The director of the British Museum, Hartwig Fischer, will leave his job because valuable items were stolen from the museum in London.
He said the museum did not respond fully when they were told about the thefts in 2021.
Mr Fischer retracted his previous comments made earlier this week about the art dealer who first informed the museum authorities.
He said he apologized for the comments he made, admitting they were a mistake.
The museum said last week that they fired an employee because valuable things went missing, were stolen or broken.
A few days ago, Mr. Fischer supported the museum’s investigation in 2021. They had informed an antiques dealer named Ittai Gradel that they had kept a record of all their items.
Mr Fischer said he had a feeling that Dr. Gradel was not telling the truth about other missing things. But Gradel disagreed and called Mr. Fischer’s comment a direct lie.
Dr Gradel said to BBC News that Mr Fischer’s decision to resign was correct. She believes he should have done it earlier, but she accepts his apology.
Mr Fischer, who has been in the position since 2016, said he would leave as soon as the museum’s board had found someone else to take his place.
He had already said that he would quit the job, but he was not supposed to leave until 2024.
Full statement by Hartwig Fischer
In the past few days, I have been carefully looking into what happened when things were stolen from the British Museum and how they were investigated.
The British Museum didn’t respond as well as it should have to warnings in 2021, and now the problem is fully here. The director is ultimately responsible for that failure.
I was wrong about what I said earlier this week about Dr. Gradel I’m really sorry and take back what I said.
I told the chairman of the trustees that I am resigning from my position. Once the board has figured out who will take over for now, I will officially leave the job. This will stay the same until a new leader is picked.
The Museum is in a very serious situation. I really think we will get through this difficult time and become even stronger. However, I’m sorry to say that I think my presence is causing problems and distracting others.
“I really don’t want that at all. ” In the past seven years, I have had the honor of working with very skilled and committed government workers.
“The British Museum is a wonderful place, and I feel very proud to be in charge of it. ”
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George Osborne, the previous finance minister who now oversees the museum, said that Mr. Fischer’s decision to step down had been approved.
He said that Mr Fischer had done the right thing by acknowledging and addressing the mistakes that were made.
Mr Osborne said that nobody has ever questioned Hartwig’s honesty, his commitment to his work, or his passion for the museum.
He said that the trustees would make sure the museum had the right leaders to guide it during this difficult time while we figure out what mistakes were made.
“I understand this very well: we will correct any problems,” he said. We will acquire knowledge, regain trust, and receive admiration once more.
Gradel alerted the museum about stolen objects from its collection two years ago.
Emails that the BBC saw indicate that he started to feel suspicious after he unexpectedly found a photo of a Roman cameo piece that was supposedly being sold online.
He said that the item used to be on the museum’s website but it has been taken down now.