I have the utmost faith that if this group had been vouched for by reputable institutions and historians, had the funding, and had something novel to do (non-destructively) with an object in their collection the curators would have been more than supportive.
> Founded in 2012, the IDA is a joint venture between Harvard University, Oxford University, and Dubai’s Museum of the Future, focused on digital imaging techniques in archaeology. It digitally reconstructed Palmyra’s third century “Triumphal Arch”, which was destroyed by the Islamic State group in 2015.
I don't know anything about the Dubai Museum of the Future, but the other two are pretty reputable institutions, unless there's something I'm missing.
All that should be a requirement for visual access to scan the artifact is just being non-destructive in my opinion.
I can’t image a justifiable reason to prevent this person from scanning for any reason beyond physically protecting the museum.
The devil is in the detail though. They ‘allowed’ scanning by representatives from the country that many believe should still have their artwork.
Not allowing the scanning would likely have been a diplomatic incident.
After its earlier request to make a 3-D scan outside of visiting hours was declined, the IDA entered the British Museum during visiting hours to make a partial scan using a hand-held camera last month.
Right...
Apparently the British Museum allowed scanning twice already; though to more reputable institutes.
In a statement released to Artnet News, the British Museum said it received regular requests to scan objects in its collection. “We facilitated the scanning of the Parthenon Sculptures by our colleagues from the Acropolis Museum in Athens on two occasions in 2013 and 2017,” the statement read. “We work hard to accommodate scanning and study requests where possible. It’s important to us that any request is properly supported so that we can ensure the highest levels of quality and accuracy and this is always balanced against our other commitments and work as an institution.”