Letter from Schaeffer to Plenderleith requesting additional photographs of the bull bowl for publication and asking to wait before exhibiting it at the British Museum pending Cyprus authorisationClaude Frédéric-Armand Schaeffer

P.S. my letter to M.Plenderleith 9 september 1951.

I just return from Damascus where the general director of antiquities and the Minister of Education have asked my opinion with regard to the preservation of the unique roman helmet with silver mask which constitutes the of the most precious and popular pieces of the national Museum of Damascus.

Found accidentally before the war, the helmet was cleaned and preserved by M.Andre in Paris. Since some time the iron lining of the silvermask or under the silverpatting of the mask has swollen and the sheet of silver of the mask begins to crack and to be distorted. Dr. Selim Abdul Nek, the director general of Syria has lately in Paris consulted M.Andre about what could be done to save the helmet and he proposed to take away the iron part under the silver mask.

Having carefully inspected the piece yesterday, I came to the conclusion that this proposal is dangerous and may be a too delicate operation to be undertaken by M.Andre whose excellent work I esteem, but consider as too risky in the present state of corrosion of the iron part of the helmet.

I therefore gave to the general director and his minister in Damascus the following advices: to bring the endangered part of the helmet, the silvermask, to London and to have shown it to you. I strongly advised also that if an operation is necessary that it should be undertaken in your laboratory instead in Paris.

The Damascus Museum has to send in any case in october a curator to London in connection with the division of the present Antiquities & Exchanges now in the department of Prof. Ashmole. At this occasion the silverpart of the helmet could be brought to London and submitted to you. In any case you would render a precious service to the Syrian National Antiquities by advising the Damascus Museum what should be done with the endangered helmet.

Please inform M.Plenderleith of this initiative of mine, my letter to him is already underway.

Yours sincerely

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