A 3,200-year-old artifact, a small tablet telling the story of the construction of an Assyrian temple in
ancient Mesopotamia, was stolen by the Red Army when it plundered the Vorderasiatisches Museum
in Berlin in 1945. A black marketeer traded a pack of cigarettes for it in 1946 and brought it with him
when he immigrated to the USA. The ancient gold tablet was worth $10 to $14 million dollars. The
man's son contacted the museum but refused to sell it when he was not offered enough money, so in
2006 the Vorderasiatisches Museum filed a claim for the return of the tablet. But the family now
decided that they were "sentimentally attached to it" and fought to keep it. The court case stated:
ancient Mesopotamia, was stolen by the Red Army when it plundered the Vorderasiatisches Museum
in Berlin in 1945. A black marketeer traded a pack of cigarettes for it in 1946 and brought it with him
when he immigrated to the USA. The ancient gold tablet was worth $10 to $14 million dollars. The
man's son contacted the museum but refused to sell it when he was not offered enough money, so in
2006 the Vorderasiatisches Museum filed a claim for the return of the tablet. But the family now
decided that they were "sentimentally attached to it" and fought to keep it. The court case stated:
“The gold tablet was found during an excavation around the city of Ashur, now Qual’at Serouat,
Iraq, by a team of German archeologists led by Walter Andrae. The inscribed tablet, which was
discovered in the foundation of the Ishta Temple, is actually a construction document, according to
the judge. It dates to the reign of the Assyrian King Tukulti-Ninurta I (1243-1207 BCE) who
expanded the Assyrian empire but was later killed by his son. When the excavations finished in 1914,
the tablet was packed up along with other artifacts and sent to Basra, where it was loaded on a
Germany-bound freighter…. In 1934, the tablet was put on display at the Vorderasiatisches
Museum…. Five years later, with World War II looming, the museum was closed and the tablet was
put in storage along with other antiques and works of art. At the end of the war in 1945, an inventory
discovered that the tablet was missing. Nearly 60 years later, in April 2003, the tablet was discovered
among the possessions of ........., after his death.”
Iraq, by a team of German archeologists led by Walter Andrae. The inscribed tablet, which was
discovered in the foundation of the Ishta Temple, is actually a construction document, according to
the judge. It dates to the reign of the Assyrian King Tukulti-Ninurta I (1243-1207 BCE) who
expanded the Assyrian empire but was later killed by his son. When the excavations finished in 1914,
the tablet was packed up along with other artifacts and sent to Basra, where it was loaded on a
Germany-bound freighter…. In 1934, the tablet was put on display at the Vorderasiatisches
Museum…. Five years later, with World War II looming, the museum was closed and the tablet was
put in storage along with other antiques and works of art. At the end of the war in 1945, an inventory
discovered that the tablet was missing. Nearly 60 years later, in April 2003, the tablet was discovered
among the possessions of ........., after his death.”
On March 30, 2010, a New York Judge ruled that the object will remain in the possession of the
family. He said that the museum had waited too long to press its claim. The director of the museum
disagreed, testifying that in post-war Berlin, it was impossible to fill out a report or alert the
authorities given the chaotic nature of the occupation and the separation of East and West Berlin. As
the museum was located in East Berlin, a "Soviet satellite state," the political and financial restraints
imposed on it made its delay "entirely reasonable." The museum also contended that both
international authorities and the Hague Convention of 1907 prohibit "pillaging and plundering."
family. He said that the museum had waited too long to press its claim. The director of the museum
disagreed, testifying that in post-war Berlin, it was impossible to fill out a report or alert the
authorities given the chaotic nature of the occupation and the separation of East and West Berlin. As
the museum was located in East Berlin, a "Soviet satellite state," the political and financial restraints
imposed on it made its delay "entirely reasonable." The museum also contended that both
international authorities and the Hague Convention of 1907 prohibit "pillaging and plundering."
The family's lawyer disagreed to both points and claimed they were poor excuses and quipped "To
the victor goes the spoils", arguing that under the "spoils of war" doctrine, cultural property removed
by Russian troops during the occupation of Berlin after World War II was "lawfully transferred from
one sovereign to another and that this taking of the gold tablet extinguished the rights of the museum
pursuant to international law." The court agreed, therefore interpreting international law all on its
own. The family's other lawyer said the object had become part of the "family's history" and that the
family was "offended by the efforts of the German government."
the victor goes the spoils", arguing that under the "spoils of war" doctrine, cultural property removed
by Russian troops during the occupation of Berlin after World War II was "lawfully transferred from
one sovereign to another and that this taking of the gold tablet extinguished the rights of the museum
pursuant to international law." The court agreed, therefore interpreting international law all on its
own. The family's other lawyer said the object had become part of the "family's history" and that the
family was "offended by the efforts of the German government."