Marion True
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Marion True (born November 5, 1948) is the former curator of antiquities of the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California.
Born in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, she studied at New York University and has a PhD from Harvard.[1][2]. True was trained by Cornelius Clarkson Vermeule III, contemporary scholar of ancient art and curator of classical art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston from 1957 to 1996.
In 2005 True was indicted by the Italian government, together with renowned American antiquities dealer Robert Hecht Jr., for conspiracy to traffic in illicit antiquities. The primary evidence in the case came from the 1995 raid of a Geneva, Switzerland warehouse which had contained a fortune in stolen artifacts. Italian art dealer Giacomo Medici was eventually arrested in 1997; his operation was thought to be "one of the largest and most sophisticated antiquities networks in the world, responsible for illegally digging up and spiriting away thousands of top-drawer pieces and passing them on to the most elite end of the international art market"[3]. Medici was sentenced in 2004 by a Rome court to ten years in prison and a fine of 10 million euros, "the largest penalty ever meted out for antiquities crime in Italy"[4]. The court hearings of the case against True and Hecht continue. In a letter to the J. Paul Getty Trust on December 18, 2006, True stated that that she is being made to "carry the burden" for practices which were known, approved, and condoned by the Getty's Board of Directors [5].
On November 20, 2006, the Director of the museum, Michael Brand, announced that 26 disputed pieces were to be returned to Italy.
On September 26, 2007, Getty Center signed a contract with the Italian culture ministry in Rome to return stolen arts from Italy.[6] 40 ancient art works will be returned including: the 5th Century BC Aphrodite limestone and marble statue, in 2010; fresco paintings stolen from Pompeii, marble and bronze sculptures and Greek vases. Dr. Marion True is on trial in Italy on conspiracy lawsuits in the looting. Some cases against True are being dismissed: because the statute of limitations had expired, she was acquitted of charges relating to the acquisition of a 2,500 year old funerary wreath which was shown to have been looted from northern Greece.[7] The wreath in question had already been returned to Greece. True could still be found guilty in other pending cases.
[edit] References
- ^ Christopher Reynolds, "The puzzle of Marion True" Los Angeles Times, October 30, 2005
- ^ Suzanne Muchnic, "Getty curator Marion True, indicted over acquisitions, has often spoken on ethical issues" Los Angeles Times, May 27, 2005
- ^ Men's Vogue, Nov/Dec 2006, Vol. 2, No. 3, pg. 46.
- ^ Men's Vogue, Nov/Dec 2006, Vol. 2, No. 3, pg. 46.
- ^ LATimes.com ~ "Getty lets her take fall, ex-curator says"
- ^ BBC NEWS, Getty to hand back 'looted art'
- ^ Intl. Herald Tribune "Ex-curator acquitted in case of Greek relic"
