"An aggressive campaign by Turkey
to reclaim antiquities it says were looted has led in recent months to
the return of an ancient sphinx and many golden treasures from the
region’s rich past. But it has also drawn condemnation from some of the
world’s largest museums, which call the campaign cultural blackmail. In their latest salvo, Turkish officials this summer filed a criminal
complaint in the Turkish court system seeking an investigation into what
they say was the illegal excavation of 18 objects that are now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Norbert Schimmel collection. Last year, Turkish officials recalled, Turkey’s director-general of
cultural heritage and museums, Murat Suslu, presented Met officials with
a stunning ultimatum: prove the provenance of ancient figurines and
golden bowls in the collection, or Turkey could halt lending treasures.
Turkey says that threat has now gone into effect. “We know 100 percent that these objects at the Met are from Anatolia,”
the Turkish region known for its ancient ruins, Mr. Suslu, an
archaeologist, said in an interview. “We only want back what is
rightfully ours.”" Now, I support Turkish claims but I also call on Turkey to return what it has looted from lands that were under the rule of the Ottoman Empire.