MILWAUKEE — Clint Hurdle picked up a copy of the Malcolm Gladwell book “Blink” shortly after it came out in 2005. The book’s introduction tells the story of a Greek statue known as a kouros, which was offered to the J. Paul Getty Museum in California in 1983.
A 14-month investigation into the statue’s authenticity, including examinations with a stereomicroscope, X-ray diffraction and an electron microprobe, satisfied the museum, which agreed to purchase it. Not long after, though, three art experts who examined the statue knew within seconds that something was wrong with it. No tests, no paperwork, just well-trained eyes seeing different things that didn’t look right.