An independent evaluation report by Dr Lynn Nicholas of the Royal Irish Academy emphasised last year that there is “no proof that John and Gertrude Hunt were Nazis, that they were involved in any kind of espionage or that they were traffickers in looted art” after the Simon Wiesenthal Centre called for an investigation.

At the 'Holocaust Era Assets Conference' in Prague last weekend, Dr Samuels insisted that there has been “an admirable provenance enquiry by the museum's director, but the founders' activities were totally ignored by a three-year Government appointed enquiry”.

Hunt director, Virginia Teehan, said that she and the Irish delegation hoped that a meeting held with Dr Samuels was “the beginning of a dialogue” that will “lead to a constructive approach to solving the matter”.

She added that Dr Nicholas-“the world's leading scholar in this area”-has already twice confirmed that there is “no weight” to the allegations and the museum has made its archive available online.

Meanwhile, Ms Teehan will resign from her position at the end of September to pursue other challenges in the third level sector but will continue to oversee The Hunt Museum Provenance Research Project.

Dr Roger Downer, Chairman of The Hunt Museum, added that she “has led the museum with integrity and professionalism in difficult circumstances”.

“Under her leadership the Hunt Museum has developed considerably and is now recognised as an institution of international prominence, which serves a valuable role in the Irish cultural landscape bringing works of international importance to national and regional audiences.”

Ms Teehan said her “time at the museum has been immensely stimulating and rewarding”.

Comments (0) »

Show/Hide comment form

Name

Email

Title

Comment

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment