Steve_McGarrett
Gold Member
- Jul 11, 2013
- 19,272
- 4,371
- 280
- Banned
- #1
Well at least the iPod Obama gave to Queen Elizabeth was genuine. This is truly a embarrassment for the U.S..
http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/148365/griffin-rouhani-diplomacy
The big thaw in US - Iran relations has been compromised. The world's leading authority on antiquities fakes -- long-time Metropolitan Museum of Art Ancient Near East expert Oscar White Muscarella, who excavated throughout the 1960s in Iran -- has told me that "America's souvenir to the Iranian people," the just-returned silver griffin allegedly 2,700 years old and from Iran's Kalmakarra Cave, is actually a modern forgery. A major scandal brews as the Iranian government, apprised of the dubious nature of the artifact, now scrutinizes the US gift for its authenticity.
Quote:
Not only is it a fake, its a bad fake. The saga of the griffin, from its production to its much-touted return to Iranian President Rouhani during his recent visit to New York, demonstrates how fakers of ancient art fool the gullible wealthy with the connivance of museums and scholars.
A definitive publication by retired Metropolitan Museum of Art curator Oscar White Muscarella clearly demonstrates that what is alleged by even the U.S. State Department to be a 2,700-year-old artifact from Iran is actually a modern fake, dating back to, at the earliest, 1999.
http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/148365/griffin-rouhani-diplomacy
The big thaw in US - Iran relations has been compromised. The world's leading authority on antiquities fakes -- long-time Metropolitan Museum of Art Ancient Near East expert Oscar White Muscarella, who excavated throughout the 1960s in Iran -- has told me that "America's souvenir to the Iranian people," the just-returned silver griffin allegedly 2,700 years old and from Iran's Kalmakarra Cave, is actually a modern forgery. A major scandal brews as the Iranian government, apprised of the dubious nature of the artifact, now scrutinizes the US gift for its authenticity.
Quote:
Not only is it a fake, its a bad fake. The saga of the griffin, from its production to its much-touted return to Iranian President Rouhani during his recent visit to New York, demonstrates how fakers of ancient art fool the gullible wealthy with the connivance of museums and scholars.
A definitive publication by retired Metropolitan Museum of Art curator Oscar White Muscarella clearly demonstrates that what is alleged by even the U.S. State Department to be a 2,700-year-old artifact from Iran is actually a modern fake, dating back to, at the earliest, 1999.
