Danish museum returns lost bronze head to Turkey

In December 2024, a Danish museum, the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek in Copenhagen, announced its decision to return the bronze head of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus to Turkey. This decision was made following extensive research that concluded the artifact had likely been looted from a shrine dedicated to Roman leaders in the ancient city of Bubon, located in southwest Turkey. For several years, the bronze torso of the statue had been on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, but it was repatriated to Turkey in 2023 after being deemed looted by investigators. Since that time, the Turkish government has been campaigning for the return of the bronze head to reunite it with the torso, as both pieces were originally part of a statue that honored the imperial cult in Bubon, where emperors were worshiped as deities. The head has been housed in the Danish museum's collection since 1970, but the lengthy investigation revealed that the head was almost certainly excavated illegally during a period of significant looting in the 1960s, prompting the museum’s decision to act in accordance with ethical standards regarding heritage artifacts. Gertrud Hvidberg-Hansen, the museum's director, cited that both exceptionally strong arguments and scientific documentation were available to justify the separation from the museum's collection, affirming the institution's responsibility to return the looted artifact. This event exemplifies the ongoing global discourse regarding the repatriation of stolen cultural heritage, emphasizing the need for accountability and ethical stewardship in the management of historical artifacts.