635. Can a Museum Be the Conscience of a Nation?
Nicholas Cullinan, the new director of the British Museum, seems to think so. “I'm not afraid of the past,” he says — which means talking about looted objects, the basement storerooms, and the leaking roof. We take the guided tour.
Episode 635 of the Freakonomics Radio podcast, hosted by Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher, titled "635. Can a Museum Be the Conscience of a Nation?" was published on June 6, 2025 and runs 50 minutes.
June 6, 2025 ·50m · Freakonomics Radio
Summary
Nicholas Cullinan, the new director of the British Museum, seems to think so. “I'm not afraid of the past,” he says — which means talking about looted objects, the basement storerooms, and the leaking roof. We take the guided tour.
Episode Description
Nicholas Cullinan, the new director of the British Museum, seems to think so. “I'm not afraid of the past,” he says — which means talking about looted objects, the basement storerooms, and the leaking roof. We take the guided tour.
- SOURCES:
- Nicholas Cullinan, director of the British Museum.
- RESOURCES:
- "Inside the British Museum: stolen treasures and a £1bn revamp," by Alice Thomson (The Times, 2025).
- "British Museum gems for sale on eBay - how a theft was exposed," by Katie Razzall, Larissa Kennelly, and Darin Graham (BBC, 2024).
- "British Museum chief Nicholas Cullinan: ‘I start with the idea that everything is possible,'" by Jan Dalley (Financial Times, 2024).
- "Who Benefits When Western Museums Return Looted Art?" by David Frum (The Atlantic, 2022).
- The Will of Sir Hans Sloane, by Sir Hans Sloane (1753).
- The Portland Vase (The British Museum).
- EXTRAS:
- "Stealing Art Is Easy. Giving It Back Is Hard." by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
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