MOSCOW, March 27. /ITAR-TASS/. The collection "Crime: Gold and Secrets of the Black Sea", which is exhibited in the Allard Pierson Museum in Amsterdam at present, must be returned to Crimea, Russian presidential envoy for international culture cooperation Mikhail Shvydkoi believes .
"These things should be returned to Crimea. But I foresee great problems of a legal character. The Amsterdam museum has return guarantees not only to Crimean museums, which belong to Russia now, but also Ukraine's museums. So, a legal conflict arises. It is rather serious," Shvydkoi notes.
A spokesperson for Amsterdam University, a part of which is the Allard Pierson Museum, told Itar-Tass on March 26 that it was not decided yet where to send the Crimean exhibits. The exhibition, which was opened in early February, shows objects from five Ukrainian museums, four of which located in Crimea. The agreements on the exhibits were concluded before the political upheaval in Ukraine and the transfer of Crimea to the Russian Federation. The Allard Pierson Museum believes it is very important to be careful in the situation, Yasha Lange says. Taking into consideration the complexity of the problem, legal advisers at Amsterdam University are studying the issue how and whom to return the exhibits. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands is also requested to give its recommendation.
At the exhibition "Crimea: Gold and Secrets of the Black Sea" in Amsterdam displays archeological objects found in Crimea, including jewelry made of precious metals, arms and houseware, that show rich history of the peninsula. The displayed objects, according to some estimates, are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.