About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

8 Crim. Just. 16 (1993-1994)
The Fine Art of Forgery, Theft, and Fraud: Corruption in the World of Art and Antiquities

handle is hein.journals/cjust8 and id is 84 raw text is: The Fine Art of Forgery, Theft, and Fraud Corruption in the world of art and antiquities By ANTHONY J. DEL PIANO espite the enormous amounts of money in- volved and the global extent of the criminal activity, crime in the art and antiquities market has received only minimal attention from the American crim- inal legal system. More resources must be devoted to the investiga- tion and prevention of these crimes, which implicate drug and other or- ganized criminal activity. More in- formation should be made available about the legal remedies at both the state and federal levels to redress the wrongs to victims and deter fur- ther wrongdoing. Sketching in the background From the mid-1980s until the re- cession in 1991, the international and American art markets experi- enced an art boom. Collectors paid extraordinary prices for works by impressionist, post-impression- ist, and modern masters. Just be- fore the recession undercut the boom, Japanese paper magnate Ryoei Saito set the world records for highest prices paid for single paintings when he bought van Gogh's Portrait of Dr. Gachet for $82.5 million and Renoir's At the Moulin de la Galette for $78.1 mil- lion. (Washington Post at D6 (March 23, 1992).) The increased activity in the art markets was echoed by an increase in thefts, frauds, and forgeries of every imaginable shape and form. As the late Second Circuit Judge Irving R. Kaufman observed: The value of art, reflected in stag- gering prices paid at auction... has skyrocketed in recent years With this increase in value has come the inevitable increase in theft and illegitimate trade. It is not uncommon for purchasers of fraudulently obtained art work to make their acquisitions from reputable art dealers and galler- ies. (Hoelzer v. The City of Stam- ford, 933 F.2d 1131 (2d Cir. 1991).) M16 Criminal Justice m

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most