Discussion Post Art History

After reading the SmartHistory articles on looting and repatriating artworks, reflect on the many pieces we have studied this semester that were removed from their original cultural settings and placed in museums far from the communities that created them, including the Benin Bronzes. 

Where do you stand on the question of repatriation? How do you think museums, source communities, and governments should balance ownership, stewardship, cultural heritage, and public access, especially when the cultures connected to these objects are still living? Choose a specific work of art from our lectures or readings. Be sure to embed a photo.

You can use this as an example Artist Unknown. Stele of Hammurabi. c. 1754 BCE. Babylonian. Basalt. Babylon (modern-day Iraq).