Louvre

• The theft is suspected to be an inside job that took place over a period of twenty years.
• This is not the first time the Museum has come under fire and its custodianship has been questioned.

The Duveen scouring

• There can be little doubt that the most notorious of them is the Duveen scouring scandal, so-named after Joseph Duveen, an ultra-rich art dealer of dubious ethics and benefactor of the British Museum.
• The marbles were later placed in the Duveen Gallery, named in honour of the man responsible for the damage to their historic surface.
• The Duveen scouring was not the only cleaning of the marbles to cause consternation.
• It is probable that, if these early warnings had been headed, the Duveen cleaning could have been avoided.

Other controversies

• During a 1999 conference in the museum, a sandwich lunch was served in the Duveen Gallery, and the delegates were encouraged to touch the ancient sculptures.
• Many among those present found the gesture so inconsiderate that they walked out of the gallery.
• A controversy of a different kind concerns contested objects in the Museum’s collection that are the object of repatriation requests.

The Museum’s current troubles

• About half of the Museum’s 8 million items are uncatalogued and this lack of an inventory has certainly facilitated the thefts.
• The fact that it took so long to discover the thefts also raises the question of what else might have gone missing without a trace.
• Yet one can’t help but wonder: Do the Museum’s current woes have other museum directors fretting with anxiety?
• What if some of the identified stolen items are contested items that have been the object of restitution requests?

Crisis as an opportunity

• Every crisis is an opportunity, and here too there is an opportunity.
• After the resignation of the director Hartwig Fischer, an interim director, Sir Mark Jones, has been appointed.

• The website’s creator stated, “New.to was built from the frustration of limited results on other travel platforms.
• We’ve curated the best hotels, restaurants, bookable attractions, top sights, future meetups, and local guided experiences.
• The Travel Guides offered at New.to are designed to help travelers get the most out of their stay and have been curated to include options for memorable experiences unique to their chosen travel location.
• To find out more about the launch of New.to and its latest travel guides, please visit the website at https://www.new.to/ .

• The site features the largest collection of inscriptions recording the ancient Dadanite Kingdom's religious rituals, daily activities, and relations with neighboring peoples.
• These efforts to enhance the world's understanding of Jabal Ikmah, while improving visitors' access in a sustainable way, have contributed to this public affirmation by UNESCO of the magnitude and international significance of AlUla's documentary heritage.
• As a crossroads on the incense and pilgrimage routes, the AlUla oasis was a hub of commercial and cultural exchange.
• Many of Jabal Ikmah's inscriptions reflect a variety of subjects such as rituals, kings, animals and agriculture, key to the story of AlUla's past.

• YEREVAN, Armenia, April 1, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Armine Aghayants, renowned painter and award-winning exhibitor, announces that her 'Insomnia' painting has sold for an incredible $128,000.
• 'Insomnia' is an acrylic painting on canvas brought to life by Aghayants in 2016.
• Marrying fauvism and cubism, the tryptic (or three-piece) artwork depicts the emotional state of an anonymous young woman.
• Moreover, it's unlikely to be the last time the art world has heard from Armine Aghayants.