The Association for Research into Crimes against Art
The Quest for Justice
Criminal acts against works of art happen more frequently than the public imagines.The stories of these objects range from the dramatic to the all but forgotten. Art works are plundered during war, dug up for profit, stolen from museums, laundered on the art market and sometimes held as collateral by organised crime groups. Art will always attract criminals. Not because criminals are charmed or fascinated by it more than other people, but because with it, there will always be a market.
Art and Antiquities Crime News
Restitution: Two Etruscan Objects returned to Italy from Great Britain
Image Credit: ARCA From Left to Right - Brigadier General Fabrizio Parrulli, Commander of the Italian Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, Britain's Minister of State for the Armed Forces Mark Lancaster, General of Army Corps Sabino Cavaliere,...
Trial dates tentatively set for December 2018 for 19 “Operation Demetra” defendants
Judges from the Tribunale del Riesame di Caltanissetta, the court of first instance with general jurisdiction in criminal matters within the territory of Caltanissetta, Sicily, have set a tentative date for trial of December 2018 for 19 of the individuals connected to...
Conference: Third All Art and Cultural Heritage Law Conference on “National Treasures: Limits to Private Property and Cross-Border Movements”
The 3rd All Art and Cultural Heritage Law Conference on “National Treasures: Limits to Private Property and Cross-Border Movements” will be held at the University of Geneva on Saturday, November 10, 2018 and will look at the concept of “national treasures” and to...
Restitution: An Attic Marble Anthemion from a Grave Stele returned to Greece
On June 9, 2017 forensic archaeologist Dr. Christos Tsirogiannis, wrote to ARCA and to the Art and Antiques Unit of London's Metropolitan Police (New Scotland Yard), INTERPOL and the Greek police Art Squad reporting that he had identified an Attic Marble...
Recovery: Gold Objects stolen from the Nizam Museum
Holding a press conference in Hyderabad, authorities announced that the gold tiffin box, saucer, cup & spoon stolen from Nizam Museum on September 3rd have been recovered by Hyderabad Police. The two accused, Mohammed Gaus Pasha (23) and a relative Mohammed...
Repatriation: The Sicán funeral mask finally goes home to Peru
In a legal battle that has taken 19 years of litigation, Germany's Plenipotentiary of the Free State of Bavaria, Dr. Rolf-Dieter Jungk, has turned over the eighth-century pre Columbian gold Lambayeque (Sicán) funerary mask to the Peruvian Culture Minister, Patricia...
Museum Theft Update: Doge’s Palace – Venice, Italy
Eight months into the investigation, Italian news sites have begun reporting more details on the band of thieves believed to be behind the theft of part of the jewellry collection of Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah al-Thani. The jewels were stolen from an...
Museum Theft: Nizam Museum (HEH Nizam’s Museum) Hyderabad, India
According to local authorities, thieves broke into the Nizam Museum housed on the first floor of the Purani Haveli palace located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India sometime on the evening of Sunday, September 2, 2018. The palace, located just a few kilometers...
Repatriation: The Case of the Stolen TEFAF Buddha
In a tale that began as a follow up to a funding initiative, I was scheduled to be in the Netherlands this past March to meet with folks at Maastricht University who ARCA was collaborating with on an EU funded Horizon 2020 grant proposal designed to address the...