Protecting Our Common Heritage-3
Ozgen Acar, Special for The Turkish Times - I spotted a 4-ton garlanded sarcophagus in the Brooklyn Museum in New York. There was a similar one in Antalya Museum. I investigated. The sarcophagus had been made in workshops in Perge, Antalya. The person who had loaned it to the museum was a famous "silk collar" and a financial advisor to Turkey in New York. He had paid 1 million dollars for the sarcophagus and had loaned it to the museum

Golden religious sun disk bearing precious stones from Treasure of Karun, returned by New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

with a view to its being exhibited, because a 4-ton sarcophagus couldn't be exhibited in either his home or his office. He wanted to make the sarcophagus more widely known and thus, like laundering money, sell it at a profit one day at an auction. Or he could donate it to the museum and deduct the amount from his tax bill. Even a dead person's grave is a means of investment for the "silk collar" experts of Wall Street. Following the appearance of my articles, he was unable to put it up for auction or donate it to the museum. He had to donate it to a Turkish Foundation in New York. According to the provisions of American tax law, he was able to show this donation as one of 12 million dollars and thus offset it against his tax bill. Or, to put it another way, the American people paid out 12 million dollars from their own pockets for this "silk collar's" donation.

Ten years before, a sarcophagus had again been found in Perge, Antalya, which narrated the 12 labors of Hercules. They tried to cut it into pieces and smuggle it out of Turkey that way. Some pieces were seized in Istanbul, while others were taken out of the country. An art dealer who had sold one piece to the Paul Getty Museum had to return that one too. Three other pieces came back from Germany two years ago.

Having seen the scale of the problem, I really have to try to explain the other end of the "pipeline." By this, I mean the supply side of the trade in plundered ancient artifacts.

In Istanbul, when you enter your room in the Hilton or Çiragan Hotels, you certainly look at the Bosphorus. And you realize that the shore opposite is the Asian one as you look from your balcony. I wonder, where in the world can a tourist see two continents at the same time when he looks out of the window or from the balcony.

I would like to give you some information, related to the supply of the so-called international art market. As archaeologists dig deeper into the history of Turkey, they uncover traces of different civilizations every day. They have found that following the pre-historic period, 42 separate civilizations lived in Anatolia and left traces of their existence during the pre-Ottoman period. We have no idea as to how many civilizations there were during the pre-historical period. There are at least 20 thousand mounds, prehistoric settlements, from that period. Troy is one of those 20 thousand settlements. Actually, it is one of the smallest among them. There are nearly 25 thousand tumuli, like the one that contained the treasure of King Croessos, which have been discovered and looted. There are about 25 thousand pre-Islamic monuments in Turkey. I do not think there is another country in the world that has such a colorful religious and cultural mix, as a result of its geographical position as a crossroads rather than a bridge.

As you all know, Mount Ararat, where Noah's ark is supposed to have ended up, is in Turkey. Abraham is said to have been born in Urfa, near the Syrian border. The four voyages of St Paul that continued until his assassination resulted in a consolidation of Christianity in Anatolia and, from its harbors, an opening to the Mediterranean. All of the "Seven Holy Churches" of St John were established in Anatolia. St Nicholas started preaching Christianity here, in Myra (Demre), from where it would spread throughout Europe. Hundreds of thousands of Jews, who fled here in the 1st century BC, in the 15th century from the Spanish Inquisition and from the Nazis during World War II all contributed to the cultural and historical heritage of this country, since they found shelter in this land. Some of the oldest synagogues in the world have been unearthed in Turkey. When we think of the magnificent mosques of Istanbul, Turkey becomes a Mecca for the monotheist religions.

Today, in Turkey, archaeologists have determined that there are approximately 3000 ancient cities. In other words, it has been realized that there are many more ancient Greek cities in Turkey than in Greece and more ancient Roman cities than in Italy.

In Anatolia, a Jurasic Park have yet to be discovered. However, rhinoceros, giraffe, mammoth, elephant and even monkey fossils have all been found in Ankara. The existence of five thousand inhabited caves since the advent of "homo erectus" has been mentioned. On average, there are at least one and a half cultural and historical sites for each of the 50 thousand villages in Turkey.

I would also like to give you some figures from the world of underwater archaeology. The founder of underwater archaeology, Professor George Bass from Texas A& M University, says that: "the history of shipbuilding goes back 5000 years. During this period, if only one ship sank per year off the coasts of Turkey, there would be at least 5000 shipwrecks, and if two, then there would be 10,000 wrecks lying at the bottom of the sea."

In the early 1980s, a sponge-diver found an old wreck at Uluburun near Kas, Antalya.

Golden necklaces and bracelets with precious stones from Treasure of Karun, returned by New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

A team including Professor Bass, director Dr Cemal Pulak and other experts from different countries, dived there every summer for over ten years. These scientists dived under heavy conditions and put their lives in danger. And what did they find in this shipwreck with a cargo dating back to the 14th century BC!

A gold scarabi of Queen Nefertiti from Egypt with a bronze statue of a goddess covered wih gold leaf, golden rings, golden medallions from Syria, ostrich eggs, hippopotamus teeth and ivory from North Africa, tin from Afghanistan or Anatolia, ten tons of copper ingots from Cyprus, lead from Greece, an ivory cosmetics box from Palestine, an ivory trumpet used in religious ceremonies from Israel, cobalt glass from Syria, pottery from Assyria, Syria, the Mycenaean Civilization in Greece and from Cyprus, an axe from Romania and the wooden cover of the captain's log book from the ship itself.

What would have been the result if some tourists fond of diving had found this shipwreck first and each yacht passenger had taken a few pieces as a souvenir. Would it be preferable for the peoples of the world that the scarab of Queen Nefertiti be exhibited in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the medallions in the Los Angeles Paul Getty Museum, the hippopotamus teeth in the Washington Natural History Museum, the statue of a goddess in the British Museum, the ostrich eggs, perhaps with the addition of some shiny metal legs, on a table like an ornament in the house of a rich private collector or would it suit modern tourism better that we see the collection as a whole in one museum?

We can pose another question at this point. Who does this shipwreck and its cargo, which lies within Turkish territorial waters, actually belong to? Which country's historical and cultural heritage is it part of? Egypt's? Syria's? Cyprus's? Romania's? Greece's? Does it belong to the Americans who dived and financed this excavation? Or perhaps the sponge-diver who found it first? This is the oldest shipwreck in the world, it is unique and we can say that it is a "Wreck Museum" which is the exclusive property of neither Turkey, nor any other country. I would like to suggest that it is the common heritage of all humanity. Scientists put a plaque on the wreck on their last dive. These words are written on it: "There is no treasure here. Leave this site alone."

The artifacts, which were brought to the surface through the joint efforts of scientists from different nations, have been exhibited in Bodrum Underwater Archaeology Museum since 1999. For whose benefit? Of course, for the tourists. For humanity in general and for science. Tourists of the 21st century, or the Third Millennium can see that history is beautiful where it belongs and enjoy it there.

Twelve years ago I was walking around an exhibition in the Metropolitan Museum in New York comprised of items taken from a wealthy New York couple's private collection. Among many other exhibits from Turkey, a half statue caught my eye. It was as if it was trying to tell me something. While I was walking round the statue, examining it from every angle, the security guard was following my every move. When I compared the exhibition catalogue with a photograph in my own collection, I could see that they matched perfectly, like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. I published the story in both Istanbul and New York. The New York couple had bought the upper part of the statue from Boston Museum. An official from Boston Museum, Cornelius Vermule, in a statement given to the "New York Times," said, "A statue cannot have two navels," and suggested that I understand my own limitations. He was indeed a world-renowned expert, while I was just an ordinary journalist.

But late Professor Jale Inan, who had found the lower part of the statue at Perge, took a cast of it with her to Boston. After a trial in the presence of lawyers and impartial observers, Vermule had to admit defeat. Following that, shouldn't the statue have been returned forthwith to Turkey? Not straight away, because the couple were making laughable proposals such as "let's exchange it for something else" and thus causing delay. The Turkish Government will bring a court case against them in Boston very soon. Thus, the "Weary Hercules" statue, like the Hercules sarcophagus, is awaiting the day when it will be put back together again in Antalya Museum.

Golden necklaces, brooches, bracelets and earrings from Treasure of Karun, returned by New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In 1984, in Antalya, a television repairman and two other people found a hoard of 2000 ancient silver coins with a metal detector made by a local TV repairman. The hoard contained every kind of coin from the countries in the Attica-Delos League. This was a kind of NATO of its day and had been formed in the 5th century BC to oppose Persian attacks. Before taking part in the battle, everyone buried their money, whether their own or official money belonging to the Alliance. The commander of the Alliance forces must have been killed in the battle against the Persians on the Elmali plateau. Since his officers or soldiers had no idea where the money was buried, nobody had been able to find it until modern times.

There is something special about this hoard of coins. To celebrate the defeat of the Persians in Greece, the Athenians produced commemorative 10-drachma coins called "decadrahmi", which were as big as medallions. There were only 7 previously known examples. The last one was sold at an auction in Switzerland in 1974 for a record 275 thousand dollars.

The Elmali Hoard contained 14 of them. For this reason it was called "The Decadrahmi Hoard" or "The Hoard of the Century." The owner of the most famous numismatic company in the world sold one of them in Los Angeles to a TV producer for $ 600,000 dollars, easily breaking the old record. This new record still stands. William Koch of Boston bought 1,800 of the coins for $ 3.5 million dollars. Koch is one the richest 200 people in the USA. The treasure is thought to be currently worth at least $ 25 million dollars. The Turkish Government knew that the treasure had been smuggled out of the country, but after it was taken across the border they didn't have the slightest knowledge of its whereabouts. The treasure disappeared.

After investigations in both Turkey and the USA over a period of two years, I was sure that the treasure was in Koch's possession. I published my evidence and the statements of witnesses in 1988. Based on the evidence, the Turkish Government started legal proceedings in Boston. The judge gave an important interim judgment in Turkey's favor. As was the situation in the legal wrangle with the Metropolitan and the Treasure of King Croessos, Koch, realizing that he would lose the case, suggested a compromise to Turkey. A major part of the treasure was returned. When I met Koch for the first time at the signing of the agreement at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, he expressed his liking for me in the following terms: "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be in this position today. You've caused me nothing but trouble."

After this happened, Elmali Plateau was invaded by the treasure-hunters armed with metal detectors. One villager told me, "It was like the plateau had been invaded by an army of fireflies. In reality, they were an army of hundreds of treasure hunters, roaming around with cigarettes in their mouths." One of them found the graves of a local Phrygian Princess and some priests and started digging there. The village watchman saw what was going on and informed the museum. Following rescue excavations undertaken by the museum, the items you now see they were found.

They are currently on exhibit in the Antalya Museum. Otherwise, they would probably have been found in some auction catalogue.

I should now mention an incident concerning the late Professor Kenan Erim. In the 1970s, before a museum was built at Aphrodisias, the finds were stored in a local warehouse. One rainy night, thieves made a hole in the wall and stole some things. Professor Erim alerted everybody and most of them came back to Turkey from USA. One unknown person posted one of the missing pieces to the Turkish Consulate in New York. However, this person made a serious mistake, because he used wrapping paper that had been used before. The address inside was that of the Paul Getty Museum. If the head had stayed there, it would have been catalogued as an ordinary "head of a man with a beard." However, a few years later, the body was found. Beneath the body, a name was written, that of the famous mathematician "Pythagoras." Now this was not a "head of a man with a beard," but the figure of an important scientist. Aristotle and Socrates were well known from statues, but, until this find, we had very little idea of what kind of man Pythagoras was. This is a striking example of the harm that can be done to science and archaeology by the illegal trade in antiquities.

Silver "sikke" coins from "Elmali Treasure," also referred to as the "Dig of the Century." The two large coins in the center are famous "decadrahmis."

Countries like Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Syria, Mexico, Benin and Egypt are called "victimized," while the countries buying the pieces are known as the "market" countries.

Meanwhile, buyers in the market countries have become concerned that Turkey has pursued legal channels for the return of the Croesos Treasure and various other artifacts from auctions. A buyer might like a piece that has been shown to him, but, having expressed interest in purchasing the item, with a price tag of $ 1 million dollars, when he asks about the country of origin and is told "Turkey," he immediately changes his mind. The reason: if the Turkish government brings a legal action against him, he will not only have to return it, but he will also lose the money that he paid for it. As a result of our efforts, we have created an effective deterrent.

Last year, I visited the gallery owner who had had tried to sell the mother-goddess made by Sevket for $ 275,000 dollars. I asked him about business. "Thanks to you, terrible…" he replied. Bruce McNall sold one coin from the Elmali treasure for $ 600,000 dollars. He tried to sell another 10 coins from the same treasure at an auction and I got the Los Angeles police to confiscate them after my report. Following such incidents, the man the American press called the "coin emperor" went bankrupt. Three years ago McNall was sentenced to prison and in a statement to the "Wall Street Journal" about his bankruptcy just said, " My luck changed after Mr. Acar's articles were published." Sotheby's and Christie's used to hold two auctions a year in both London and New York, now they arrange just one a year in each city. Some museums, among them the Paul Getty and The American Numismatic Society, have had to state that, "they will not purchase plundered or smuggled works." So Turkey has managed to deter the extraordinary demand in the so-called art market.

The American National Geographical Society awarded "Crystal Globes" to 15 scientists for their work in protecting and researching the environment, nature and mankind's past. This was on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the society's foundation in Washington DC. Two of these scientists achieved this award for their work in Turkey. One of them was Professor George Bass, who was the founder of underwater archaeology in Turkey, the second was the late Professor Kenan Erim, who excavated the ancient city of Aphrodisias over a period of 30 years and achieved outstanding results and died 11 years ago today in Ankara and buried in Aphrodisias.

I would like to finish my article by emphasizing what Professor Erim said when accepting his award in this city: " We cannot recreate the past in the future. For this reason, we must protect it, today."