Victorious Youth

 Fishermen found this Greek bronze statue of a youth in international waters in 1964 then they hid it in a cabbage patch in Fano, Italy before they sold it to someone who smuggled it out of the country where it appeared on the German art market in 1972 for $4 million.

The statue was later purchased for the Getty museum even though the museums founder J. Paul Getty had concerns over it's legal status. The now iconic statue is an important masterpiece which has it's own climate controlled room in the Getty villa at Pacific Palasades, California.

The Italian fisherman who found the statue have all since passed away without revealing the identity of who they sold it too and possibly smuggled the statue out of Italy. Interesting that the statue spent little time in Italy but that country wants it back.

In recent years the Getty museum has been functioning under critical eyes from foreign countries who believe many of the museums masterpieces were stolen. The Getty has as a result handed back dozens of the collections finest pieces while an important Greek kouros is most likely a forgery making this statue all the more important to the museum.

For know the Getty holds tight to what may be it's most important piece of ancient Greek art still in its collection. Sadly The Getty Museum came into its great wealth to acquire ancient art a century too late.