Scholars, travellers and trade : the pioneer years of the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, 1818-40

197 Pages·2003·10.466 MB·English

by  Ruurd B Halbertsma

SCHOLARS, TRAVELLERS AND
TRADE
Today, the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden is internationally
known for its outstanding archaeological collections. Yet its origins lie in an
insignificant assortment of artefacts used for study by Leiden University.
How did this transformation come about?
Ruurd Halbertsma has delved into the archives to show that the appoint-
ment of Caspar Reuvens as Professor of Archaeology in 1818 was the crucial
turning point. He tells the dramatic story of Reuvens’ struggle to establish
the museum, with battles against rival scholars, red tape and the Dutch
attitude of neglect towards archaeological monuments. It was Reuvens who
trained archaeological agents to investigate and excavate ancient sites, and
bring back the antiquities on which the museum’s importance rests. Though
he was operating long before the current debate on whether collecting anti-
quities is legal trade or cultural looting, Reuvens recognized the potential
ethical problems inherent in achieving a world-class collection. In this, he
was ahead of his time.
Scholars, Travellers and Trade throws new light on the process of creating a
national museum and the difficulties of convincing society of the value of
the past – issues with which museums are still wrestling. It also highlights
the difficulties that an archaeological pioneer had in establishing his discip-
line as a fully accepted branch of academia.
Ruurd B. Halbertsma is Curator of the Classical Department at the
National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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SCHOLARS,
TRAVELLERS AND
TRADE
The pioneer years of the National
Museum of Antiquities in Leiden,
1818–40
R.B. Halbertsma
iii
First published 2003
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2004.
© 2003 R.B. Halbertsma
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Halbertsma, Ruurd B.
Scholars, travellers and trade: the pioneer years of the National
Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, 1818–1840 / R.B. Halbertsma.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Rijksmuseum van Oudheden te Leiden. 2. Reuvens, Caspar
Jacob Christiaan, 1793–1835. 3. Archaeologists–Netherlands–
Biography. 4. Netherlands–History–1815–1830.
5. Netherlands–History–1830–1849. I. Title.
AM101.L536H35 2003
069′-09492–dc21 2003043147
ISBN 0-203-63454-3 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-203-63778-X (Adobe eReader Format)
ISBN 0-415-27630-6(Print Edition)
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TO THE MEMORY OF HERRE
HALBERTSMA (1920–98)
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CONTENTS
Figures x
Foreword xi
Preface xii
Acknowledgements xiv
1 Introduction 1
Political developments, 1795–1840 1
Museums, ministries and departments 2
The price for antiquities 3
Sources 4
2 Early collections of classical art in the Netherlands:
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 6
‘Works of art and beauties from Venice’: the Reijnst collection 6
The Smetius collection: in search of the Oppidum Batavorum 10
Adventures and antiquities: Frederic Count de Thoms 11
Gerard van Papenbroek: Vanitas Vanitatum 14
Papenbroekiana marmora, nunc Leydensia marmora 16
3 C.J.C. Reuvens and the archaeological cabinet in
Leiden, 1818 21
Law, classics and archaeology 21
From Harderwijk to Leiden: per aspera ad astra 24
Professor in Leiden: the praise of archaeology 25
Examples from abroad: Cambridge, Oxford and London 28
4 Collections and conflicts 31
A national museum and the study of archaeology: organization 31
Art from the East Indies: ‘contemporary or ancient civilizations?’ 34
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CONTENTS
The Royal Coin Cabinet: ‘a difference in scholarly views’ 39
The Rijksmuseum: ‘one of the largest and finest examples of the
so-called Etruscan vases’ 42
Archaeology versus philology: ‘beneath the dignity of
study and rank’ 43
Antiquiteiten: an archaeological journal 47
5 The Greek collections of B.E.A. Rottiers 49
Greek antiquities from Athens 49
‘The literary glory of a nation’ 51
Rottiers’ second collection: ‘an important enlargement’ 54
‘Judging the authenticity’: doubts and forgeries 55
An expedition to the Aegean, 1824–6 57
Excavation on Melos 60
The monuments of Rhodes 65
Evaluation of the expedition: ‘much and ungrateful work’ 66
6 Jean Emile Humbert: the quest for Carthage 71
Dutch engineers in Tunisia, 1796 71
Antiquarian interests: an exiled count in Tunis 74
Between hope and fear: repatriation and new prospects 75
First archaeological expedition to North Africa, 1822–4 79
Excavations in Tunisia 83
Carthage revisited? 86
The Borgia inheritance 87
7 Station Livorno: the Etruscan and Egyptian collections 89
Etruscan urns from Volterra 89
Supposed forgeries: ‘resignation, patience and philosophy’ 91
The Museo Corazzi in Cortona 93
Egyptian antiquities on the European market 97
‘Egypt along the Rhine’: the Cimba and d’Anastasy collections 98
Reuvens’ first valuation: ‘below the Salt collection’ 100
Reuvens’ second valuation: ‘the collection has risen in value’ 101
Reuvens’ third valuation: ‘the price half-way between
Salt and Drovetti’ 103
The breakthrough 104
Epilogue: three gifts and an unreliable merchant 106
End of the expedition: the Nani-Tiepolo and Pacileo collections 107
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CONTENTS
8 Forum Hadriani: digging behind the dunes 112
The search for Forum Hadriani 112
Start of the excavations: ‘sherds of tiles, pots and urns’ 117
Inventing archaeology: fieldwork and documentation 121
End of the excavations: ‘the old state of stagnation’ 124
Smaller excavations and surveys 126
9 The ideal museum: dreams and reality 128
The archaeological cabinet 128
Towards a national museum: ‘a ponderous and
stately building’ 130
State of affairs: ‘general and loud complaints’ 133
The ideal surroundings: ‘the splendour of a capital’? 134
The darkest hour: antiquities and mushrooms 137
Choice of Amsterdam: ‘the last of all cities worthy of
such an honour’ 139
10 End of the pioneer years, 1835–40 141
Reuvens’ death, July 1835 141
The new museum: ‘mummies in a Dutch drawing-room’ 145
Private interest: purchases and donations 147
Vases from Vulci 149
Appendix 1 – Life of C.J.C. Reuvens 153
Appendix 2 – The discorso preliminare of Raffaele
Gargiulo: classifying Greek vases 155
Appendix 3 – Earliest museum publications, 1818–40 158
Appendix 4 – Le Voyageur: a wanderer’s song 160
Notes 162
Bibliography 175
Index 178
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