The Odyssey is a story about a Greek king\u2019s long journey home. But a pair of earrings worn on the new film adaptation\u2019s press tour \u2013 and their long separation from their homeland \u2013 is sparking controversy.<\/p>\n
At a photocall in London, Zendaya, who plays the goddess Athena in the Christopher Nolan film<\/a>, wore a pair of earrings fashioned from Iranian artefacts dating back to 700BC.<\/p>\n The backlash was swift, with archaeologists criticising the use of precious and culturally significant artefacts as accessories in the promotion of a Hollywood film, claiming it was a \u201chijacking\u201d of Iran\u2019s contributions to humanity.<\/p>\n The earrings belong to Barron London, a Mayfair-based gallery and dealer whose website states<\/a>: \u201cWith a reputation for discretion, the gallery works privately with collectors, estates and institutions to uncover and place pieces of significance.\u201d<\/p>\n According to a formal statement from Barron the artefacts, which were bought from another London jeweller, Glenn Spiro, in 2025, \u201care attributed to the Ziwiye hoard, discovered in north-western Iran in the late 1940s\u201d.<\/p>\n The hoard was a trove of gold, silver, bronze and terracotta found in 1947 and looted by shepherds. According to a 2015 research paper<\/a>, the surviving pieces were \u201csold in antique markets out of Iran in the 1960s\u201d and \u201care now scattered in different museums and private collections\u201d.<\/p>\n Prof Sussan Babaie<\/a>, an Iranian-born art historian and Courtauld Institute professor, said it was \u201cshocking to see that no one thought maybe this is not a good idea\u201d.<\/p>\n Expressing \u201coutrage\u201d that Zendaya<\/a> was wearing the ancient objects, she said: \u201cThere is not enough cultural knowledge and cultural sensibility among those who dress [celebrities], those who accessorise them, those who put them up as the symbols of beauty and power and an expression of the movie\u2019s high-mindedness.\u201d Representatives for Zendaya and her stylist have been contacted for comment.<\/p>\n The row comes amid scrutiny of western institutions that hold ancient artefacts. The British Museum has faced criticism over its looted Benin bronzes<\/a>, sacred Ethiopian altar tablets<\/a> and the Parthenon marbles.<\/p>\n