Blathers Accused of Displaying Stolen Cultural Relics
Owl also refused to comment on coelacanth breeding program
ANIMAL VILLAGE — Blathers, curator of a satellite branch of the Farway Museum, was accused of exhibiting items that had been improperly procured, sources confirmed.
“Hoo, I had no idea,” said the owl, who confirmed that he recognized the items were authentic immediately after inspecting them. “The donor of these items was someone I trusted inherently. He is solely responsible for every fossil, fish, and — ugh — insect in this museum. Why would I be suspicious that he managed to legitimately track down a traditional Japanese woodblock print or a bust of Nefertiti? Was I also supposed to interrogate him about the provenance of the crucian carp he donated? Frankly, he is the most productive and valuable citizen in this town. He supports the Nook boys and always buys a cup of coffee from Brewster when he comes by the museum. He makes a point to chat with Mabel when he visits the tailor. He’s the only person I’ve ever seen picking weeds or paying for public works around here. So, yeah, I gave him the benefit of the doubt.”
Local entrepreneur Tom Nook said he was disappointed, but not surprised, by the news.
“Ever since I saw Crazy — sorry, Jolly — Redd hanging around the island, I knew something like this was bound to happen,” said Nook. “You know, back in the day, I used to sell artwork. Back then, you could trust that you were getting the real thing. I did the work and made sure that everything was legitimate. When things started to get a little sketchy, I got out of the game entirely. Art dealers were getting tight-lipped, and it just triggered my tanooki-sense. I heard that Redd kind of doubled down on selling art after that, and I’ve been waiting for it to go wrong ever since. I guess they haven’t confirmed that Redd was the guy selling this stuff, but it’s a safer bet than turnips, that’s for sure.”
At press time, some paleontologists had raised questions regarding how the fossils of several creatures from different geological time periods and geographical regions had somehow been found in the topsoil of a single, tiny island.