Time Magazine has released its series of Top 10 lists for a variety of things including Pictures of the Year, Art Exhibitions, and Fiction Books.
The most interesting list, however, was the Top 10 Plundered Artifacts. Art theft and cultural repatriation is a topic I've been reading about on and off over the past two years and the information never fails to both amaze and shock. The destruction of cultural history is inexcusable, particularly in contemporary times, yet there remains an insatiable appetite for antiques and stolen artwork - I've read stats saying that the annual market for such objects ranges from $3-6 billion.
If you're interested in learning more about this, the following are terrific reads: Stealing History, The Medici Conspiracy, The Rape of Europa, The Lost Painting, and The Rescue Artist.
For a dose of reality, check out the FBI's Art Theft Program for pictures of art that has yet to be recovered.
1 comment:
I wrote about the image you've used in that post in my article about "Activism by Auction". Interesting case. (http://robbettmann.com/?p=539)
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