David D'Arcy
Journalist
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rframmolino
Mr. D'Arcy: My name is Ralph Frammolino, co-author of "Chasing Aphrodite." I'd like to first thank you for such a lengthy review. I am writing, however, to correct some factual errors that are contained in it. First, our book was not based largely on the coverage of the Marion True trial, but on documents in the case, as well as hundreds of internal Getty documents and more than 300 interviews that detailed how the Getty became an epicenter in the antiquities scandal. Much of the book describes decisions and purchases of antiquities that preceded the 2005 indictment and trial, and details negotiations surrounding the return of looted antiquities. Our attempt was to understand the seeds of the scandal, which for many readers and journalists seemed to come out of nowhere and tarnish the reputation of one of America's leading curators. Secondly, you seemed to have mixed up two sets of incriminating photographs and who discovered them. You say it was Getty investigators who discovered the photos in Giacomo Medici's Geneva warehouse that led to the criminal charges against Marion True and the repatriation of Getty antiquities; in fact, those photos were discovered by Italian and Swiss officials who conducted a 1995 raid of Medici's warehouse. Meanwhile, you say that the Italians discovered the photos of the disassembled Aphrodite statue, indicating it had been looted. In fact, it was the Getty and an outside law firm that tracked those photos down, eventually persuading the Getty board to give back the museum's iconic statue this year. I point these things out only as factual matters and not to take any issue about your evaluation of our book. Thank you for this opportunity to correct the record.
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