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Ancient Roman Bust Seized from Massachusetts Museum in Looting Probe 

The bust known as “Portrait of a Lady” was acquired in 1966 by the Worcester Art Museum. (Worcester Art Museum)
The bust known as “Portrait of a Lady” was acquired in 1966 by the Worcester Art Museum. (Worcester Art Museum)
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Ancient Roman Bust Seized from Massachusetts Museum in Looting Probe 

The bust known as “Portrait of a Lady” was acquired in 1966 by the Worcester Art Museum. (Worcester Art Museum)
The bust known as “Portrait of a Lady” was acquired in 1966 by the Worcester Art Museum. (Worcester Art Museum)

A bronze bust believed to depict the daughter of an ancient Roman emperor has been seized from an art museum in Massachusetts by New York authorities investigating antiquities stolen from Türkiye.

The seizure is the latest in an ongoing investigation into a smuggling network involving objects looted from Bubon in southwestern Türkiye and trafficked through Manhattan. A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg did not provide further details of the investigation.

The bust known as “Portrait of a Lady” was acquired in 1966 by the Worcester Art Museum about 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of Boston. The seizure comes weeks after the Manhattan district attorney’s office seized a statue thought to portray the Roman emperor and philosopher Marcus Aurelius from a Cleveland, Ohio, museum.

Worcester Art Museum officials said in a statement that the bust taken from their possession dates from A.D. 160 to 180 and is believed to be a life-sized portrayal of a daughter of Marcus Aurelius or another Roman emperor, Septimius Severus.

Museum officials said they had “limited information” about the bust’s history when they acquired it nearly six decades ago.

“We are very thankful for the new information provided to us,” said Matthias Waschek, the museum’s director. “The ethical standards applicable to museums are much changed since the 1960s, and the Museum is committed to managing its collection consistent with modern ethical standards.”

The bust shows a young woman with a heavy-lidded gaze and hair carefully combed into waves.

Marcus Aurelius ruled as Roman emperor from A.D. 161 to 180 and was a Stoic philosopher whose “Meditations” have been studied over the centuries. Septimius Severus’ reign from A.D. 193 to 211 was marked by his efforts to convert the government into a military monarchy.

Türkiye first made claims about the Marcus Aurelius statue in 2012 when it released a list of nearly two dozen objects in the Cleveland museum’s collection that it said had been looted from Bubon and other locations. Museum officials said at the time that Türkiye had provided no hard evidence of looting.

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Murakami Tells Alma Mater He Was a ‘Terrible Student'

This picture taken on June 29, 2024 shows Japanese author Haruki Murakami posing during a photo call following a performance entitled the “Haruki Murakami produce Murakami JAM vol.3 – A hot and gentle fusion night”, at the Sumida Triphony Hall in Tokyo. (AFP)
This picture taken on June 29, 2024 shows Japanese author Haruki Murakami posing during a photo call following a performance entitled the “Haruki Murakami produce Murakami JAM vol.3 – A hot and gentle fusion night”, at the Sumida Triphony Hall in Tokyo. (AFP)
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Murakami Tells Alma Mater He Was a ‘Terrible Student'

This picture taken on June 29, 2024 shows Japanese author Haruki Murakami posing during a photo call following a performance entitled the “Haruki Murakami produce Murakami JAM vol.3 – A hot and gentle fusion night”, at the Sumida Triphony Hall in Tokyo. (AFP)
This picture taken on June 29, 2024 shows Japanese author Haruki Murakami posing during a photo call following a performance entitled the “Haruki Murakami produce Murakami JAM vol.3 – A hot and gentle fusion night”, at the Sumida Triphony Hall in Tokyo. (AFP)

Publicity-shy Japanese author Haruki Murakami told his alma mater Tuesday that he was far from being a model scholar, as he collected an honorary degree in a rare public appearance.

"It feels kind of strange being given the award, considering what a terrible student I was," said Murakami to laughter from the audience at Waseda University.

"I would skip classes and forget about studying. I was just doing whatever I wanted and causing loads of trouble to the university," the 75-year-old said.

The degree is therefore a "pretty generous gesture on Waseda's part," the novelist, dressed in academic regalia, told the rapturous audience of hundreds of admiring fans and Waseda students.

Awarding the honorary doctorate, Tokyo's prestigious Waseda University hailed the "cosmopolitan atmosphere" of Murakami's work and his ability "freewheelingly to zigzag between the real and the surreal".

The author of "Norwegian Wood" and "Kafka on the Shore" is known for his intricate tales of the absurdity and loneliness of modern life, which have been translated into about 50 languages.

Perennially tipped for a Nobel prize, Murakami is a reclusive figure and famously media-shy.

Readers of his works are drawn into the "Murakami world" where giant frogs challenge office workers in battle and mackerel rain down from the sky.

"The City and Its Uncertain Walls", his first full-length novel in six years, hit shelves in Japan last year, and copies of its English translation were released in November.

In his short, self-deprecating speech, Murakami said he had "gained absolutely nothing" from his previous six honorary doctorates -- all awarded by universities abroad -- calling them "useless".

"It's not like they come with pension money... And just because you have honorary doctorates doesn't mean your books sell," he quipped to another bout of laughter.

This is not to say, he added, that he is not grateful to his alma mater.

"Had I not enrolled in Waseda, I might have not pursued the career as a novelist at all," Murakami said, calling the award a milestone in his "life cycle".

Typical of his taciturn style, Murakami offered no clue as to what his next project will be, but he ended his speech on a bright note.

"I want to keep writing good novels," he said.