Who Owns Antiquity? Story aired: Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Western museums have been under pressure to return ancient artifacts to the countries where they were found. Nations successful in getting these precious objects back may view it as a victory, but it's a defeat for humanity, argues James Cuno. Cuno is the director of the Art Institute of Chicago, and he holds the view that art is the common heritage of humanity, and further, that seeing art objects through a modern nationalist frame prevents us from a fuller understanding not only of our common past, but of our present. His new book is Who Owns Antiquity?: Museums and the Battle over our Ancient Heritage.
