Hartwig Fischer, the British Museum‘s director, has resigned after thousands of treasures in the institution’s collection were reported “missing, stolen or damaged”.
In a statement, Fischer said he has accepted responsibility for the museum’s failure to “respond as comprehensively as it should have” to warnings about the suspected thefts in 2021.
“Over the last few days I have been reviewing in detail the events around the thefts from the British Museum and the investigation into them,” he added.
“It is evident that the British Museum did not respond as comprehensively as it should have in response to the warnings in 2021, and to the problem that has now fully emerged. The responsibility for that failure must ultimately rest with the director.”
Fischer, who was already due to step down as the museum’s director next year, said “the situation facing the museum is of the utmost seriousness”.
“I sincerely believe it will come through this moment and emerge stronger, but sadly I have come to the conclusion that my presence is proving a distraction. That is the last thing I would want,” he added.
George Osborne, the British Museum’s chair, said Fischer “has acted honourably in confronting the mistakes that have been made”. He added, “No one has ever doubted Hartwig’s integrity, his dedication to his job, or his love for the museum.
“The trustees will now establish an interim arrangement, ensuring that the museum has the necessary leadership to take it through this turbulent period as we learn the lessons of what went wrong, and use them to develop plans for a strong future.”
2,000 treasures stolen from museum
“I am clear about this: we are going to fix what has gone wrong,” said Osborne. “The museum has a mission that lasts across generations. We will learn, restore confidence and deserve to be admired once again.”
In response to the thefts, the British Museum sacked a member of staff and started an independent review of security. The Met Police’s Economic Crime Command is investigating.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme last week, Osborne said about 2,000 treasures are thought to have been stolen from the British Museum, but some have started to be recovered.
“We believe we have been the victim of thefts over a long period of time and frankly more could have been done to prevent them,” he said.
Images courtesy of the British Museum
