Former President of Louvre Museum Charged In Art Trafficking Case

[appalachiablue]

Last edited Fri May 27, 2022, 03:42 AM - Edit history (4)

Source: France24

The former president of the Louvre museum in Paris has been charged with conspiring to hide the origin of Egyptian archaeological treasures that investigators suspect were spirited out of the country during the Arab Spring uprisings, a French judicial source said Thursday.

Jean-Luc Martinez was charged Wednesday after being taken in for questioning along with two French specialists in Egyptian art, who were not charged, another source close to the inquiry told AFP. The case was opened in July 2018, two years after the Louvre's branch in Abu Dhabi bought a rare pink granite stele depicting the pharaoh Tutankhamun and four other historic works for eight million euros ($8.5 million).

Martinez, who ran the Paris Louvre from 2013 to 2021, is accused of turning a blind eye to fake certificates of origin for the pieces, a fraud thought to involve several other art experts, according to a report Wednesday in the Canard Enchaine investigative weekly. He has been charged with complicity in fraud and "concealing the origin of criminally obtained works by false endorsement," according to the judicial source.

The move comes after the German-Lebanese gallery owner who brokered the sale was arrested in Hamburg in March and extradited to Paris for questioning in the case. French investigators suspect that hundreds of artefacts were pillaged during the Arab Spring protests that engulfed several Middle Eastern countries in the early 2010s, and then sold to galleries and museums that did not ask too many questions about previous ownership...

Read more: https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20220526-former-president-of-louvre-museum-charged-in-art-trafficking-case

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- Former president of the Louvre, Jean-Luc Martinez charged in art trafficking case.




- Rare pink Egyptian Stele depicting Pharoh Tutankhamun c. 1327 BCE, (*trafficked?) bought by the Louve's Abu Dhabi branch in 2016. This arched stele is partly covered with a long inscription in hieroglyphs that promulgates a royal decree in the name of Tut. in which a certain Raya, a high priest in the Temple of Osiris in Abydos, is assured protection.

At the top, the low-relief decoration includes a surprising instance of twin representation of Tut. As the only mediator between earth & the gods, the pharaoh is first shown giving offerings & prayers to the great god Osiris, Lord of the Underworld, before taking his place & in turn receiving offerings from the high-ranking official Pa-en-nesit. https://www.louvreabudhabi.ae/en/explore/highlights-of-the-collection/toutankhamon
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- BBC NEWS, Ed.: ''Louvre museum's ex-president charged in art trafficking case,' May 26, 2022. The former head of the Louvre in Paris has been charged in connection with a wide-ranging inquiry into the trafficking of ancient objects from the Middle East. French investigators allege Jean-Luc Martinez facilitated the transfer of the objects to the Louvre Abu Dhabi. They reportedly include a granite stele inscribed with the seal of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh, Tutankhamun. Mr Martinez denies the charges & insists that he acted in good faith. There was no immediate comment from the Paris Louvre, while the Louvre Abu Dhabi said it was unable to comment on the specifics of the case because of the French investigation... https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61590608
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- The Art Newspaper: 'Dealer suspected of selling looted antiquities to the Metropolitan Museum of Art & Louvre Abu Dhabi detained in Paris,' March, 2022. The Hamburg-based dealer Roben Dib was arrested in Paris last week. His lawyers say he will "fully cooperate with the investigation"... https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2022/03/25/dealer-suspected-of-selling-looted-antiquities-to-the-metropolitan-museum-of-art-and-louvre-abu-dhabi-detained-in-paris



- The gilded coffin of Nedjemankh sold by Dib to the Met for $3.85 Mil. (* looted?). Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art.

- ARTFORUM, March 25, 2022. DEALER DETAINED IN PARIS ON SUSPICION OF SELLING LOOTED ARTIFACTS TO MET, LOUVRE ABU DHABI. German-Lebanese dealer Roben Dib, who is suspected by US and French officials to been heavily involved in the sale of looted objects to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Louvre Abu Dhabi, was collared in Hamburg last week, The Art Newspaper reports. Via a European arrest warrant, Dib was summarily shipped off to France, where he remains in custody, awaiting trial in a Paris court on charges of gang fraud and money laundering... https://www.artforum.com/news/dealer-detained-in-paris-on-suspicion-of-selling-looted-artifacts-to-met-louvre-abu-dhabi-88286
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- Louve Museum, Paris. The Napoleon Courtyard and I. M. Pei's pyramid in its center, at dusk.






- The Seated Scribe, 2613-2494 BC, Egyptian.





- The Great Sphinx of Tanis; circa 2600 BC; rose, Egyptian.

- The Louve, EGYPTIAN ANTIQUITIES COLLECTION. The department, comprising over 50,000 pieces  include artifacts from the Nile civilizations which date from 4,000 BC to the 4th cent. AD. The collection, among the world's largest, overviews Egyptian life spanning Ancient Egypt, the Middle Kingdom, the New Kingdom, Coptic art, & the Roman, Ptolemaic, & Byzantine periods. The department was augmented by Napoleon's 1798 expeditionary trip with Dominique Vivant, the future director of the Louvre. After Jean-Franois Champollion translated the Rosetta Stone, Charles X decreed that an Egyptian Antiquities department be created. Champollion advised the purchase of 3 collections which added 7,000 works. Acquisitions continued. The collection is housed in more than 20 rooms. Holdings include art, papyrus scrolls, mummies, tools, clothing, jewelry, games, musical instruments, and weapons...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre




- Venus de Milo, 130- 100 BC





- Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1503-1506.





- Ceiling by Cy Twombly installed in 2010 in the Salle des Bronzes, before room redesign in 2021.
More, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre

[electric_blue68]

1. The Louvre! 💖 Swoon... Too bad he turned criminal...

My aunt took me and a granddaughter to Paris(!) when I was visiting them in Western Switzerland in 2016.

She'd been there many times. My first visit to Europe.

So much to see - The Winged Victory!

[appalachiablue]

2. Lucky you. I had to choose between Venus di Milo

and Winged Victory of Samothrace to illustrate the post; both are magnificent. What a world treasure in the art collections of the Louve. I've been there several times, usually in summer when it's most crowded. And the ex president, what a disgrace and shame.

[electric_blue68]

3. I was there at very end of Summer. So pretty crowded. Didn't matter...

Last edited Thu May 26, 2022, 09:07 PM - Edit history (1)

I was at the frikkin' Louvre.
Besides I'm a NYC'r I know crowds! 😄

We also went to the Musee de Ossay

And OMG . Le Orangerie with the big, and super
big (long) Monet waterlillies. 💖 Le Swoon.

Wonderful you've been several times.
I was making art w my aunt in west Switzerland in the beautiful home she and my uncle lived in.
She took me and a grand daughter to Paris for several days! 💖

[CTyankee]

4. I'm hoping to get there in October/early November.

That is always on my list to visit. This year I want to go see the Paris Ballet at the Garnier, which has that ceiling by Chagall:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pariscityvision.com%2Fen%2Fparis%2Flandmarks%2Fopera-garnier%2Fchagall-ceiling&psig=AOvVaw0fZzCr4zL2nIvPBniDfwUO&ust=1653698004678000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAwQjRxqFwoTCLCQnaO3_vcCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAG

[electric_blue68]

5. Wow, look at that ceiling! 🧡 ....

Good for you!

But doesn't it start getting cold by late Oct? Unless you don't mind it.

I had to at least stand by, under the 💖 Eiffel Tower.

We went to this famous restaurant where people sing opera. Good voices, lovely food, beautiful drapes.

[CTyankee]

12. I really don't care. I just want to go when fewer tourists are there.

You can find some good deals on hotels if it is out of tourist season when you go. I have learned this from all of my travels: if you stay at the best hotel you can find, you get such perks as concierges very willing to help lead you to the best restaurants and museum shows. I learned this from a trip I curated for myself and a friend to Brussels. We took the marvelous trains to the little towns nearby for such marvelous wonders as the Ghent Altarpiece, Michelangelo's Bruges Madonna, and the Musee des Beaux Arts.

You'd be surprised how wonderful it can be from that perspective. Of course, my preferences aren't everybody's preferences. I know the weather can be very important to folks and I get it.

[electric_blue68]

13. Sounds great...

I need to have green trees, gardens & flowers esp in a city famous for them🙂👍



In my late 20's I traveled and picked all my cities, and meet up w a friend (renteed car from Flagstaff AZ) deep high desert to visit Navajo, Hopi Nations, slept under the Milky Way in Monument Valley then he went east, a I headed to San Francisco 💖 When I came back to Flagstaff I went to the Grand Canyon.

Next year went back to the high desert, then up to South Dakota for an event, Denver where my cousin took meon a motorcycle to a lake up The Rockies (10,500ft). When you turned northeast you saw the Continental Divide!

[CTyankee]

14. I still have a memory of a trip that included the Grand Canyon, back when I was a kid.

We escaped the summer heat in Dallas to go Colorado. The Canyon was one of our visited placed. I remember it as being a bit treacherous to get up.

[Demovictory9]

7. went once. it was overwhelming. Saw the Mona Lisa over the heads of the crowd and a few other

notable things. Left having only scratched the surface

[Martin68]

6. So, why does the Mona Lisa and the Louvre courtyard have to do with stolen antiquities?

Some photos of the art in question might be more helpful...

[appalachiablue]

8. The accused, Martinez was the director of the Louvre 2013-2021,

one of the most famous art collections and museums in the world. The photos of the building exterior and some of the very well known, familiar pieces of art in the collection that were his responsibility are posted to represent the iconic cultural institution.

Martinez is being investigated for fraud which reflects highly on him and the historic French museum and landmark. The case is of much interest to the art world.

When you locate images and photos of the Egyptian antiquities associated with this case that were criminally trafficked, please post them here so we can view them.
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France24... Martinez, who ran the Paris Louvre from 2013 to 2021, is accused of turning a blind eye to fake certificates of origin for the pieces, a fraud thought to involve several other art experts, according to a report Wednesday in the Canard Enchaine investigative weekly. He has been charged with complicity in fraud and "concealing the origin of criminally obtained works by false endorsement," according to the judicial source.

[Martin68]

10. I understand what the Louvre is. I just don't think random photos taken outside the Louvre and

a random piece of artwork in their collection adds any clarification to the story. It would have been a great deal more informative to see photos of the Egyptian pieces at issue. the Venus de Milo? C'mon.

[appalachiablue]

11. There were NO photos of the trafficked Egyptian items

of controversy in the 3-4 major news articles that I initially read; I thought it could be related to the criminal investigation in progress.

After your comment, I researched last night and finally came up with a few images of the Egyptian stele and gilded coffin bust to post and also added information about the Louvre's Egyptian collection. It took considerable time and effort. What did you do?

The remark about the absence of images of the trafficked items and your criticism of the 'Venus di Milo' and other images is solo. Nobody else is complaining. The Louvre photos posted below the article aren't 'random' but recognizable highlights from an immense collection of world class artwork. Ridiculous..

[appalachiablue]

9. SEE above. For further info., contact the Louvre! lol.

[hunter]

15. What's his defense? That he was trying to protect these items for posterity?

Sure.

Maybe he didn't want them destroyed by angry mobs, or hidden away and lost forever in Putin's bunkers.

Nah, it couldn't have been that he was trying to enhance his own reputation.

[SunImp]

16. Seems like it