In 2018, MOTB pulled five of its 16 supposed Dead Sea Scroll fragments from display after testing suggested the fragments were fake. In 2020, a team confirmed that all 16 fragments were frauds. In 2019, MOTB once again learned it was in possession of stolen artifacts, which were sold to the company by University of Oxford Professor of Papyrology Dr. Dirk Obbink; in 2021 Hobby Lobby sued Obbink for $7 million. Obbink was last reported to have been evading authorities, and a judge has since awarded Hobby Lobby a default judgment.
It is worth noting that Museum of the Bible is by no means the only museum to find itself in possession of stolen artifacts. New York’s Museum of Metropolitan of Art, Chicago’s Field Museum, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles are among the institutions that have discovered stolen artifacts in their exhibits.
“Major museums and distinguished institutions committed to preserving history have had to grapple with cultural heritage issues, particularly in recent years,” Kloha told AP. “To be clear,” he continued, “Museum of the Bible is proud to have proactively launched research and a thorough review of items in its collections. The museum initiated returns where appropriate to countries of origin without obligation to do so and encourages other institutions to do the same.”
ChurchLeaders has reached out to Museum of the Bible for comment and will update this article in the event of a reply.
