Louvre scandal: suspected smuggling in Paris

Paris Advising on museum acquisitions is a real challenge,” said Jean-Luc Martinez in November 2017. He was at the opening of the Louvre Abu Dhabi as General Director of the Louvre.

During his tour of the new museum building designed by star architect Jean Nouvel, Martinez also pointed out that the provenance of the works must always be checked carefully. In front of the gold sarcophagus with the mummy of the Egyptian Princess Henuttawy, Martinez explained with satisfaction that the Louvre Abu Dhabi had “recently bought this special object in Germany”.

These statements now have a completely different meaning. On May 25, after three days of police interrogation, an investigation was reportedly opened against Martinez for “possible aiding and abetting in gang fraud and concealing the origin of ill-gotten goods.”

The glass pyramid of the Louvre then literally shook, along with the French museum hierarchy and the culture and foreign ministries. Martinez headed the Louvre from 2013 to 2021, automatically sitting on the intergovernmental commissions responsible for Louvre Abu Dhabi’s acquisitions.

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Because President Emmanuel Macron refused him the coveted third term as Louvre Director General, Martinez was “Ambassador for International Cooperation in the Field of Cultural Heritage” from September 2021 until the end of last week.

In plain language: He should contribute his knowledge to reduce the illegal trade in cultural goods. After all, in 2015 he wrote a comprehensive report on the subject, with advice on how to tackle illegal excavations in crisis areas and the resulting international smuggling and trade. It is amazing that this man, who is well connected in political and financial circles, is suspected by the special unit for culture in the French police.

At the opening of the Louvre Abu Dhabi

from right to the left: the then General Director of the Louvre, Jean-Luc Martinez, Brigitte Macron, the French architect Jean Nouvel, President Emmanuel Macron and the Chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Tourism and Culture Authority, Mohamad Khalifa al-Mubarak on November 8, 2017

(Photo: LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)

Police and the judiciary are on the trail of an international ring suspected of trading artifacts from illegal excavations. These are said to have reached Hamburg in a roundabout way. There they were restored and provided with – presumably forged – certificates of origin. According to the police, they are said to have either been conveyed to the Louvre Abu Dhabi via France or distributed via auctions and dealers.

Because Martinez five years ago in Abu Dhabi expressly referred to the purchase of the princess sarcophagus in Germany, this star object could possibly come from the Hamburg dealer Roben Dib. Dib has been in custody in France since March. He is said to have worked with the Semonian family of dealers.

Investigators also came across a pair of experts from Paris, Christophe Kunicki and Richard Semper. Specializing in Egyptian archaeology, the duo worked with the auction house Pierre Bergé & Associés (PBA). PBA’s experts and auctioneer sold directly to Louvre Abu Dhabi. These gentlemen are now also answerable to the French judiciary.

In contrast, the New York Metropolitan Museum bought several objects from PBA that Kunicki and Semper delivered. It was the restitution of a stolen gold coffin from New York back to Egypt that triggered investigations in Germany, France and the USA in 2019. The same names were encountered in the invented origin story.

The “Grande Nation” opened a military base in Abu Dhabi in 2009. At the same time, France signed a cultural contract with the emirate for the Louvre Abu Dhabi in 2007. This also guarantees the paid use of the name “Louvre” until 2047. Several commissions, most of which only consisted of French museum directors, developed the museum concept, took on the training of the Arab curators and finally managed the museum.

The museum had to be filled – whatever the cost

The “Agence France-Muséums” was founded to handle the project. The “Scientific Council” of the Agence France-Muséums was to check the authenticity and provenance of the works on offer and advise the acquisitions committee. The latter is now occupied equally with six French and Emiratis. The defendant Martinez is now defending himself with this group decision. The final decision rested with an Emirati, as Abu Dhabi took over the payment.

Depending on the market supply, the annual purchase budget in the years before 2017 was between 20 and 100 million euros, as the Handelsblatt learned at the opening. In Martinez’s defense, his colleagues declared anonymously: The museum had to be filled, no matter what the cost. And before an artefact finds its way into another museum, it is better not to ask too long about its provenance, but to grab it quickly.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi bought at least five Egyptian antiquities – allegedly stolen – with a total value of around 50 million. Princess Henuttawy’s gold sarcophagus is said to have cost 4.5 million euros. A Tutankhamun stele made of rose granite 8.5 million euros. The Louvre and Louvre Abu Dhabi see themselves as victims of the smuggling ring in the process.

The opponents of the Louvre’s ex-director-general accuse him – quite rightly – of his fascination with the high prices paid for the Louvre’s acquisitions. They advocated his suspension as Cultural Asset Ambassador. The culture and foreign ministries pushed this through together. The new 44-year-old culture minister, Rima Abdul Malak, previously an expert adviser to President Macron, knows how to take quick action. Martinez’s arrest came three days after she took office.

More: Illegal antique trade Justice: Louvre employees charged

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