British Museum sues former curator over collection thefts

The British Museum is suing a former curator of Greek and Roman Art, alleging that they stole or damaged more than 2,000, mainly unregistered, artefacts from its collection. 

The museum’s lawyer, Daniel Burgess, said Higgs, who was fired in 2023, “abused his position of trust” and took the items, including ancient gems and gold jewellery, over a 10-year period, according to the Associated Press.

Burgess alleged that Higgs tried to conceal his activities by using fake names and documents, manipulating museum records and undervaluing items when he resold them.

Higgs, who has not yet been charged in a separate ongoing police investigation, denies the allegations. He did not attend a hearing on March 26 because of poor health, but Associated Press reports that he intends to dispute the British Museum’s claim.

The museum has said 351 stolen items have been returned, with 300 further missing items identified.

Orders from High Court judge Heather Williams require Higgs to list or return any items from the museum still in his possession within four weeks and to disclose his records from eBay and PayPal.

The theft of around 1,500 Greek and Roman objects by a British Museum employee between 1993 and 2022 first emerged in August 2023, causing considerable reputational damage to the organisation and resulting in the resignations of Director Hartwig Fischer and Deputy Director Jonathan Williams.

An independent review into thefts has made a series of recommendations to the museum on risk management, auditing, governance and security, as well as introducing a comprehensive register of all eight million items in its collections.