British Museum has recovered some of 2,000 stolen items, chair George Osborne claims
26 August 2023, 11:47
The British Museum has recovered some of the artefacts stolen in an alleged inside job, according to its chair George Osborne.
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Around 2,000 items including ancient coins and jewellery are thought to have been taken by someone who worked at a senior level at institution, forcing the resignation of its director.
The discovery was made during an internal investigation into a senior curator who was sacked from the museum in July, despite the museum first being alerted to missing items in 2021.
British Museum chair George Osborne said the reclamation of artefacts is a "silver lining".
Read more: British Museum thief has been operating for ‘two decades’
He told Today on BBC Radio 4: “We have started to recover some of the stolen items, which is a silver lining to a dark cloud.”
Osborne also said the museum does not have a complete catalogue of its entire collection.
He added: “Someone with knowledge of what’s not registered has a big advantage in removing some of those items.
“We believe we’ve been the victim of thefts over a long period of time and, frankly, more could have been done to prevent them.
British Museum boss reveals items have been stolen as staff member dismissed
"It is a mess that we are going to clear up".
Antiquities dealer Ittai Gradel made the museum aware of missing items when he spotted artefacts selling on eBay.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed on Thursday that a man had been interviewed in connection with the thefts.
It said no arrests had been made and that its investigation will continue.
