[CPProt.net] To catch a thief, Observations on art treasures by Phil Chamberlain

[MSN CPPnet (Ton Cremers)]

  To catch a thief
Observations
Phil Chamberlain
Monday 15th August 2005 
 
 
Observations on art treasures by Phil Chamberlain

When it comes to the search for ancient antiquities, forget Indiana Jones or
Lara Croft. Think instead about the Italian tombaroli. These poor labourers
earn pennies raiding tombs for relics that are eventually sold overseas to
museums and private collectors for thousands of pounds. Almost every country
with ancient artefacts has its own tombaroli, stripping sites of treasure to
feed a ready market in the west.

Last month the trial of Marion True, curator of antiquities at the J Paul
Getty Museum in LA, began. She stands accused of knowingly receiving stolen
goods and using false documents to help launder artefacts acquired by the
Getty from a private collection. A coup for the Italians, it is yet to be
matched here, even though London is a prime destination in the
multimillion-pound trade. According to Detective Sergeant Vernon Rapley,
head of the art and antiques unit at the Metropolitan Police, the capital is
full of anti-quities "trampolining" between different dealers. "They just go
from one dealer to another, and in effect they are cleansed before they go
to America," he says.

The issue hit the headlines after the invasion of Iraq, when there was
concern over the looting of its museums. But Iraq is just the tip of the
iceberg. Last November, Robin Coningham of the University of Bradford
reported that 90 per cent of the main archaeological sites in Pakistan and
Iran had been looted, and many of the stolen goods had been channelled
through London. The value of this trade is increasingly attracting the
attention of organised criminals, who use the same routes to smuggle in
drugs, guns and people. The objects can act as collateral - a lot less
obvious than bundles of money.

In 2003, a parliamentary select committee report found that "systems,
resources and co-ordination across different agencies for checking both
imports and exports seem deeply unsatisfactory". An example is the failure
to establish a national database of stolen or tainted cultural objects. It
was recommended by a select committee in 2000, sought by the trade and
academics, and promised by the Home Office and the Department for Culture,
Media and Sport. The idea was that traders would be able to check the
legitimacy of an object by consulting the database.

Last year, to the fury of its own experts, the government shelved the idea,
claiming that an independent appraisal had concluded it would not have been
effective. But a copy of this appraisal, obtained under the Freedom of
Information Act, shows strong support for the database; to the police in
particular, the plan signalled that the government was serious in cracking
down on the problem. The government did make a big show of backing a private
member's bill that became the Dealing in Cultural Objects Act 2003. However,
it appears no one has yet been prosecuted successfully under this law.

Ultimately, the trade is being fuelled by museums and dealers in the west,
and experts say they must put their house in order. Dr Neil Brodie, of the
McDonald Institute's Illicit Antiquities Research Centre at Cambridge, said:
"If you go to museums and ask to see their China collection they'll bring it
out for you, but if you ask for their acquisition records the door will be
slammed in your face. It is all secret and there needs to be transparency."

And while action is needed to stop the trade between dealers, auction houses
and museums, the internet is going unchecked. Auction websites are full of
rare objects. Richard Allan, the former MP whose bill became the act, is
pessimistic about the chances of progress: "Customs and police agendas are
set by politicians, and I can't really see politicians putting this issue at
the top of their agenda in this parliament."  
 
http://www.newstatesman.com/Arts/200508150012