Category Archives: P.Sapph. Obbink

The Capitoline Sappho

Posted on July 6, 2020 by

In the wake of the controversy over the “Newest Sappho” papyrus in the last few years , I’ve read more about the Greek poetess Sappho than I ever thought I would. In doing so, I realized that I have a … Continue reading →

Posted in Capitoline Museum, Fakes and Forgeries, Inscriptions, P.Sapph. Obbink, Sculpture | 4 Comments

The Atlantic Article and Green Collection Cartonnage

Posted on May 15, 2020 by

I continue to unpack various parts of Ariel Sabar’s informative article in The Atlantic. One of the things that originally piqued the curiosity of many of us about the Green Collection was their seemingly endless supply of “cartonnage,” a term … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection, Green Collection 1 Samuel, Green Collection Sappho, Mummy cartonnage, P.Sapph. Obbink, Scott Carroll | 3 Comments

A Missing “Robinson Papyrus” Found?

Posted on March 14, 2020 by

A few years ago, I started looking into the so-called “Robinson Papyri,” a collection of pieces assembled in the first half of the twentieth century by David M. Robinson, a professor archaeology at the University of Mississippi. Upon Robinson’s death, … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Dirk Obbink, P.Sapph. Obbink, Robinson Papyri | Leave a comment

Dirk Obbink and the Hobby Lobby Sappho Fragments

Posted on February 21, 2020 by

In yet another fascinating video unearthed by David Bradnick, “Seeking Sappho,” we see Oxford Professor Dirk Obbink at work on the Hobby Lobby (Green Collection) Sappho fragments: There are several strange features of this video. First, some of the footage … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection, Green Collection Sappho, P.Sapph. Obbink | 14 Comments

Contextualizing the New Sappho Information

Posted on January 30, 2020 by

Mike Holmes of the Museum of the Bible has released some intriguing new information about the Sappho papyrus fragments owned by Hobby Lobby. I posted Mike’s statement here. There really is a lot to unpack with this situation. I want … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection, Green Collection Romans, Green Collection Sappho, Mummy cartonnage, P.Sapph. Obbink, Scott Carroll | 15 Comments

A New Edition of Sappho by Dirk Obbink

Posted on January 16, 2020 by

Following up on the fascinating article on Professor Dirk Obbink by Charlotte Higgins in The Guardian, Roberta Mazza recently revisited her conversations with a representative from Christie’s in 2014 and 2015, which now raise “further questions and doubts on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection, Green Collection Sappho, P.Sapph. Obbink | 8 Comments

More News on Dirk Obbink and Sappho

Posted on January 9, 2020 by

Charlotte Higgins has just published a long story in The Guardian on Dirk Obbink. It is a very nice compilation of what we know and how the stories of the Sappho papyrus and the stolen Oxyrhynchus papyrus intersect. It also … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection Sappho, P.Sapph. Obbink | 17 Comments

A New Origin Story for the New Sappho

Posted on December 8, 2019 by

[[Update 9 December 2019: Transcribed more of the video clip below for greater context.]] The Sappho papyrus published by Professor Dirk Obbink has obscure origins, as many have noted and as I’ve discussed here before. Professor Obbink has provided two … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Dirk Obbink, Mummy cartonnage, P.Sapph. Obbink | 7 Comments

Recently Emerged Papyri of Dubious Origins: A Working List

Posted on October 18, 2019 by

In recent days, the Egypt Exploration Society has disclosed that 11 manuscripts from their Oxyrhynchus collection were allegedly illegally sold by Professor Dirk Obbink to the Hobby Lobby organization. Two further fragments of pieces from the Oxyrhynchus collection have surfaced … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Dirk Obbink, Green Collection, Green Collection Greek Genesis, Green Collection Sappho, Lee Biondi, Oxyrhynchus Papyri, P.Sapph. Obbink, Passages Speakers Series, Scott Carroll, Van Kampen Collection | 38 Comments

The Radiocarbon Dating of the “New Sappho” Papyrus

Posted on August 10, 2019 by

In my last post on the various discrepancies in the origin story of the Sappho papyrus published in 2014, I mentioned an article by Dirk Obbink published in The Times Literary Supplement on 5 February 2014. In this article, Professor … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Dirk Obbink, P.Sapph. Obbink, Radiocarbon analysis | 10 Comments