St Louis Art Museum and Cultural Property from Egypt

Looting Matters (David Gill)

I have commented on the Egyptian mask that somehow has moved from the store at Saqqara to the St Louis Art Museum (SLAM). My attention has been drawn to the significant study: Laura Elizabeth Young, "A Framework for Resolution of Claims for Cultural Property", MSc in Arts Management, University of Oregon, December 2007 [pdf]. Chapter 3 includes a case study on the SLAM mask. There appears to be little doubt that the mask was excavated at Saqqara in early 1952 by Mohammed Zakaria Goneim (d. 1959), then chief inspector of antiquities [image].

SLAM's view of the mask's subsequent history appears to be based on a narrative supplied by the seller, Phoenix Ancient Art, S.A. But is there any secure documentation for the mask before it came into the possession of the dealer in 1997?

See the above page for more.