Chapter 11 - Telling the Truth Could Close Half the Museum
The board meeting lasted six hours.
If Mercer acknowledged the Arabic custodial agreement, consequences followed.
The international deal would collapse.
Insurance might require reclassification.
Donors could demand answers.
Ownership claims might emerge.
The new wing could be cancelled.
Jobs could disappear.
Including mine.
That last part entered the conversation differently once I realized it.
Truth is morally inexpensive when somebody else pays the bill.
One union representative asked:
“Are three hundred employees supposed to lose income over something done twenty years ago?”
Nobody had an easy answer.
Another curator argued Mercer had preserved the manuscripts professionally.
Cataloged them.
Digitized them.
Made them available to scholars.
Also true.
Samira said:
“Stewardship can create obligations. It does not automatically create ownership.”
Also true.
Julian sat at the head of the table listening.
Eventually:
“We disclose the conflicting provenance.”
One trustee exploded.
“Before we know who has a valid claim?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because uncertainty itself is part of the truth.”
That answer cost him three board allies by lunch.
I began to understand why powerful institutions prefer certainty.
May you like
Even false certainty.
It is easier to budget.
