It was a pleasure to read the article by Charlotte Higgins in which she stands up for the curators (Politicians, not curators, are to blame for the British Museum’s woes, 1 September). This sad episode has been characterised by ill-informed comment that has little to do with what has come to pass at the British Museum (BM).
There are two points to make, apart from condemning the tardiness in responding to the whistleblower and the apparent attempt at a cover-up. First, the BM has never been the subject of a major theft (at least in modern times), as has been the fate of so many museums worldwide, including at least one in Greece; and, second, it is virtually impossible for museums that hold thousands of small, valuable objects to prevent theft by a determined member of staff.
Indeed, there are many such incidents known, and I suspect unknown, because the institutions concerned have striven to keep them quiet.
Andrew Oddy
Keeper of conservation, British Museum, 1985-2002
• Following their recent columns, I would like to nominate Charlotte Higgins or Simon Jenkins (Theft isn’t the only problem facing the cash-strapped British Museum – and I have some answers, 28 August) as chair of the British Museum board of trustees, replacing the entirely culture-free and economically irresponsible George Osborne.
What were trustees doing while this scandal built up? Are they just there for display or do they, quite apart from being kept informed of possible fraud, monitor the accounts to ensure staff are properly paid and valued? The director and his deputy, Hartwig Fischer and Jonathan Williams, have gone, but George sails on.
Elizabeth Lewis
London
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