Art Theft Essay -- Thieves Arts Stealing History Essays

fine art TheftOf the many crimes that are present in this day and age, ace that not that vandalizes the property, yet as well as diachronic background is that of art thieving. A crime that has taken away the sanctitude of churches as well as many otherwise religious and diachronic sites. Thefts have ranged from WWII (World War II) to the times of the Holocaust. Of the items that were taken from the churches, mementos were items of great priority. These items not lonesome(prenominal) had great value to the churches they were stolen from, but a great value to relic collectors. Most of the items taking during these times were either sold or laid in underground storage. Most of these items that were place in these secret places were neer to be seen again. From the times of these so called relic hunters to now, art stealing has operate something that has taken some extreme changes. It has evolved from crime that started with minor relic thefts to something that has bring a worldwide crime in need of better prevention. wile theft is a crime that has been on the rise for the last half(prenominal) of this century. According to law enforcement officials, art theft now ranks second only to drugs as the worlds most lucrative illegal activity. (Journal of Commerce) Whether bought, created, or stolen, art has become something that is of great demand. artifice theft has flourished as never before. Just keeping up with the number of stolen objects and their total value is a big-time guessing game. (Dudar) This is a problem that not only faces us as art owners and collectors, but museums and auction houses as well. Everyone possessing a piece of artistry is at risk of art theft. This artwork doesnt have to be anything out of the ordinary to be a target. along with famous paintings, sculptures, and other types of artwork, many insignifi nett or unrecognized pieces of artwork are be stolen too. Most thefts appear to be the work of thieves without serious art education. Along with the good stuff, they are apt to sweep up junk those airheaded gift-shop paintings of kids with enormous eyes, for example, which no serious collector would covet. (Lowenthal) On the other strive some of these thefts are being done by some of the best in the business. Some thieves have turned out to be professionals who, hobby fashion, switched from robbing video stores to burgling art. Some are actually specialists in vehicle t... ... that has been account either stolen or missing. This not only aids law enforcement, but museums, auction houses, and buyer/collectors. The Art Loss Register database holds numerous is losings looted from public and private collections between 1933 and 1945 and additional missing artworks for free. (Schillingford)Art theft is a crime on the rise, but with the use of these foundations and the methods that are being used by museum security managers it is slowing declining. Art theft is something that because of system and hum an flaws will never be successfully prevented. It can however, be something that is so hard to do that a lack of interest group will remain. The only way to successfully prevent art theft is to not own any at all.Works CitedAttrino, Tony. Insurers Get champion In Tracking Stolen Art. National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management. Aug. 17, 1998. Vol. 102. N. 33. Pg. 45 (1).Burrows, Robin. artful Protection from Down Under. Museum Security. Feb. 1992. Pg. 34, 37-8.Dudar, Helen. Making a dent in the trafficking of stolen art. Smithsonian. Sept. 1995. Vol. 26. N. 6. Pg. 34 (7).Journal of Commerce. Dec. 11, 1990.