Protestors call on Getty Museum to return pages of Armenian bible

21/11/2011

About 30 protesters gathered on Saturday near the Getty Museum calling to return seven pages of 75-year-old Armenian bible created by Toros Roslin.

The protesters were holding signs that read “Shame on Getty” and “Our history is not for sale”, Glendale News-Pressreported.

“It is a piece of culture taken away from us. It is a piece of our identity. It is a piece of our past,” said Glendale resident Rita Mahdessian.

Demonstrators said that through events like the protest on Saturday, they hoped to generate public interest in the issue stateside. While their opponents say the pages deserve to be on display for thousands to see for people to learn more about other culture.

Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church filed a lawsuit against the J. Paul Getty Museum, demanding return of 7 pages from 750-year-old bible. The Armenian Prelacy claims that the pages were lost or stolen during the Armenian Genocide.

On November 3, Los Angeles court rejected claim filed by Getty Museum urging to reject the lawsuit.
The rest of the bible is currently housed at the Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts (Madenataran) in Yerevan.

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