Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-05-02
Could Berlin Be Deceived?

COulQ Berlin be UeCelVedE
London and Paris laughed What was to
be done? Ask the money back? 1t would
be confession that Berlin could be de-
ceived. After much thought they found a
way to preserve their credit. The Berlin
Museum made no answer to the charges.
1t refused to notice a communication ac-
cepted by the Berlin Numismatic Society.
Then one day last January it put in its
cases three more Greek gold medals-Stil
from Aboukiri
Eureka! The Berlin public laughed with
joy. They saw 1t all. The rumors had
been started by the museum authorities
themselves to keep off foreign buyers and
reduce the price of the remaining medals
The first five had cost 125000 marks. What
the three others cost has never been told
But the eight medals found at Aboukir'
will be henceforth authentic-in Berlin!
The Moabite antiquities bought by the
same Berlin museum in 1876, and the terra
Gotta objects unloaded on It's directors by
the Hotel Drouot people of Paris in 1887,
in the landtag both lots were admitted to
be spurious and were removed to some
garnet. Cost, 10000 marks.
Herr Bode, the director of the Berlin
museum, though an expert of the highest
standing, has had bad luck in his buying.
In it's collection of bronzes there is a
"Flagellation of Christ" attributed to Do
natello, which is nothing but the cast of
bas-relef in the His de la Sale gallery
of the Louvre in Paris whose very cracks
are reproduced not as cracks, but in re-
lief, on the Berlin treasure! In 1883 he
announced triumphantly that he had ac-
CURED at Rome superb bust 'the por-
trait of Duchess of Urbino," which he
attributed to Desiderio da Settignano. 1t
was simply the copy of a bust in painted
stucco belonging to the collection of Count
Wemys in London. Before 1t had been car
ried to England cast had been taken
ne Nd o1r -
obtainable at easy prices! Worse still, two
| Of the most important worries of the Ber-
| lin Museum 1.-The covers of the Book of
Gospels of st. Lucipin," are modern copies
of an original in the Paris National LII
brary collection
Nothing New.
There is nothing new in this. Two hum
bred years before Christ they initiated
| Etruscan vases Under the Antonines they
counterfeited the great works of Greek
art. During the renaissance true artists,
whose original work would now be almost
| priceless, counterfeited everything, from
ancient marbles down (or up) to ancient
money.
In modern times did not Vrain-Lucas
| deceive M. Chasles of the French Institute
| with false autographs of Charlamagne and
Alexander? Did Mr.. Pierpont Morgan ever
| hear of the Affair Libri?
The Louvre has always been exposed to
| frauds. In 1S49 an Amiens antiquary Of
| fered it's director a collar of Roman med
ais found in digging AS it was accom-
panied by a stamped and attested demand
| of the owner of the ground for his share
| of the price, the Louvre director bought it
| for 1900 francs. Later it was discovered
| that the antiquary had paid 40 francs
apiece to the laborers to dig the collar
up" This director, e. NJ de Longperier re-
| trieved his reputation later on by denounc-
ing the famous Tezcoco vase. brought from
Mexico as the most valuable vestige of
Aztec art. The decorative figures had been
| pasted on it after the vase had been
cooked! @-. c-.s -+'
The ST. German Museum Of Prehistoric
| Objects has such a mass of imitation ham
mers, axes, daggers funeral lamps and
of frauds with them. But did not the
| British Museum purchase at great price
| the false agate pearls from the so-called
| dolmen in Wales? The Mayence Museum
bought some of the same agates as COM
| ing from Roman tombs. The record how
ever, in this line is held by the Munich
| Museum. Having acquired at great price
| the mummy of Queen Nitocris-the one
Egyptian queen who reigned. like Cleopa-
| ira later, in her own right-they were in
| a few weeks astonished by its smell There
could be no doubt about it-Queen Nitocris
was putrefying! And there was nothing
| to do but to bury her.
Making Mummies.
The little Montmartre artist, Elina, has
affirmed that Montrouge workshop makes
| these mummies, with their painted and
| gilded wooden cases. They are sent to
Egypt and return to Europe furnished with
the necessary attestations of genuineness.
ITO make one.' says Elina, ''they pro-
| cure skeleton from the Clamart anatomi-
cal amphitheater. wind it round with linen
bands stepped in pitch and resin: then
| they pour over 1t more pitch and resin