BERLIN – Wendells tied dozens of artwork and squabs with “oily liquids” at the Museum Island complex in Berlin, raising questions about the safety of Germany’s invaluable collection, officials said Wednesday.
Berlin police have been investigating attacks on at least 63 pieces in three museums in central Berlin for more than two weeks. After evaluating hours of video footage from surveillance cameras, police said they did not yet have a clear lead in the investigation.
“To date, we can’t pinpoint exactly when the bags were damaged,” Carsten Pfhl, a leading investigator with the Berlin State Police, told a news conference.
Although the exact time is unknown, officials believe that Oct. The loss occurred during the regular opening on On, a national holiday when the Germans marked the union of East and West Germany. Police released a public statement and were at the museum during its opening hours that day and asking anyone to send any tips or information that could help her and her investigation.
About 3,000 people went to the museum that day, limiting attendance due to a coronavirus outbreak. Although visitors enter based on time slots, no one is required to leave personal information – although the museum may be for visitors who have booked tickets in advance online.
Mr Pifohl and the National Museums of Berlin, which oversees the collection housed in the five buildings of the Museum Island complex, declined to comment on reports in the German media that a German conspiracy theorist, who has repeatedly told his followers that one of the institutions, , Connected with global satanism.
Aug Gust. On the 23rd, Attila Hildman, a vegan chef and cookbook writer who has endorsed Quennon’s principles, sent a message to thousands of his followers on the Messenger Service Telegram asking them to destroy it. Museum, which contains the Pergaman Alter. Some followers of Quennon in Germany have identified that ancient Greek monument as the throne of Satan described in the Book of Revelation.
Mr Hilden could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but he did post a link to reports of vandalism in his telegram channel, claiming the devil’s cushion was inside the museum.
“Go for it, charge me,” he dared the plaintiff in his post.
In July, authorities in Mr Hildam’s home state of Brandenburg launched an investigation into a separate case against him on suspicion of inciting his followers to hate crimes, but no charges have been filed.
Marcus Fair, a spokesman for the National Museums in Berlin, said on Wednesday that they were awaiting the outcome of the investigation.
He also responded to criticism of keeping information about the sabotage secret, calling the decision a strategic move. Two leading German media outlets, Die Zeit Weekly and Dutschlandfunk Radio, reported the damage late Tuesday night.
Frederick Seyfred, director of the Egyptian Museum on Museum Island, said none of the leading objects in the three museums where the attack took place were damaged. One of them is the center of the News Museum, Queen Nefertiti’s 3, old0000 year old limestone and stucco bust.
On Tuesday, reporters from Die Zeit and DeutschlandFunk reported seeing 19th-century paintings, stone sculptures and “visible marks” on Egyptian sarcophagi, one of which was shown to reporters on Wednesday. There was a stain on a sarcophagus of the prophet Ahmouz (33 33૨–30 BC), which appeared to have floated on a liquid stone, and then fell down.
“The museums were normally open as per the whole routine, and most of the damaged items have been cleaned,” Mr. Fair said, adding that they would not be harmed in any way. “
“Some of the stones are still being analyzed as to what type of restoration is needed,” he said.
Investigators said they believed that because the monkeys could have used a bottle, a water gun or a jock flower to square the liquid into pieces, they were able to move out of the museum without being detected. The specific substance used has been identified, but not named.
The sabotage is the latest in a series of incidents that have raised questions about security in German museums.
Three years ago, another building on Museum Island, the Bode Museum, was the site of a spectacular robbery of a 221-pound gold coin. Last year, thieves swam from a museum in the eastern city of Dresden with gold jewelry and precious stones.
“However, again, Berlin’s national museums should be asked questions about their security measures,” said Monica Gerters, Germany’s culture minister. “It should be clear how so much damage would not have gone unnoticed, and how such attacks could have been prevented in the future.”
Ms. Graters demanded that a “comprehensive report” on the security situation be presented in the National Museums of the Berlin Foundation’s Board of Directors.
Security questions also arose this year when Museum Island institutions were closed to the public as part of government measures aimed at slowing the spread of coronavirus. In June, Mr. Hildman began holding rallies on the steps of the News Museum, condemning public health restrictions and calling the neighboring Pergamon Museum the center of the “global satanic scene” and the home of “Corona criminals.”
Berlin authorities eventually forced demonstrations elsewhere in the city. But before that, the museum reacts to its conspiracy theorists at its door – by hanging a huge, red banner on the pillars pertaining to the front of the building. “For global openness and democratic values,” he read. “Against racism, Semitism, nationalism and the movement.”
Ben Decker contributed to the report from Boston.
