After a string of high-profile raids and restitutions, the Manhattan DA has created a formal squad to focus on the trade in illegal antiquities.
Looted Art
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Crimes of the Art
On this week’s art crime blotter: a UFO museum’s flying saucer sculpture was stolen and smashed, a Japanese dealer was arrested trying to unload a $1.1 million antiquity, and Cambridge University tried to cover up the theft of a model skull.
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Crimes of the Art
On this week’s art crime blotter: a museum’s photography contest backfired terribly, the alleged perps behind Verona’s €15 million art heist were arrested, and a trove of books on medieval witch hunts stolen by the Nazis was recovered.
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Crimes of the Art
On this week’s art crime blotter: a disgraced antiquities dealer’s stash of loot was discovered, a fake Picasso was seized by Turkish police, and a stolen portrait of R2-D2 was returned.
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Crimes of the Art
On this week’s art crime blotter: a photographer sued Jeff Koons over a painting from 1986, an art thief tagged the artist in an Instagram post of his loot, and Nicolas Cage agreed to return a stolen dinosaur skull.
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FBI Warns of ISIS-Looted Artifacts Hitting the US Market
Antiquities looted by terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria are entering the art market, prompting the FBI to release a flyer soliciting dealers’ and collectors’ help in halting illegal trade.
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US Museums Criticized for Mishandling Nazi Art Restitution Cases
A new report on the restitution of Holocaust-era artworks condemns a number of US museums for failing to resolve claims straightforwardly and instead resorting to legal maneuvers to have them dismissed.
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Should There be a Statute of Limitations on Nazi-Looted Art?
Should countries set a deadline for restitution claims brought by descendants of Holocaust victims whose art was looted by the Nazis?