Amsterdam Museum Restores Ancient Vase to Sicily

(MENAFN) The Allard Pierson Archaeology Museum in Amsterdam voluntarily returns an ancient vase to Sicily after an investigation raises concerns about its ownership history, according to reports.

The Centuripe pyxis, a third-century B.C. vessel used for storage and decorated with a wedding scene featuring the Greek god Apollo, had remained in the museum’s collection for almost three decades.

The museum purchased the artifact from a Swiss dealer at the Tefaf art fair in Maastricht in 1997. However, key provenance records and an export permit were not included with the purchase.

The dealer said the vase had been privately owned in Switzerland before 1970. That account was later challenged after Sicilian researchers found a roll of film in 2016 showing the artifact among items being handled by grave robbers in Centuripe, Sicily.

The same film included a wedding photograph dated 1976, creating further doubts about the claim that the vase had been in Swiss private ownership before 1970.

“Clearly, things did not go by the book,” said Rogier Kalkers, who leads provenance research at the museum.

Kalkers explained that the museum was not legally required to return the object because stricter Dutch regulations introduced in 2009 cannot be applied retroactively.

“There has been a grey area for museums, collectors, and dealers for forty years,” he said.

“We want to take responsibility and therefore distance ourselves from it,” said the museum.

MENAFN08102026000045017640ID1111779855