• January 10, 2026 | 8:00 AM - 11:00 AM
• Continental 8/9, Ballroom Level

7G: Provenance Research and the Collecting of Figure-Decorated Ceramics from Antiquity to Today (Colloquium)

Join Zoom here: 

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85431394389?pwd=7LflCbx5ciIBTI6xca9tVFn2v6gSMJ.1

Sponsored by:
AIA Ancient Figure-Decorated Pottery Interest Group

Organizers:
Danielle Bennett, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Mark Stansbury-O’Donnell, University of St. Thomas, and Liz Neill, Boston University

Overview Statement:
Recent decades have seen increased attention paid to the provenance or ownership history of ancient artifacts. This is often motivated by claims for restitution and efforts to reckon with histories of collecting, but also through a growing interest in recording “object biographies” (or “object itineraries”). These address the many hands and places through which an object may pass, from its production, dispersal, and deposition in antiquity, to its modern recovery, restoration, marketing, and display. Such topics can be applied fruitfully to all types of material culture, but painted pottery is especially productive on account of its durability, portability, relative affordability, and the profound role that it has played in shaping tastes over the last three centuries.

This session addresses the shifting significance and understanding of provenance from the eighteenth century to the present, beginning with an exploration of how findspot, object history, and style have often been conflated. Two papers delve into late-eighteenth and nineteenth-century collections in England—those of Charles Townley, now in the British Museum, and the Lucy family at Charlecote Park—and use archival sources to outline the motivations and methods of the collectors, while the third paper explores early publications as source material for understanding provenance. The next paper focuses on material from Orvieto, calling attention also to the valuable insights that the study of restoration techniques can provide in reconstructing archaeological contexts. Turning to the twentieth century, World War II has long been a focus for provenance research, but antiquities have often been overlooked. The next paper examines Greek vases obtained by members of the Nazi elite or taken from their owners through theft or forced sales. Looking further at the market—and marketing—of painted pottery, the penultimate paper focuses on an assemblage of vases sold in 1971 by Royal Athena Galleries in New York, highlighting the challenges of studying objects that are poorly documented. These are issues that continue to resonate, particularly in relation to questions of ownership and restitution. The final paper explores these topics in detail, providing insights into the years of work that led to the repatriation of vases and fragments acquired from the dealer Edoardo Almagià. Collectively, the papers demonstrate how provenance research expands our understanding of Greek vases and the individuals and events that have shaped their histories, and offers compelling strategies for how we can advance the study and presentation of this material.