tapestry.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
New Case: The Le Prince de Conty Hoard, contributed by Patrick Boyle:
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
NEWS: The Manhattan DA has returned 657 antiquities to India, worth an estimated $14 million. The pieces were recovered during investigations into alleged antiquities trafficker Subhash Kapoor and convicted trafficker Nancy Wiener manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-an...
manhattanda.org
D.A. Bragg Announces The Return Of More Than 650 Antiquities To The People Of India
“The scale of the trafficking networks that targeted cultural heritage in India is massive, as demonstrated by the return of more than 600 pieces today,” said District Attorney Bragg. “There is unfort...
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
New Case: Apulian Volute Krater by the Underworld Painter, contributed by Zach Beier: In 2012, the Dallas Museum of Art returned seven antiquities to Italy, including this 4th century BCE krater with scenes of the Labors of Hercules attributed to the Underworld Painter, a Greek vase painter.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
New Case: 8 Hispano-Chalcidic Helments, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos. This helmet was part of a group of eight Hispano-Chalcidic helmets looted from an Iron Age site near Zaragoza, Spain.
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Lynda Albertson @sauterne.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
S. Vijay Kumar, co-founder of the India Pride Project, pointed out the following @timesofindianews.bsky.social article about a stolen grey stone stela of Padmapani last seen for sale at Galerie Zacke in Vienna. (1 of several) timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/...
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Artefact seized at B’luru airport turns out to be stolen Nepalese antiquity | Bengaluru News - The Times of India
Bengaluru: The interception of a consignment declared as a ‘grey stone stele of Padmapani' by the Air Cargo Commissionerate at Bengaluru airport five .
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
NEWS: The Metropolitan Museum of Art has quietly returned several more looted objects to Italy, including this stunning bronze acquired as a gift from the Norbert Schimmel Collection in 1989. Schimmel purchased it from Galerie Nefer, owned by alleged antiquities trafficker Frieda Tchakos, in 1989.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
New case: Triangular Support for a Candelabrum, contributed by Emily Hamann: This candelabrum base was repatriated to Italy in 2006 after being linked to the Medici trafficking network.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Myanmar's rich artistic heritage has long been looted, copied and sold to foreign buyers. Today's market in counterfeit antiquities, fake gemstones and forged paintings is just the latest chapter of creative deception. www.newmandala.org/buyer-beware...
newmandala.org
Buyer beware: fakes, forgeries and fraudsters in Myanmar - New Mandala
A thriving market in counterfeit art and gems
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
The children of two prominent American art collectors have voluntarily returned to Greece five Greek antiquities acquired by their parents in the 1970s and 80s, the Culture Ministry said Tuesday www.ekathimerini.com/culture/1301...
ekathimerini.com
Antiquities from US collection returned to Greece | eKathimerini.com
The children of two prominent American art collectors have voluntarily returned to Greece five Greek antiquities acquired by their parents in the 1970s and 80s, the Culture Ministry said Tuesday.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
NEWS: The Manhattan DA seized 12 Egyptian antiquities from the Metropolitan Museum of Art during criminal investigations into three separate antiquities trafficking networks. manhattanda.org/d-a-bragg-an...
manhattanda.org
D.A. Bragg Announces Return Of 13 Antiquities To The People Of Egypt
“Despite our significant progress dismantling these extensive trafficking networks, there is clearly still more work to do. Museums and galleries in Manhattan should not be filled with looting or stol...
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
New case, contributed by Tai Sherman: Etruscan Bronze Lar This Etruscan bronze figure depicting a lar, a protective household deity, was stolen from the National Archaeological Museum of Siena in 1988.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
New case: Headless sculptures of Artemis and Apollo, contributed by Lisa Duffy-Zeballos.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
New case, contributed by Isabelle Marie Gomez: Adana Ulu Camii Iznik Tiles Tiles, like the one depicted here, once adorned the Adana Ulu Camii or Adana Great Mosque in modern Türkiye. But in the early 2000s, hundreds of these tiles were stolen from the mosque in two separate thefts.
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MOLA @museumofloot.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
There are thousands of colonial-era human remains, including skulls, skeletons, mummies, hair and teeth, in European collections…A small portion were gathered through archaeological looting or taken as trophies from colonized lands in Africa, Asia and Oceania.
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