Theft and Forgery at Victoria University’s Classics Museum

Victoria University’s Classics Museum examines the complex afterlives of antiquities through two remarkable objects—a Roman portrait head now subject to repatriation after being identified as illicitly excavated, and a richly carved child’s sarcophagus later revealed to be a modern forgery. Associate Professor Diana Burton explores the investigations behind these discoveries and what they mean for museum stewardship and the study of the ancient world.