Hartwig Fischer
| Use attributes for filter ! | |
| Gender | Male |
|---|---|
| Age | 62 |
| Born | Hamburg |
| Germany | |
| Alma maters | University of Applied Science Munich |
| University of Bonn | |
| Date of birth | January 1,1962 |
| Books | Edmund de Waal: Library of Exile |
| Date of Reg. | |
| Date of Upd. | |
| ID | 792166 |
Hartwig Fischer Life story
Hartwig Fischer is a German art historian and museum director. Since April 2016, he has been director of the British Museum, the first non-British head of the museum since 1866. From 2012 to 2016, he was director of the Dresden State Art Collections.
British Museum to digitise collection following thefts
... The museum s former director Hartwig Fischer previously stepped down after accepting a 2021 investigation into the thefts was mishandled...
British Museum recovers some of 2,000 stolen items
... And Hartwig Fischer, the museum director, will step down after saying a 2021 investigation was mishandled...
Can the British Museum dig itself out of trouble?
... Hartwig Fischer s as the museum s director is an effort to draw a line under that...
British Museum director quits over stolen treasures
...British Museum director Hartwig Fischer to step down immediately after treasures stolen...
British Museum thefts: Man questioned by police
... Director Hartwig Fischer said earlier this week the museum had taken concerns two years ago about a small number of items " seriously"...
British Museum boss Hartwig Fischer defends 2021 theft investigation
... Museum director Hartwig Fischer now claims the art dealer had more items in his possession, unknown to the museum...
British Museum bosses first alerted to thefts in 2021
... In one of several emails he sent to follow up any progress, this time to a board trustee, Dr Gradel accuses the director - Hartwig Fischer - and Mr Williams of " sweeping it all under the carpet...
British Museum worker sacked over missing items
... British Museum director Hartwig Fischer said the organisation had " brought an end to this"...
Can the British Museum dig itself out of trouble?
By Katie RazzallCulture and media editor
It's been a global story: a museum of World Renown , home to some of humanity's most prized treasures, which apparently didn't notice that More Than 1,500 items had disappeared. Thefts from cultural institutions are perhaps less rare than you might think.
But this is The British Museum .
There are eight million items in its collection, The vast majority are not on display and many are still not catalogued in a manner fit for Modern Times .
And for More Than a week, The drip-drip of allegations has made The Position of those at The Top increasingly untenable.
Setting aside The person Under Suspicion , who This Week was interviewed by Police - The Museum management has been under intense scrutiny about what they knew and when.
It's been deeply damaging for them and for The institution.
Hartwig Fischer 's as The Museum 's director is an effort to draw a line under that. It's also an admission that The Museum made grave mistakes two years ago when it was alerted to allegations of theft.
The Questions were even more serious for his deputy, Jonathan Williams .
He was involved in an investigation in 2021 after those suspicions were flagged by a dealer who had been buying gems and other items online.
The Bbc was The First to see The Correspondence between Dr Ittai Gradel and The Museum top brass from that time.
Having written First - in February 2021 - to The Deputy director of a " disturbing discovery I have made, involving theft from The British Museum , apparently by one of your curators" Dr Gradel then wrote to Dr Fischer to ask whether The Matter was being investigated.
In July 2021, Dr Williams emailed to say there had been a " thorough investigation" with " no suggestion of any wrong-doing on behalf of any member of Museum staff".
He reassured Dr Gradel The " collection was safe".
Dr Williams has now agreed to step back from his normal duties until The Museum completes an independent review into The thefts.
Dr Gradel says: " They failed to take my warnings seriously, they refused to listen, they had no questions to ask of me, they never wanted to include me in their so-called 'thorough investigation'.
" They never contacted me for any additional information or assistance - it is unbelievable. "
It was an error for The Museum to Go On The offensive earlier This Week .
Dr Fischer suggested Dr Gradel had been less than candid with them when he First reported his concerns. He had, The Museum Director said, " had many more items in his possession, and it's frustrating that that was not revealed to us as it would have aided our investigations".
But The Correspondence The Bbc had seen very clearly showed that in his First Contact Dr Williams, Dr Gradel had been open about how he had bought items online and now feared " at least one, possibly all of these gems in fact came from The British Museum collections. "
Dr Fischer has withdrawn The remarks and offered his " sincere regret".
The damage of this story is still unfolding.
To some, The Museum is now an international embarrassment. The Greek government has linked what's happened to its claims for The Return of The Elgin Marbles.
Others too, with ongoing restitution claims, have argued that The British Museum is no longer a trusted custodian of its collection.
Tim Loughton MP, The Conservative chairman of The all party parliamentary group for The Museum , has called that " opportunistic".
He told The Bbc that other countries should be " rallying around to help retrieve objects instead of trying to take advantage".
The trustees, led by The former chancellor, George Osborne , now need to show they have a plan to recover missing items and ensure The Collection is protected into The Future .
Related TopicsSource of news: bbc.com
Hartwig Fischer Photos
