After several hours of talks, a prospective agreement was outlined, under which ownership of the objects would pass to the Italian government, but the objects themselves would either remain on display in the Met or be replaced by equally important pieces. The plan had to be approved by the Italian government and the trustees of the museum, and Mr. de Montebello at first said that he found the evidence provided by the Italians “inconclusive.” Not long after, however, he changed his tune. On February 2, 2006, the Metropolitan dramatically announced that it would “relinquish ownership” of the vase to the Italian government. More than that, in documents delivered in Rome by the museum’s lawyers, the Met pledged to return the Euphronios vase plus another nineteen disputed antiquities—including fifteen pieces of the Morgantina silver and four other ancient vases. The Met also proposed that it keep some of the material on display at least until 2008, after its new antiquities galleries open in Spring 2007.
What do You think about The Medici Conspiracy (2011)?
