English Faculty Raphael Magarik’s Twitter Thread on the MET’s Mislabel of a Sixth Century Artifact Attracts Various News Outlets’ Attention
A Twitter thread from Raphael Magarik, UIC assistant professor of English, is cited in stories from The Observer (UK), The Jewish Daily Forward, and New York Jewish Week that cover an online debate over how a 6th century artifact may have been mislabeled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection. In his thread, Magarik notes that the object, which is a Jewish tefillin but described as an amulet, is likely mislabeled and more a result of how museums catalog objects rather than an intentional offense. He also notes that there are historical arguments for calling it an amulet.
Modified on August 19, 2020