The Cleveland Museum of Art hit back Thursday against the New York District Attorney's office in response to the seizure of one of its works. The museum has filed suit against Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg over the August seizure of “Draped Male Figure,” which has been part of the museum’s collection since 1986 and is valued at more than $20 million. The ancient Roman bronze sculpture remains in Cleveland, seized in place and off view.
The lawsuit traces the 76-inch statue’s history since the 1960s, being displayed in various museums until it was sold, with provenance, to CMA. The lawsuit alleges that a statue of Marcus Aurelius has been sought by Turkish officials, but that the statue in Cleveland is likely of someone else and that is it "virtually impossible" to identify without the head. The statue was originally cast in many pieces in the period around 150 BCE-200 CE.
The original August 14 warrant stated that the seizure is part of the DA’s “ongoing criminal investigation into a smuggling network involving antiquities looted from Bubon in Turkiye and trafficked through Manhattan.”
Museum spokesperson Todd Mesek said in a statement, “The Cleveland Museum of Art takes provenance issues very seriously, as is apparent both from our long track record of engagement around cultural property issues and the forthright way that works are interpreted in our galleries. The CMA has filed an action with respect to the bronze statue of a philosopher and the complaint is a public record. As a matter of policy, the CMA does not discuss pending litigation.”
Doug Cohen, spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney's office, emailed a statement Thursday that said the office "has successfully recovered more than 4,600 illegally trafficked antiquities from numerous individuals and institutions. We are reviewing the museum’s filing in this matter and will respond in court papers."
A 2012 report in the Los Angeles Times alleged that 21 objects at the Cleveland museum had been looted from southwestern Turkey in the 1960s. The Turkish government said at the time that the museum acquired the pieces from art dealer Charles Lipson. The new CMA lawsuit states the museum responded to vague information requests from Turkish authorities a decade ago, but the government did not follow up.
Earlier this year, Smithsonian magazine reported that $33 million worth of looted antiquities had been returned to Turkey from U.S. museums. The 12 items included a different headless, bronze statue, on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York since 2011, which experts said depicted Roman emperor Septimius Severus.
