Israel Matzav

Iran in a fight with the Louvre

Iran has cut ties with the famous Louvre museum in Paris, an official said Monday, accusing the museum of failing to live up to an agreement to exhibit Persian artifacts in its possession in Iran.

"In the cultural field, we do not accept that European countries look down on us," Hamid Baghai, who heads Tehran's Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, told reporters Monday, according to Agence France-Presse.

"The officials at The Louvre have until the end of 1389 [the Iranian year ending March 2011] to precisely tell us when and what they are going to set up here," he added.

Sensitivities over the French role in the excavation and export of Persian cultural artifacts are nothing new.

Labels: France, Iran, Louvre

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:58 AM