Image from feld.com
The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is the current, if temporary home of a collection of artifacts from Sicily. The collection has been on tour throughout the world for an extended period of time, and now Sicily wants it back.
Sicily wants their artifacts back for several reasons, the main one being tourism. If the artifacts were in their home country, they would draw much-needed tourists to boost the economy. Some officials also feel that the artifacts belong in their proper home permanently as they are a part of the culture and history that travelers wish to experience.
Sicily and other museums that wish to display the artifacts are currently working on a compromise which may involve paying thousands of dollars for the lending-out of the items. While this would probably help take the edge off of Sicily’s tourism-economy woes, it would also be a strain on other museums like the Cleveland Museum of Art. Many museums do not charge an admission price. An increase in price for traveling exhibits means that museums have to make money in other ways to insure that the museum can stay open to the public, and one way to bring in revenue would be to institute an admission fee. Of course, this is assuming that Sicily allows the artifacts to be lent out again at all.
The collection was scheduled to be in the Cleveland Museum of art in late September, and it is still unclear if the artifacts will make it there this fall. The collection includes several sculptures including a full-body image of a young charioteer as well as an ornate gold offering bowl.