![Mosdótál és kancsók](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Mosd%C3%B3t%C3%A1l_%C3%A9s_kancs%C3%B3k.jpg)
The Seuso Treasure or Sevso Treasure ( hu, Seuso-kincsek; hr, Seusovo blago), is a
hoard of
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
objects (14 items) from the late
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...
. The first pieces appeared on the market in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in 1980, and the treasure was acquired by a consortium headed by
Spencer Compton, 7th Marquess of Northampton
Spencer "Spenny" Douglas David Compton, 7th Marquess of Northampton (born 2 April 1946) is a British peer.
Family
Compton is the son of the Most Hon. William Compton, 6th Marquess of Northampton and Virginia Lucie Compton, ''née'' Heaton. The ...
. Documentation was provided in which it was stated that it had been found in the Tyre and Sidon regions of
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
. It was put up for sale in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
in 1990 by
Sotheby's
Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
, but was halted when the documentation was found to be false, and the governments of
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
,
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
(now
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
) and
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
made claims of ownership. The claims of ownership by these countries were rejected by a US court, and the treasure remained in the possession of the Marquess of Northampton.
Scotland Yard still has an open case on the matter.
The origin and
provenance of the treasure are likely known, but not publicly acknowledged. There is much scientific evidence to indicate that the hoard was first acquired in the 1970s after the murder of a Hungarian soldier, who discovered the treasure during illicit digging at an established archaeological site in Hungary.
On 26 March 2014
Prime Minister of Hungary
The prime minister of Hungary ( hu, Magyarország miniszterelnöke) is the head of government of Hungary. The prime minister and the Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Parliament, to their political part ...
Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
announced that half of the Seuso Treasure (seven items) had been bought by Hungary.
The Prime Minister described it as "Hungary's family silverware". In June 2017 the remaining seven artifacts also returned to Hungary, being bought for €28 million.
Contents
The
treasure trove
A treasure trove is an amount of money or coin, gold, silver, plate, or bullion found hidden underground or in places such as cellars or attics, where the treasure seems old enough for it to be presumed that the true owner is dead and the hei ...
consists of fourteen large decorated silver vessels and the copper cauldron which contained them, and has been dated to the late-fourth or early-fifth century AD. Most notable is a large dish, 70 cm in diameter and weighing nearly 9 kg, which bears the inscription:
: ''Hec Seuso tibi durent per saecula multa''
: ''Posteris ut prosint vascula digna tuis''
: May these, O Seuso, yours for many ages be
: Small vessels fit to serve your offspring worthily.
Discovery
![Sümegh józsef 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/S%C3%BCmegh_j%C3%B3zsef_02.jpg)
The hoard first came to attention in 1980, when a single piece in the possession of two antiquities dealers from
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
was offered for sale in London. Further pieces reached the market, and what is believed to be the complete hoard was acquired by a consortium headed by
Spencer Compton, 7th Marquess of Northampton
Spencer "Spenny" Douglas David Compton, 7th Marquess of Northampton (born 2 April 1946) is a British peer.
Family
Compton is the son of the Most Hon. William Compton, 6th Marquess of Northampton and Virginia Lucie Compton, ''née'' Heaton. The ...
.
[Antiques Trade Gazette](_blank)
, 30 September 2006. Documentation supplied by the Lebanese embassy in Switzerland stated that the treasure had originally been found in the
Tyre and
Sidon
Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...
regions of Lebanon, and on that basis the consortium negotiated to sell the collection to the
Getty Museum
The J. Paul Getty Museum, commonly referred to as the Getty, is an art museum in Los Angeles, California housed on two campuses: the Getty Center and Getty Villa.
The Getty Center is located in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles and fe ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
for $10 million. When that deal fell through, the treasure was put up for sale in New York in 1990 by
Sotheby's
Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
, and was described as being from "what was once the province of
Phoenicia
Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...
in the
Eastern Roman Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...
".
Legal dispute
The sale was halted when documentation was thought to be false, and the governments of Hungary, Yugoslavia and Lebanon each made claims of ownership. Hungarian authorities claim that the treasure was discovered by a young soldier, József Sümegh, in around 1975–76 near the town of
Polgárdi in central Hungary. Sümegh's body was found in a nearby cellar in 1980. The official investigation at the time determined that he had committed suicide, but the police later concluded that he had been killed.
As of 2012 the criminal investigation into his death is still ongoing.
Yugoslavia's case was based on claims that the treasure had been originally found on 30 June 1960 in the village of
Barbariga in
Istria (present-day
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
).
The village is some 20 kilometres north of the city of
Pula, an important city in Roman times. According to local witnesses, the treasure had been discovered in old trenches in a nearby
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska ar ...
(JNA) compound.
In the 1980s the JNA gave permission to local archaeologists, led by
Vesna Girardi-Jurkić, to further excavate the site. According to unconfirmed eyewitness reports of army excavations, the 14 known artefacts were only a small part of a much larger treasure trove as it took soldiers and police brought to the site six days to list all the items found at the site. However, very few details of the project were ever released to the public as the alleged site was entirely within a military area closed off to civilians.
Yugoslav archaeologists' efforts eventually failed to provide any conclusive evidence for the treasure's origin, although the soil residue found on the artefacts was proved to match the samples of soil from the area.
After the
breakup of Yugoslavia the newly independent Croatia pressed on with the case and included the results of the soil analysis in its formal ownership claim to a New York court.
![Hyppolitus készlet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Hyppolitus_k%C3%A9szlet.jpg)
In November 1993, the
New York Court of Appeals rejected the claims, and found no case for removing it from the possession of the Marquess of Northampton 1987 Settlement (a trust established by the Marquess of Northampton). The silver was locked in a bank vault while further legal proceedings followed. The Marquess sued his solicitors
Allen & Overy
Allen & Overy LLP (informally A&O) is an international law firm. The firm has 580 partners and over 5,600 people worldwide. In 2022 A&O reported an increase in revenue to GBP1.96 billion and is the second largest law firm headquartered in t ...
for damages in relation to advice given during the purchase of the silver, and that case was settled out of court in 1999 for a reported £15 million. On 25 June 1999, in written answers to questions in the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
, the British government confirmed that it had no further interest in the case and confirmed the decision not to prosecute.
The Hungarian claim of possession is likely justified by the fact that on one of the main plates, the "Hunting Plate", an inscription is to be seen. It reads "Pelso", the Roman name for
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton () is a freshwater lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the largest inflow of water to the lake, and ...
in Hungary; the lake is just west of the alleged place of discovery.
Also near to the lake, in 1873 a presumed Roman
tripod
A tripod is a portable three-legged frame or stand, used as a platform for supporting the weight and maintaining the stability of some other object. The three-legged (triangular stance) design provides good stability against gravitational loads ...
(later restored, upon which it was discovered that it is a
quadripod) was discovered; according to scholars, this object featured similar decoration as the Seuso Treasure items, and is very likely a creation of the same hands. It is housed in the
Hungarian National Museum
The Hungarian National Museum ( hu, Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum) was founded in 1802 and is the national museum for the history, art, and archaeology of Hungary, including areas not within Hungary's modern borders, such as Transylvania; it is not to ...
in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
.
Later developments
In September 2006, London auctioneer
Bonhams
Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought to ...
announced that it would exhibit the treasure privately, in a move seen as a prelude to a sale by private treaty or by auction at a future date.
A spokesman for the
Ministry of Education and Culture The Ministry of Education and Culture is a Cabinet position in the governments of several nations. In some nations the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture are separate departments; in others, the Ministry of Education and Culture als ...
of Hungary, which had still claimed it, said it had informed British authorities that it must not be sold. On 12 October 2006, further written answers were given in the House of Lords to questions by
Colin Renfrew, Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn
Andrew Colin Renfrew, Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, (born 25 July 1937) is a British archaeologist, paleolinguist and Conservative peer noted for his work on radiocarbon dating, the prehistory of languages, archaeogenetics, neuroarchaeology, ...
, particularly relating to Hungary's possible revised claim to the treasure since its
admission to the European Union in 2004. Bonhams went ahead with its private exhibition on 17 October 2006.
In March 2007, ''
The Art Newspaper
''The Art Newspaper'' is a monthly print publication, with daily updates online, founded in 1990 and based in London and New York City. It covers news of the visual arts as they are affected by international politics and economics, developments ...
'' reported that a further "187 silvergilt spoons, 37 silvergilt drinking cups, and 5 silver bowls", previously unknown, but part of the original hoard, were reputed to exist.
Research presented in February 2008 by the Hungarian archaeologist Zsolt Visy strengthened the view that the origin of the treasure may be the Lake Balaton region of Hungary.
The
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
archaeology programme ''
Time Team
''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned online in 2022 for two episodes released on YouTube. Created by television producer Tim ...
'' aired a
special on the treasure in December 2008.
The programme presented Hungary's evidence for the likely origin of the hoard being near the town of
Polgárdi. The Marquess of Northampton withdrew from planned participation in the programme and Channel 4 was not given permission to film the treasure, held in Bonhams' vault in London.
Return to Hungary
On 26 March 2014,
Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
, the Hungarian prime minister, announced that half of the Seuso Treasure (seven items) had been returned to Hungary, for a sum of €15 million.
The seven artefacts were put on temporary display at the
Hungarian Parliament Building on 29 March 2014. On 12 July 2017, the
Hungarian PM announced that the other seven pieces had been brought back to Hungary, and the treasure would be displayed together.
The items will be moved to the Budapest
Museum of Fine Arts by 2018, where they are intended to be a centrepiece of the new museum's quarter.
See also
*
Carthage Treasure
*
Esquiline Treasure
The Esquiline Treasure is an ancient Roman silver treasure that was found in 1793 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome. The hoard is considered an important example of late antique silver work from the 4th century AD, probably about 380 for the major pi ...
*
Mildenhall Treasure
The Mildenhall Treasure is a large hoard of 34 masterpieces of Roman silver tableware from the fourth century AD, and by far the most valuable Roman objects artistically and by weight of bullion in Britain. It was found at West Row, near Mild ...
*
Northampton Sekhemka statue
*
Vinkovci Treasure
Gallery
File:Geometrikus-tál.jpg, Geometric plate
File:Vadásztál.jpg, Hunting plate
File:Vadásztál (2).jpg, Hunting plate (detail)
File:Dionüszosz kancsó.jpg, Dionysus
File:Dionüszosz amfóra.jpg, Dionysus
File:Állatalakos kancsó.jpg, Animal stoup
File:Illatszeres doboz.jpg, Perfume box
File:Akhilleusz tál.jpg, Achilles plate
File:Meleagrosz-tál.jpg, Meleager plate
File:Meleagrosz-tál (2).jpg, Meleager plate (detail)
References
Sources
* ''Antiques Trade Gazette'', 30 September 2006
* Ruth E. Leader-Newby — ''Silver and Society in Late Antiquity: Functions and Meanings of Silver Plate in the Fourth to Seventh Centuries''
* Marlia Mundell Mango and Anna Bennett — "The Sevso Treasure" in ''Journal of Roman Archaeology'' Suppl. 12:1, 1994.
Further reading
* Leo V. Gagion, Harvey Kurzweil and Ludovic de Walden — "The Trial of the Sevso Treasure: What a Nation Will Do in the Name of Its Heritage" in Kate FitzGibbon, ed. — ''Who Owns the Past? Cultural Policy, Cultural Property and the Law''. (Rutgers University Press, 2005)
External links
"Seuso Research Project Official Site""Thinking about the Sevso Treasure"Merryman, J.H. (12 March 2008). Stanford Public Law Working Paper No. 1105584
"Seuso-treasure Repatriated"(26 March 2014;
Budapest Museum of Fine Arts)
"Shame still hangs over the Sevso hoard"(29 April 2014; ''
The Art Newspaper
''The Art Newspaper'' is a monthly print publication, with daily updates online, founded in 1990 and based in London and New York City. It covers news of the visual arts as they are affected by international politics and economics, developments ...
'')
"The Curse of the Sevso Silver"Landesman, P. (November 2001) theatlantic.com
{{Authority control
Late Roman Empire art
Treasure troves of late antiquity
Treasure troves in Hungary
Art and cultural repatriation
Silver objects
Pannonia
Lake Balaton
Hungary–United Kingdom relations