LOS ANGELES FAULTS

We were pleased that “The Bigger One” refers to our effort to limit earthquake damage to the archaic Greek kouros and other sculptures. But in your fictional scenario, at the Getty Museum “almost all is in ruin.” In 1984, a thorough study of the building and site by the seismic engineers Lindvall, Richter and Assoc. concluded that a quake like the one described would cause no significant structural damage. Some reinforcements of the garage were in order, and these have been completed. For many years our conservation and preparation staffs have been reinstalling works of art in ways that will limit earthquake damage. Though no building is earthquake-proof, our aim is to make the museum as earthquake-resistant as possible.

JOHN WALSH, DIRECTOR, THE J. PAUL GETTY MUSEUM

Malibu