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Türkiye and Denmark have turned the return of 49 cultural artifacts into a broader museum partnership covering exhibitions, archaeological research, conservation and expert exchanges, with the two countries presenting the developing cooperation at a UNESCO-backed meeting in Geneva.
The partnership grew out of the restitution of a bronze head of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus, originating from the ancient city of Boubon in southwestern Türkiye, along with 48 terracotta architectural plaques from the Duver area of Burdur.
The case was presented during the Regional Dialogue on New Agreements and Forms of Cooperation in the Restitution of Cultural Property, held at the Geneva International Conference Centre on Sept. 16-17, 2026, by the Swiss Confederation in cooperation with UNESCO.
Zeynep Boz, head of the Anti-Smuggling Department at Türkiye's Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and Gertrud Hvidberg Hansen, director of Copenhagen's Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, jointly outlined how negotiations over restitution gradually developed into longer-term institutional cooperation.
At the center of the case is Boubon, an ancient city in Burdur's Golhisar district that was heavily targeted by illegal excavations during the 1960s.
A number of bronze statues from its Sebasteion, an imperial cult complex, were broken up and taken abroad. The bronze head of Septimius Severus entered the Glyptotek collection in 1970 through art dealer Robert Hecht, while the body remained in the United States for decades before being returned to Türkiye in 2023.
Research carried out by Professor Jale Inan from the 1970s onward laid the scientific groundwork for identifying pieces of Boubon sculptures that had been scattered across different countries. In 1979, Inan examined the head and body together at the Glyptotek and established that the two pieces belonged to the same statue.
Türkiye formally launched its restitution request in 2023, providing evidence that led to further archaeological, technical and archival research by the Danish museum. After those studies also supported the Boubon origin of the bronze head, the Glyptotek decided to return it.
During the same research process, the museum reassessed 48 terracotta architectural plaques in its collection and determined that they had been illegally excavated from the Duver area. The Glyptotek subsequently decided to return those artifacts as well.
Before being sent back to Türkiye, the objects were presented to the Danish public in a special exhibition titled "An Emperor Returns: Restitution of Ancient Cultural Heritage to Türkiye."
The conclusion of the restitution process was followed by a broader institutional partnership.
Under a program coordinated by Türkiye's Culture and Tourism Ministry in March 2025, Glyptotek specialists visited archaeological sites and museums in Türkiye, including Boubon. Later that year, the museum received support from the Danish Agency for Culture and Palaces to deepen its ties with Turkish institutions.
One of the first concrete outcomes has emerged through museum loans. Parts of a sandal-wearing imperial statue in the Burdur Archaeology Museum collection, believed to depict Septimius Severus, have been sent to Denmark for the Glyptotek's "The Power of Fashion in the Roman Empire" exhibition, which is scheduled to open in Copenhagen on Oct. 1, 2026.
The exhibition, which examines the relationship between clothing, status and power in the Roman world, marks another stage in cooperation through artifact loans and joint academic work.
The partnership is also expected to expand through new projects.
The Glyptotek is preparing a 2027 exhibition titled "Sagalassos: The Total Theatre of Sculpture," bringing together researchers from the University of Copenhagen and archaeologists from Türkiye and Belgium.
At the same time, continuing field research at Boubon is expected to feed into a future international exhibition and scientific publication, while institutions on both sides continue talks on research, specialist exchanges, conservation and further exhibition projects.
The Türkiye-Denmark case was presented in Geneva as an example of how the restitution of cultural property can develop into sustained cooperation between museums and research institutions.
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