1 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:05,800 Speaker 1: Happy Saturday, everybody. Since it is April Fools Day, we 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:09,799 Speaker 1: are releasing a previous April Fools episode as today's Saturday classic. 3 00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:13,240 Speaker 1: That's the Tiara of Ciataphernes, which was acquired by the 4 00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:16,599 Speaker 1: Louver but then turned out to be a fake. After 5 00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 1: this episode came out, we got some questions from listeners 6 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:23,360 Speaker 1: about whether we knew what happened to the families of 7 00:00:23,440 --> 00:00:27,960 Speaker 1: this Yara's creator Israel Rushmovsky, who had fled from Russia 8 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 1: to France to try to escape a series of pogroms. 9 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:34,839 Speaker 1: He died in Paris in nineteen thirty four at the 10 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:37,400 Speaker 1: age of seventy four, and that is where we wrapped 11 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:39,760 Speaker 1: up his part in the story because he had died 12 00:00:39,840 --> 00:00:42,880 Speaker 1: and we really don't know what happened to his family 13 00:00:42,920 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: after that. We don't really know if they were still 14 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:47,640 Speaker 1: in Paris when it fell to Nazi Germany during World 15 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:51,879 Speaker 1: War Two. It's possible that this is documented somewhere, but 16 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:55,480 Speaker 1: if so, unfortunately it's not an information that we have 17 00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:59,040 Speaker 1: access to. So if you were curious about that, unfortunately 18 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: we do not have the answer. Otherwise, enjoy this episode. 19 00:01:05,240 --> 00:01:08,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you missed in History Class A production 20 00:01:08,319 --> 00:01:18,119 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio today. It's April Fool's Day. It is April 21 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:20,800 Speaker 1: fools Day if you're listening on the day if the 22 00:01:20,800 --> 00:01:24,880 Speaker 1: episode came out. It's one of the days of the 23 00:01:24,959 --> 00:01:27,840 Speaker 1: year that I want to love the most. But I 24 00:01:27,880 --> 00:01:30,840 Speaker 1: find that I am a little bit picky about the 25 00:01:30,959 --> 00:01:34,080 Speaker 1: level of tomfoolery that I get. It has to be 26 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:37,600 Speaker 1: really good or wa wah. I don't want your sad 27 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:43,480 Speaker 1: trombone mediocre pranks. I want really good one. But yeah, 28 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:46,399 Speaker 1: it is April Fool's Day if you're listening to this 29 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:50,919 Speaker 1: the day that it publishes. We have this auspicious calendar situation. 30 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:52,800 Speaker 1: So I thought it would be fun to cover a 31 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:56,240 Speaker 1: historical hoax, And as I was rummaging around for options, 32 00:01:56,280 --> 00:01:58,920 Speaker 1: by blind luck, I ran across one for which the 33 00:01:59,000 --> 00:02:02,560 Speaker 1: date of April first actually figures into the story. And 34 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:06,280 Speaker 1: this is the story of the Tiara of Cia Taphernes. 35 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:09,000 Speaker 1: And this story sort of places out in three acts. 36 00:02:09,080 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 1: So first we're going to talk about the Scythians and 37 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: how their artifacts became highly prized in nineteenth century Europe. 38 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: And then we're going to talk about the hoax itself 39 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:21,080 Speaker 1: and how that all went down. And finally, we're going 40 00:02:21,120 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 1: to talk about an artist who came into fame as 41 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:26,480 Speaker 1: a result of his sort of accidental part in this 42 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:30,840 Speaker 1: whole thing. In eighteen thirty, the archaeological site known as 43 00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:35,720 Speaker 1: cool Oba was discovered. Excavation started there. So this site 44 00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:39,600 Speaker 1: is on the Crimean Peninsula, six kilometers to the west 45 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:42,400 Speaker 1: of the modern day city of Kirch and it was 46 00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:46,400 Speaker 1: a burial mound. The cool Oba site really fascinated the 47 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:49,119 Speaker 1: world when it was discovered because it was a Scythian 48 00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:52,440 Speaker 1: burial site. So the Scythians were in the height of 49 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:56,040 Speaker 1: their culture from nine hundred to two hundred BC, and 50 00:02:56,200 --> 00:03:00,680 Speaker 1: as a nomadic, tattoo covered warrior culture, they touched many 51 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:05,000 Speaker 1: areas of Central Asia. Herodotus wrote about their fear skills 52 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:08,799 Speaker 1: in battle, and they created weapons, particularly bows, that were 53 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 1: far advanced over those of other cultures. They were so 54 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:15,000 Speaker 1: fast and mobile that they were able to swoop in 55 00:03:15,160 --> 00:03:19,600 Speaker 1: upon enemy territory and deliver serious damage almost before anyone 56 00:03:19,680 --> 00:03:22,519 Speaker 1: realized what was happening, and then they would vanish back 57 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 1: into their own territory, leaving destruction in their wake. Even 58 00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:30,359 Speaker 1: though they had a really nomadic culture, Scythians had elaborate 59 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: burial rituals. Their burial sites were very deep, with internal 60 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,440 Speaker 1: structures down in the pit, almost like cabins, and the 61 00:03:38,680 --> 00:03:42,080 Speaker 1: coffins were placed into these. They wanted the dead to 62 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:44,920 Speaker 1: have everything they might need in the afterlife, so they 63 00:03:44,920 --> 00:03:47,920 Speaker 1: also sacrificed horses to include in the burial so that 64 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: the deceased would have mounts with them, and then all 65 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:54,480 Speaker 1: of that in place, the site would be buried under 66 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:58,560 Speaker 1: a mound. And the Scythians, because of their warrior reputation 67 00:03:58,840 --> 00:04:01,760 Speaker 1: and because there are still many gaps in our knowledge 68 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:06,200 Speaker 1: about them, remain a source of fascination for historians, and 69 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: in the eighteen thirties that fascination and the discovery of 70 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:13,480 Speaker 1: the Cooloba site sparked a huge interest in the collection 71 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 1: of Scythian artifacts. Many of the items that were excavated 72 00:04:17,680 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 1: from Cooloba were beautiful, intricate gold pieces, and they ranged 73 00:04:21,680 --> 00:04:25,200 Speaker 1: in size from small pieces of jewelry to larger works 74 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:28,800 Speaker 1: of often sculptural art. So there was just a scramble 75 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:32,159 Speaker 1: to try to attain these pieces, and they weren't always 76 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:35,799 Speaker 1: being sold through the proper channels to museums. They also 77 00:04:35,839 --> 00:04:38,680 Speaker 1: wound up being sold off to private collectors kind of 78 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:42,800 Speaker 1: on the download and the fact that the documentation of 79 00:04:42,839 --> 00:04:45,719 Speaker 1: the artifacts that had been recovered from the site wasn't 80 00:04:45,760 --> 00:04:48,680 Speaker 1: as meticulous as it should have been. I meant that 81 00:04:48,760 --> 00:04:51,360 Speaker 1: the knowledge that was pieced together from this effort became 82 00:04:51,520 --> 00:04:55,080 Speaker 1: just kind of a picture with big missing pieces. That 83 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:58,360 Speaker 1: meant that it was not clear exactly what had been 84 00:04:58,400 --> 00:05:01,240 Speaker 1: at the site. And that also under the analysis and 85 00:05:01,279 --> 00:05:03,839 Speaker 1: the study of the culture itself that might have been 86 00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:07,120 Speaker 1: gained from the discovery if things had been more meticulous 87 00:05:07,160 --> 00:05:11,600 Speaker 1: and regulated. Yeah, I mean even today, like when we 88 00:05:11,640 --> 00:05:14,720 Speaker 1: have spoken with archaeologists, they talk about how imperative it 89 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 1: is to document everything and catalog everything and its place, 90 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:23,040 Speaker 1: and in this case that was not happening very well 91 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:25,839 Speaker 1: at all. It was pretty scratchy and kind of catches 92 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:29,520 Speaker 1: catch can when things actually got notated. And as a consequence, 93 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:33,640 Speaker 1: there's a lot of nebulous sort of theoretical stuff that 94 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:37,680 Speaker 1: people don't have any real evidence to back up. And 95 00:05:37,800 --> 00:05:40,120 Speaker 1: all we have the study of the Scythians are these 96 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,400 Speaker 1: grave sites, which are called kurgans by the way, which 97 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 1: if it makes you think of highlander me too. Because 98 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:48,880 Speaker 1: of their nomadic culture, they they didn't have things like 99 00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:52,040 Speaker 1: cities or permanent settlements, so the Kurgans are the only 100 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 1: physical evidence that's left behind. And after Cooloba, there were 101 00:05:56,040 --> 00:05:59,800 Speaker 1: more Kurgans unearthed. More than thirty years after this site 102 00:05:59,839 --> 00:06:03,960 Speaker 1: was discovered. Another one was found at Chertomic in eighteen 103 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:07,880 Speaker 1: sixty eight. Yet another site, this one with multiple mounds, 104 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:10,920 Speaker 1: was called Seven Brothers and that was found near the 105 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:15,400 Speaker 1: Kuban River in the eighteen seventies. Both of these excavations 106 00:06:15,440 --> 00:06:20,359 Speaker 1: even more captured the public imagination. Museums were extremely eager 107 00:06:20,400 --> 00:06:24,080 Speaker 1: to get their hands on artifacts from the city and nomads, 108 00:06:24,600 --> 00:06:26,920 Speaker 1: and it seemed like there could just never be enough 109 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: excavation or discovery to satisfy this demand for artifacts. There 110 00:06:32,120 --> 00:06:36,440 Speaker 1: became this really romanticized and kind of fetishized culture, so 111 00:06:36,560 --> 00:06:40,480 Speaker 1: no matter what was discovered, people wanted more artifacts. Yeah, 112 00:06:40,480 --> 00:06:43,640 Speaker 1: it was there was a little bit of city and 113 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:47,600 Speaker 1: fever going on in nineteenth century Europe. And as the 114 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:50,440 Speaker 1: nineteenth century was coming to a close and all of 115 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:53,719 Speaker 1: this fervor was still carrying out, a very short article 116 00:06:53,880 --> 00:06:57,040 Speaker 1: ran in a newspaper in Vienna, and this brief write 117 00:06:57,080 --> 00:06:59,720 Speaker 1: up told the story of a peasant. Sometimes you will 118 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:02,279 Speaker 1: see the written as though it was peasants plural from 119 00:07:02,279 --> 00:07:05,560 Speaker 1: the Crimea Peninsula, who had made an astonishing find of 120 00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:09,080 Speaker 1: historical significance. So important was this item that they had 121 00:07:09,120 --> 00:07:13,480 Speaker 1: found that the discoverer or discoverers fled Russia fearing that 122 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:15,960 Speaker 1: this thing, which was not detailed, was going to be 123 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:19,160 Speaker 1: taken away by the government. A few months later, the 124 00:07:19,280 --> 00:07:24,880 Speaker 1: Huckman brothers, who were antiquities dealers, held an exhibit in Vienna, Austria, 125 00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:28,440 Speaker 1: that was in February of eighteen ninety six. Their exhibit 126 00:07:28,480 --> 00:07:31,600 Speaker 1: featured a number of rare items that were alleged to 127 00:07:31,640 --> 00:07:35,000 Speaker 1: have been recently discovered in Russia. Just to be clear, 128 00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:37,320 Speaker 1: a lot of the places that we're talking about in 129 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:39,840 Speaker 1: this episode, if we were talking about today, that would 130 00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:43,080 Speaker 1: be Ukraine, but at the time it was Russia, correct. 131 00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:47,480 Speaker 1: Among these was a tiara, And this is not a 132 00:07:47,520 --> 00:07:49,600 Speaker 1: tiara like you would think of in the modern sense 133 00:07:49,640 --> 00:07:51,760 Speaker 1: of the word, with some kind of delicate or maybe 134 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:56,360 Speaker 1: ornate little diadem. It was a small domed helmet that 135 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:00,600 Speaker 1: was seven inches or seventeen point eight centimeters tall. It 136 00:08:00,680 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 1: weighs about a pound, and it's made of solid gold. Yeah, 137 00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:07,040 Speaker 1: and it was ornate, just not in the way we 138 00:08:07,080 --> 00:08:12,520 Speaker 1: would think of say a tiara we might see on 139 00:08:12,520 --> 00:08:15,800 Speaker 1: one of the lovely wives of the princes of England. 140 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:19,440 Speaker 1: So the widest band of decoration on this tiara shows 141 00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:23,640 Speaker 1: scenes from the Iliad incarved relief, and then the lower band, 142 00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:26,080 Speaker 1: which is not quite as wide or tall, depending on 143 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:28,840 Speaker 1: how you want to describe it, show scenes of life 144 00:08:28,960 --> 00:08:32,720 Speaker 1: in the Scythian culture. And there's also an inscription inside 145 00:08:32,720 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 1: the tiara in Greek indicating that it is a gift 146 00:08:35,440 --> 00:08:38,240 Speaker 1: from the people of the Crimean city of Olbia to 147 00:08:38,320 --> 00:08:42,440 Speaker 1: the king of the Scythians Ciataphernes. It was a fascinating 148 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:45,160 Speaker 1: piece and it was shopped around by a dealer by 149 00:08:45,160 --> 00:08:49,320 Speaker 1: the name of Vogel with the story of this clandestine 150 00:08:49,440 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 1: journey out of Crimea, and he told this story to 151 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:56,680 Speaker 1: several museums in Europe. Vienna's Imperial Court Museum did not 152 00:08:56,800 --> 00:09:00,280 Speaker 1: want this artifact, neither did the British museum, but the 153 00:09:00,440 --> 00:09:03,480 Speaker 1: Louver did want it and did not hesitate when it 154 00:09:03,559 --> 00:09:07,439 Speaker 1: was offered the opportunity to acquire it. So on April first, 155 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:10,800 Speaker 1: eighteen ninety six, the Louver bought this tiara for two 156 00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:13,920 Speaker 1: hundred thousand francs. Yeah that's the April first tie in. 157 00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:16,319 Speaker 1: It doesn't go any further than that. It just is 158 00:09:16,320 --> 00:09:20,559 Speaker 1: a nice bit of happenstance and kind of prophetic. Yes. 159 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:23,440 Speaker 1: So now, the reason that the British Museum and the 160 00:09:23,480 --> 00:09:26,679 Speaker 1: Imperial Court Museum would pass on what sounds like an 161 00:09:26,679 --> 00:09:30,520 Speaker 1: amazing find is pretty simple. Both institutions believed that it 162 00:09:30,559 --> 00:09:33,360 Speaker 1: was a fake. In the case of the British Museum, 163 00:09:33,400 --> 00:09:36,319 Speaker 1: there had not even been an inspection. Simply the claim 164 00:09:36,360 --> 00:09:38,880 Speaker 1: that it was from Olbia had a roused suspicion in 165 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:42,199 Speaker 1: London because that had often been used by forgers as 166 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:45,199 Speaker 1: a city of origin for fake antiquities. It was at 167 00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:48,040 Speaker 1: this point roughly the antiquities trade version of saying you 168 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:50,640 Speaker 1: have a girlfriend in Niagara Falls that no one has met, 169 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:54,480 Speaker 1: and that perception that a tiara was not genuine wasn't 170 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:57,960 Speaker 1: exactly a secret. As a consequent, the press and France 171 00:09:58,000 --> 00:10:02,040 Speaker 1: started running stories questioning the authenticity of this new acquisition 172 00:10:02,080 --> 00:10:06,640 Speaker 1: at the Louver, and the museum's reputation was also in question, 173 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:10,040 Speaker 1: so this started a very public battle over the whole issue. 174 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:13,439 Speaker 1: On August eighth of eighteen ninety six, the periodical The 175 00:10:13,559 --> 00:10:16,920 Speaker 1: Nation ran an article titled the Disputed Tiara in the Louver, 176 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:21,080 Speaker 1: written by French archaeologist Solomon Reinach. It opened with the 177 00:10:21,080 --> 00:10:26,120 Speaker 1: following paragraph quote, Seldom has public attention been roused as 178 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:29,120 Speaker 1: it is just now by a question of archaeological criticism. 179 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:33,200 Speaker 1: The Tiara of Csiataphernes and the gorgeous necklace purchased together 180 00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:36,280 Speaker 1: with it for the large sum of two hundred thousand francs, 181 00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:40,280 Speaker 1: have become a favorite topic of conversation. People talk about 182 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:43,079 Speaker 1: them and judge them who had never heard the existence 183 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:46,360 Speaker 1: of Olbia, nor of the extension of Greek civilization to 184 00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:49,560 Speaker 1: the northern shores of the Black Sea. Of course, as 185 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:52,480 Speaker 1: the daily papers have taken the matter in hand, much 186 00:10:52,559 --> 00:10:55,600 Speaker 1: nonsense has already been printed about the tiara, and it 187 00:10:55,679 --> 00:10:58,680 Speaker 1: is probable, the debate having only just begun, that we 188 00:10:58,720 --> 00:11:01,079 Speaker 1: shall hear a great deal more of it. There was 189 00:11:01,120 --> 00:11:03,760 Speaker 1: a lot of squabbling that erupted around this tiara, and 190 00:11:03,840 --> 00:11:05,760 Speaker 1: we will get into some more of it in just 191 00:11:05,880 --> 00:11:08,600 Speaker 1: a moment, but first we will pause for a quick 192 00:11:08,720 --> 00:11:21,520 Speaker 1: sponsor break. There were many critics who said that the 193 00:11:21,559 --> 00:11:25,400 Speaker 1: tiara was a forgery. A professor of Vaslovski of Saint 194 00:11:25,440 --> 00:11:29,320 Speaker 1: Petersburg and German archaeologists at Alfred Wangler were two of 195 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:33,400 Speaker 1: the most prominent. Professor of Vassolowski, who taught Byzantine in 196 00:11:33,400 --> 00:11:36,840 Speaker 1: Turkish history at the University of Saint Petersburg, was actually 197 00:11:36,880 --> 00:11:39,560 Speaker 1: the first to publish a claim that the tiara was fake. 198 00:11:40,280 --> 00:11:43,240 Speaker 1: Vessulovski had a good reputation, and even one of the 199 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:46,160 Speaker 1: supporters of the tiara as a true relic wrote quote, 200 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:50,280 Speaker 1: Professor Vassolowski is not an urchin. He cannot have written 201 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:54,000 Speaker 1: such a note without having serious reasons to give. Ford 202 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:57,880 Speaker 1: Wangler made the case that the Tiara of Seyataphernes was 203 00:11:58,080 --> 00:12:02,120 Speaker 1: incongruous with other and new in Cydian finds from Crimea 204 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:05,600 Speaker 1: because it was dated much later. The vast majority of 205 00:12:05,679 --> 00:12:08,200 Speaker 1: items that had been excavated up to that point were 206 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:11,360 Speaker 1: from the fourth and fifth centuries BC, and this one 207 00:12:11,440 --> 00:12:16,520 Speaker 1: was supposedly from the third century BC. Fort Wangler's position 208 00:12:16,840 --> 00:12:20,160 Speaker 1: was questioned because it was common knowledge that fake antiquities 209 00:12:20,200 --> 00:12:22,600 Speaker 1: were coming out of Crimea, but he admitted he had 210 00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:25,080 Speaker 1: not seen any of them himself. Yes, so people were 211 00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:27,320 Speaker 1: kind of like, so you say it's a fake just 212 00:12:27,440 --> 00:12:30,520 Speaker 1: based on like the numbers, but you have never seen 213 00:12:30,520 --> 00:12:33,320 Speaker 1: a fake to know whether or not this compares to them. 214 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:39,120 Speaker 1: The August issue of Cosmopolis featured an article by Adolf 215 00:12:39,320 --> 00:12:43,160 Speaker 1: ft Wangler dismissing any possibility that this tira could be 216 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,800 Speaker 1: a genuine third century BC artifact, and then the next 217 00:12:46,840 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: month a counter to that article was published, written by 218 00:12:49,920 --> 00:12:53,920 Speaker 1: the Louver's curator of Greek and Roman antiquities, Monsieur Rond 219 00:12:53,960 --> 00:12:57,600 Speaker 1: de vi Fosse, and so began a year's long back 220 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:01,920 Speaker 1: and forth between believers and detractors. Critics brought up the 221 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:06,040 Speaker 1: pretty glaring fact that this piece looked way too pristine 222 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:08,840 Speaker 1: to date back to the time of the Citians. There 223 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:12,320 Speaker 1: was virtually none of the damage that you would anticipate 224 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:17,040 Speaker 1: when examining something that old. Fort Wangler did concede that 225 00:13:17,240 --> 00:13:20,120 Speaker 1: some of the tiara was legitimately old. He thought that 226 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:23,280 Speaker 1: the two brass nails that were used in its construction 227 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:27,520 Speaker 1: were indeed antique. Even outside the Louver there were people 228 00:13:27,559 --> 00:13:30,800 Speaker 1: who believed that the tiara was the real deal. That 229 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:33,120 Speaker 1: article that I quoted just before the break from the 230 00:13:33,200 --> 00:13:36,200 Speaker 1: Nation goes on to state quite plainly that the author 231 00:13:36,240 --> 00:13:39,080 Speaker 1: believed one hundred percent that the tiara and the necklace 232 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:43,199 Speaker 1: it was purchased with Both were quote perfectly genuine antiques, 233 00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:47,640 Speaker 1: and the Tiara's backstory grew and gained more detail as 234 00:13:47,679 --> 00:13:50,800 Speaker 1: its status was hashed out, including in that article. So 235 00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:53,960 Speaker 1: according to Rhinock, the item came into the possession of 236 00:13:53,960 --> 00:13:56,520 Speaker 1: a dealer at Otchakov, who tried to sell it to 237 00:13:56,600 --> 00:14:00,000 Speaker 1: account Tuskivitch before moving to Lemberg and then to Vienna 238 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:03,840 Speaker 1: for the exhibit that we mentioned earlier. Rnach made the 239 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:06,960 Speaker 1: case that no one questioned the trs authenticity when it 240 00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:09,400 Speaker 1: was on display, and that it was only once money 241 00:14:09,520 --> 00:14:11,720 Speaker 1: got involved that people started claiming it was a fake. 242 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:14,640 Speaker 1: He also said that he had been on hand for 243 00:14:14,679 --> 00:14:17,280 Speaker 1: the meeting at the Louver where the purchase was approved, 244 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:20,360 Speaker 1: and that the committee present did very carefully consider the 245 00:14:20,440 --> 00:14:24,240 Speaker 1: possibility of a forgery, given the knowledge that crimean fakes 246 00:14:24,240 --> 00:14:27,640 Speaker 1: were becoming more and more commonplace. He also pointed out 247 00:14:27,680 --> 00:14:30,800 Speaker 1: that a lot of the Tiara's detractors changed their minds 248 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 1: once they had seen this piece in person. Rynoch went 249 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:36,680 Speaker 1: on to mention that the French public was prone to 250 00:14:36,760 --> 00:14:40,360 Speaker 1: dismissing their countrymen as experts in anything and deferring to 251 00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 1: foreign scholars. When he shifted from his critique a third 252 00:14:43,520 --> 00:14:48,200 Speaker 1: Wangler to discussing Vesselovski quote, The public at large believed 253 00:14:48,200 --> 00:14:51,960 Speaker 1: in the Russian's assertion, first because a Russian in contemporary 254 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:55,920 Speaker 1: France is something more than an ordinary mortal, and secondly 255 00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:58,440 Speaker 1: because our public is always ready to believe that the 256 00:14:58,480 --> 00:15:02,080 Speaker 1: officials of its own country are lazy or ignorant. I 257 00:15:02,240 --> 00:15:08,880 Speaker 1: love that quote. So because Vessulovski was Russian and Ford 258 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:12,680 Speaker 1: Wangler was German, the Louve dismissed their writings on the matter, 259 00:15:12,760 --> 00:15:16,200 Speaker 1: that this was just an issue of national jealousy. This 260 00:15:16,480 --> 00:15:19,280 Speaker 1: perfect and tidy nature of the piece had been the 261 00:15:19,320 --> 00:15:22,120 Speaker 1: primary clue to its youth for its critics, but the 262 00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:24,920 Speaker 1: Louve claimed that made it all the more special as 263 00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:27,840 Speaker 1: part of their collection because they had this relic that 264 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:33,400 Speaker 1: was in pristine condition. The press continued to skewer the museum, 265 00:15:33,440 --> 00:15:36,680 Speaker 1: though for more than six years, over its insistence that 266 00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:40,120 Speaker 1: the Tiara was the real deal. Eventually, an editor at 267 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:44,280 Speaker 1: the newspaper Lenttrens, again named on re Rochefort, made the 268 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:46,880 Speaker 1: case to the museum that everything would be settled if 269 00:15:46,920 --> 00:15:50,240 Speaker 1: they just launched to throw investigation and determined the tis 270 00:15:50,280 --> 00:15:54,080 Speaker 1: origin and as that was going on the Tiara and 271 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:57,720 Speaker 1: whether it was a forgery was international news, and what 272 00:15:57,840 --> 00:16:01,080 Speaker 1: had initially begun as a debate in antiquity circles over 273 00:16:01,120 --> 00:16:04,120 Speaker 1: these six years eventually reached even the smallest towns in 274 00:16:04,120 --> 00:16:06,960 Speaker 1: the world, and that spread of information was what brought 275 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:09,280 Speaker 1: about a revelation in the matter in the form of 276 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:13,440 Speaker 1: a jeweler from Russia named Lifschutz. When this jeweler heard 277 00:16:13,440 --> 00:16:17,040 Speaker 1: about the inquiry into the helmet's history, he remembered seeing 278 00:16:17,080 --> 00:16:21,480 Speaker 1: a colleague working on a piece that really matched this tiara. 279 00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:24,640 Speaker 1: His account of having seen the creation of the item 280 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,640 Speaker 1: that had been the center of so many public disagreements 281 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:31,840 Speaker 1: was printed in the newspaper Lemata in Paris, and the 282 00:16:31,840 --> 00:16:35,680 Speaker 1: man that he named as the creator was Israel Rushmovsky, 283 00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:39,960 Speaker 1: because he had a reputation for excellent work. Rushmovsky actually 284 00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:43,760 Speaker 1: had briefly come up as a possible antiquities forger several 285 00:16:43,840 --> 00:16:47,000 Speaker 1: years before all of this. In eighteen ninety seven, a 286 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:52,000 Speaker 1: man named Monsieur de Sterne allegedly visited Odessa, where Rushmovsky lived, 287 00:16:52,120 --> 00:16:55,400 Speaker 1: and started a rumor that this man was creating forgeries. 288 00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:59,600 Speaker 1: Rushmovsky wrote a letter to the Journald de Debat firmly 289 00:16:59,640 --> 00:17:01,640 Speaker 1: a s that he was doing no such thing, and 290 00:17:01,720 --> 00:17:05,399 Speaker 1: that letter was published on October third of eighteen ninety seven. 291 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:08,840 Speaker 1: But none of this had connected the artist to the tiara. 292 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:11,760 Speaker 1: It was just a case of a general accusation being 293 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:15,040 Speaker 1: leveled based on the fact that Rushmovsky was a very 294 00:17:15,080 --> 00:17:18,200 Speaker 1: skilled metalsmith working in an area that was well known 295 00:17:18,240 --> 00:17:21,720 Speaker 1: at that point for producing forgeries. The naming of a 296 00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:25,399 Speaker 1: specific artist and a witness claiming that the Tira was 297 00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:30,359 Speaker 1: fake was just explosive. Monsieur Ronde de Vifos made a 298 00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:33,800 Speaker 1: formal request to the French Minister of Public Instruction for 299 00:17:33,840 --> 00:17:36,320 Speaker 1: permission to pull the Tiara out of the collection and 300 00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:40,280 Speaker 1: do a full inquiry. The minister granted the request and 301 00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:44,639 Speaker 1: ordered a judicial inquiry as well. Once Rushmovsky's name was 302 00:17:44,680 --> 00:17:47,160 Speaker 1: in the mix in the Tira controversy, the Louve brought 303 00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:50,760 Speaker 1: him to Paris for questioning as well, and as Rushmovsky 304 00:17:50,840 --> 00:17:54,720 Speaker 1: told his tale of creating this intricate helmet, it implicated 305 00:17:54,800 --> 00:17:58,720 Speaker 1: the Hukman brothers. Rushmowsky said that the Hukmans had approached 306 00:17:58,800 --> 00:18:02,320 Speaker 1: him about creating the as a commission, claiming that they 307 00:18:02,359 --> 00:18:04,200 Speaker 1: wanted it as a gift for a friend who was 308 00:18:04,240 --> 00:18:08,600 Speaker 1: an archeologist, and he was given reference material books featuring 309 00:18:08,680 --> 00:18:12,560 Speaker 1: Greco scythe and discoveries to base his design on. He 310 00:18:12,640 --> 00:18:15,760 Speaker 1: was paid eighteen hundred roubles for this work. It is 311 00:18:15,840 --> 00:18:18,119 Speaker 1: unclear what, if anything, by the way, happened to the 312 00:18:18,160 --> 00:18:20,359 Speaker 1: Hawkman's as a result of all of this. They may 313 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:22,840 Speaker 1: have been long gone because their name doesn't seem to 314 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:24,960 Speaker 1: come up in any accounts of what happened with this 315 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:29,640 Speaker 1: whole story. After this, Rusmovsky described in detail the design 316 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:33,400 Speaker 1: and construction process he had used to create the faux artifact. 317 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:36,439 Speaker 1: He made it in three separate pieces that were fitted 318 00:18:36,480 --> 00:18:39,080 Speaker 1: together and soldered in a way that was really carefully 319 00:18:39,200 --> 00:18:42,560 Speaker 1: hiding the seams. Then he used a hammer to create 320 00:18:42,640 --> 00:18:46,080 Speaker 1: some dents in the piece. Although he was really skilled 321 00:18:46,080 --> 00:18:48,720 Speaker 1: and exacting in his work, these were the exact details 322 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,359 Speaker 1: that an expert would have noticed and factored into an 323 00:18:51,359 --> 00:18:54,919 Speaker 1: analysis of the piece. One of the characteristics of the dents, 324 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:57,800 Speaker 1: which was cited as being an indicator of a fake who, 325 00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:00,320 Speaker 1: was the fact that none of the denting damage had 326 00:19:00,320 --> 00:19:03,679 Speaker 1: been done to any of the detailed sections, only the 327 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:06,840 Speaker 1: pieces that didn't have any design on them, and then 328 00:19:06,840 --> 00:19:09,920 Speaker 1: there wasn't any weathering other than the minor dings here 329 00:19:09,960 --> 00:19:12,680 Speaker 1: and there. Yeah, the backstory that was kind of being 330 00:19:12,760 --> 00:19:14,720 Speaker 1: used when this was sold was like, oh, those dents 331 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:18,120 Speaker 1: are from like a moldering crypt falling apart, and it's 332 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:22,880 Speaker 1: like really, because they have great aim, you would think 333 00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:25,919 Speaker 1: that an artist coming forward and describing exactly how he 334 00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:29,040 Speaker 1: made this forgery would close the case. But it did not. 335 00:19:29,040 --> 00:19:31,800 Speaker 1: Not quite yet. We're going to tell you what happened 336 00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:35,800 Speaker 1: next and how all of this impacted Rushmovsky's life. After 337 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:37,879 Speaker 1: we hear a quick word from one of the sponsors 338 00:19:37,880 --> 00:19:49,040 Speaker 1: that keep stuff you missed in history class going. While 339 00:19:49,160 --> 00:19:51,360 Speaker 1: the artist admitting to the work that he had done 340 00:19:51,640 --> 00:19:54,520 Speaker 1: on this forgery would seem to be a fairly conclusive 341 00:19:54,560 --> 00:19:59,400 Speaker 1: bit of testimony, the Louver wanted more proof, so Rushmovsky 342 00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:01,679 Speaker 1: was given a of gold and asked to create a 343 00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:04,920 Speaker 1: piece of a fake city in Tiara, basically create another one, 344 00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:08,439 Speaker 1: and before witnesses he did exactly that, and that proved 345 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:12,080 Speaker 1: the embarrassing fact that the Louver had bought and defended 346 00:20:12,119 --> 00:20:15,800 Speaker 1: a forgery. To be fair when compared to other forgeries, 347 00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:19,879 Speaker 1: Rushmovsky's work was so far superior and more convincing in 348 00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:23,000 Speaker 1: simply trying to make the best possible commission that he could. 349 00:20:23,280 --> 00:20:26,040 Speaker 1: He had outdone those who had actually been trying to 350 00:20:26,080 --> 00:20:28,679 Speaker 1: pass off their work as ancient. As all of this 351 00:20:28,840 --> 00:20:32,160 Speaker 1: information about the hoax was circulating through the press around 352 00:20:32,160 --> 00:20:34,320 Speaker 1: the globe, so with something else, and that was a 353 00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:39,679 Speaker 1: universal admiration for Rushmovsky's work. Since he hadn't known that 354 00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:42,159 Speaker 1: his creation was going to be shopped around as a 355 00:20:42,280 --> 00:20:47,439 Speaker 1: historically significant find, and since he had been entirely forthright 356 00:20:47,600 --> 00:20:51,480 Speaker 1: under questioning, his reputation was not harmed, so people didn't 357 00:20:51,800 --> 00:20:54,840 Speaker 1: brand him a forger. That was sort of an unintended 358 00:20:54,880 --> 00:20:57,760 Speaker 1: side effect of his making this thing. His work was 359 00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:01,080 Speaker 1: described in articles as quote a very fine piece of 360 00:21:01,119 --> 00:21:05,359 Speaker 1: goldsmithery Rushmovsky sort of smartly brought one of his other 361 00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:07,919 Speaker 1: works to Paris when he traveled there on the business 362 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:11,120 Speaker 1: of the Tiara of Seyataphernes, so that he could enter 363 00:21:11,160 --> 00:21:13,760 Speaker 1: that other piece into the nineteen oh three Paris Salon 364 00:21:13,880 --> 00:21:17,359 Speaker 1: exhibition of Decorative Arts. That piece that he brought is 365 00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:19,879 Speaker 1: probably one that you have seen photos of because it 366 00:21:19,880 --> 00:21:22,920 Speaker 1: occasionally gets passed around on social media. Kind of every 367 00:21:22,920 --> 00:21:28,399 Speaker 1: couple of years. It's a tiny, tiny skeleton made of gold. 368 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:32,160 Speaker 1: It's only three point five inches long, it's about nine centimeters, 369 00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:35,240 Speaker 1: but it has more than one hundred fifty parts, and 370 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:38,359 Speaker 1: it's fully articulated. Even the jaw moves, and it is 371 00:21:38,480 --> 00:21:43,160 Speaker 1: highly detailed. The skeleton took him almost five years to make. 372 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:45,359 Speaker 1: He worked on it from eighteen ninety two to eighteen 373 00:21:45,440 --> 00:21:47,800 Speaker 1: ninety six, and then once he was done with it, 374 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:51,240 Speaker 1: he thought it needed a proper encasement. So to hold 375 00:21:51,359 --> 00:21:55,120 Speaker 1: this skeleton, he also made a tiny ornate coffin out 376 00:21:55,119 --> 00:21:58,120 Speaker 1: of silver with a blue velvet lining. He worked on 377 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:01,360 Speaker 1: that for the next five years and then made additional 378 00:22:01,680 --> 00:22:04,720 Speaker 1: edits over several more years. After the nineteen oh three 379 00:22:04,720 --> 00:22:08,439 Speaker 1: salon the coffin, the skeleton goes and is so small. 380 00:22:08,440 --> 00:22:11,640 Speaker 1: It's four and three eight inches long, which is eleven 381 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:15,120 Speaker 1: point two centimeters. It's so beautiful. It's one of those things. 382 00:22:15,840 --> 00:22:18,200 Speaker 1: Have you run into it on social media all the years. 383 00:22:18,200 --> 00:22:22,000 Speaker 1: So maybe it's just me because I run in you know, 384 00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:27,600 Speaker 1: halloweeny gothy, spooky circles, but it always comes up, and 385 00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:29,360 Speaker 1: I've had it sent to me many times where people 386 00:22:29,400 --> 00:22:30,919 Speaker 1: are like, this is right up your alley, I'm like 387 00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:36,680 Speaker 1: it is. It is so spectacularly beautiful, and Rushmowsky was 388 00:22:36,680 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 1: awarded a gold medal at the exhibition in Paris, and 389 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:42,840 Speaker 1: moreover he gained the attention and favor of a number 390 00:22:42,880 --> 00:22:46,720 Speaker 1: of wealthy art patrons, including the Baron James de Rothschild, 391 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:50,320 Speaker 1: and when Rushmowsky headed home to Odessa, he took with 392 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:54,040 Speaker 1: him several commissions for more of his astonishing and beautiful work. 393 00:22:54,480 --> 00:22:58,000 Speaker 1: From nineteen o three to nineteen oh six, pogroms destroyed 394 00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:01,560 Speaker 1: much of the Jewish community in Russia. Hundreds of Jews 395 00:23:01,560 --> 00:23:05,160 Speaker 1: were killed during a program in Odessa in nineteen oh five. 396 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:08,840 Speaker 1: Rusmovski and his family managed to survive. But when he 397 00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:11,560 Speaker 1: returned to Paris in nineteen oh six to once again 398 00:23:11,600 --> 00:23:14,520 Speaker 1: exhibit his work in the Salon, he had an eye 399 00:23:14,520 --> 00:23:16,600 Speaker 1: toward the future. He really felt that he needed to 400 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:20,240 Speaker 1: get his family out of Russia for their safety, and 401 00:23:20,320 --> 00:23:23,919 Speaker 1: he wanted to relocate to Paris. Yeah, since he already 402 00:23:23,960 --> 00:23:26,399 Speaker 1: had kind of a client base developing there, it just 403 00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:29,480 Speaker 1: seemed like the smartest move. But it still took several 404 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:33,400 Speaker 1: years for Rushmovsky to execute his plan and get everything arranged. 405 00:23:33,680 --> 00:23:37,040 Speaker 1: But in nineteen ten, Finally, he and his family permanently 406 00:23:37,080 --> 00:23:40,760 Speaker 1: moved to Paris. He wrote his memoir in Yiddish and 407 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:44,000 Speaker 1: those were published in the late nineteen twenties, and then 408 00:23:44,040 --> 00:23:46,320 Speaker 1: he died in Paris in nineteen thirty four at the 409 00:23:46,320 --> 00:23:49,359 Speaker 1: age of seventy four. And before he died, the artist 410 00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:52,439 Speaker 1: created a miniature headstone for himself and his wife, in 411 00:23:52,480 --> 00:23:55,560 Speaker 1: which he engraved a happy man was eye in life, 412 00:23:55,880 --> 00:23:58,919 Speaker 1: Peace and quiet, Bread and clothing were always found in 413 00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:02,359 Speaker 1: my home. I loved my work, my wife, and my home. 414 00:24:03,119 --> 00:24:06,040 Speaker 1: Even after my death, my spirit will prevail as the 415 00:24:06,080 --> 00:24:08,960 Speaker 1: work of my hands that I have left behind. The 416 00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:13,040 Speaker 1: skeleton that Rushmovsky made changed hands from one collector to 417 00:24:13,119 --> 00:24:16,199 Speaker 1: another over the years. In nineteen ninety seven, both it 418 00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:19,680 Speaker 1: and the tiara were included in an exhibit in Jerusalem 419 00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:23,880 Speaker 1: titled The Secret of the Golden Tiara Works by Israel Rushbovski. 420 00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:28,240 Speaker 1: On April twenty ninth of twenty thirteen, that tiny skeleton 421 00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:31,320 Speaker 1: was auctioned by Saupies and it was expected to sell 422 00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:33,399 Speaker 1: for one hundred and fifty thousand to two hundred and 423 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,480 Speaker 1: fifty thousand dollars, but when the bidding was all done, 424 00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:39,640 Speaker 1: it went for three hundred and sixty five thousand dollars. 425 00:24:40,200 --> 00:24:43,520 Speaker 1: The Louver did not get rid of the Tiara of 426 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:47,840 Speaker 1: Seataphrenes after it was revealed to be a forgery. Initially, 427 00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:50,760 Speaker 1: they kept it tucked away in the museum archive. It 428 00:24:50,800 --> 00:24:53,000 Speaker 1: was widely presumed that it would never see the light 429 00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:56,359 Speaker 1: of day again, but in the years since then, its 430 00:24:56,440 --> 00:24:59,119 Speaker 1: status as a famous fake has led to some public 431 00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:02,600 Speaker 1: interest in se In nineteen fifty four, the Louve turned 432 00:25:02,680 --> 00:25:06,280 Speaker 1: the institution's embarrassment into an exhibit and included the tiara 433 00:25:06,359 --> 00:25:09,359 Speaker 1: in their salon of fakes that they assembled for a 434 00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:12,880 Speaker 1: limited run. Yeah, there are also I didn't write down 435 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:14,879 Speaker 1: the number, but I think there were eight fake mona 436 00:25:14,920 --> 00:25:18,680 Speaker 1: Lisas included in that exhibit as well, which I thought 437 00:25:18,760 --> 00:25:21,960 Speaker 1: was a pretty good pr move. Actually, the Louve does 438 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:25,560 Speaker 1: mention the tiara briefly on its website as of today 439 00:25:25,920 --> 00:25:28,800 Speaker 1: in its section on the history of the institution. In 440 00:25:28,880 --> 00:25:32,040 Speaker 1: its section titled Sadness of the bellapoc Is the note 441 00:25:32,160 --> 00:25:36,360 Speaker 1: quote two unfortunate incidents seemed to sum up this difficult period. 442 00:25:36,880 --> 00:25:40,240 Speaker 1: The eighteen ninety six purchase of the Tiara of Sayataphernes, 443 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:42,679 Speaker 1: which proved to be a fake and the theft of 444 00:25:42,680 --> 00:25:46,280 Speaker 1: the Mona Lisa in nineteen eleven embarrassing at the time, 445 00:25:46,440 --> 00:25:49,440 Speaker 1: but I feel like because everyone recognizes what a beautiful 446 00:25:49,480 --> 00:25:51,920 Speaker 1: piece of work it was at this point one hundred 447 00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:54,879 Speaker 1: plus years later, people are like, no, that's a valid 448 00:25:55,000 --> 00:25:58,600 Speaker 1: museum piece. Now. Yeah, I wish we had a better 449 00:25:58,640 --> 00:26:02,320 Speaker 1: picture of it available to put on our website. The 450 00:26:02,359 --> 00:26:06,320 Speaker 1: ones that we have access to aren't They're not particularly crisp, 451 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:10,520 Speaker 1: so they don't show all the beautiful detail. Yeah, there 452 00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:13,080 Speaker 1: are better pictures of it floating around the internet, but 453 00:26:13,160 --> 00:26:15,159 Speaker 1: we do not have rights to use them. So if 454 00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:16,680 Speaker 1: you want to see more of it in its full 455 00:26:16,680 --> 00:26:20,240 Speaker 1: gold glory, you can do that. The British Museum also 456 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:22,680 Speaker 1: has a copy of it that has some pretty detailed 457 00:26:22,680 --> 00:26:27,240 Speaker 1: photographs on their website. So yeah, it's an interesting thing 458 00:26:27,280 --> 00:26:30,600 Speaker 1: to think about an artist accidentally being so good at 459 00:26:30,600 --> 00:26:32,359 Speaker 1: his work that he makes it very easy for a 460 00:26:32,440 --> 00:26:36,040 Speaker 1: museum to be fooled without ever intending to do so. Yeah, 461 00:26:36,560 --> 00:26:38,760 Speaker 1: he just wanted to make the best possible gift for 462 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:43,920 Speaker 1: that archaeologist that was imaginary that he could, And yeah, 463 00:26:43,920 --> 00:26:47,760 Speaker 1: it's a consequence all kinds of craziness erupted and fights 464 00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:53,520 Speaker 1: and people. It's very very funny that reichmun article that 465 00:26:53,560 --> 00:26:56,760 Speaker 1: I refer to talks about like, you know, the deplorable 466 00:26:56,880 --> 00:26:59,119 Speaker 1: articles of other people that will not accept that this 467 00:26:59,240 --> 00:27:01,760 Speaker 1: is the real thing. It's very funny. People got very 468 00:27:02,600 --> 00:27:05,440 Speaker 1: very head up over this whole. Yeah, this whole Tiara, 469 00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:08,400 Speaker 1: And it reminds me a little bit of the piltdown 470 00:27:08,480 --> 00:27:14,440 Speaker 1: man Um. Yeah, how fun. It was fun. But also 471 00:27:14,640 --> 00:27:18,639 Speaker 1: you know, it's it's uh disheartening that human nature is 472 00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:21,080 Speaker 1: what it is sometimes, but it was it was fun 473 00:27:21,160 --> 00:27:24,199 Speaker 1: to read articles about the piltdown man that was just 474 00:27:24,359 --> 00:27:28,760 Speaker 1: people talking with utter confidence about what this meant from 475 00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:33,120 Speaker 1: a scientific perspective when it was in fact completely fake. Yeah. 476 00:27:33,160 --> 00:27:37,680 Speaker 1: I mean there are are long discussions even now about 477 00:27:37,720 --> 00:27:44,000 Speaker 1: like what percentage of pieces in museums are forgeries, because 478 00:27:44,080 --> 00:27:47,560 Speaker 1: odds are this is you know, one of many that 479 00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:51,719 Speaker 1: passed over the years. There are museums that have purchased 480 00:27:51,720 --> 00:27:55,879 Speaker 1: pieces that you know, have turned out to be UM forgeries, 481 00:27:56,000 --> 00:27:57,920 Speaker 1: or there are lots of pieces that we probably don't 482 00:27:57,920 --> 00:28:01,439 Speaker 1: even know our forgeries um. And there are plenty in 483 00:28:01,520 --> 00:28:05,119 Speaker 1: contention all day, every day as we speak. But again, 484 00:28:05,520 --> 00:28:07,639 Speaker 1: so gorgeous that in my opinion it belongs in a 485 00:28:07,720 --> 00:28:16,600 Speaker 1: museum anyway. Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday. 486 00:28:16,800 --> 00:28:18,919 Speaker 1: Since this episode is out of the archive, if you 487 00:28:19,000 --> 00:28:21,520 Speaker 1: heard an email address or a Facebook RL or something 488 00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,000 Speaker 1: similar over the course of the show, that could be 489 00:28:24,080 --> 00:28:28,879 Speaker 1: obsolete now. 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