From museum-security at museum-security.org Sun Jan 1 01:22:59 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2006 01:22:59 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] world's biggest art collector, Sheikh Saud Al-Thani, has been accused of abusing the system governing the export of art works from Britain Message-ID: <200601010023.k010MxdX051309@smtp-vbr8.xs4all.nl> Sheikh accused of art export 'abuse' By Chris Hastings, Arts Correspondent (Filed: 01/01/2006) The world's biggest art collector, Sheikh Saud Al-Thani, has been accused of abusing the system governing the export of art works from Britain. The Government's export reviewing committee is re-examining procedures because of the sheikh's recent activities, according to a report in this week's Art Newspaper. The controversy centres on the sheikh's plans for four items with a combined value of ?10.4 million. They are the Mantuan Roundel (?7,080,000), the Clive of India Flask (pictured, ?2,973,000), the Clive of India huqqa (?97,000) and an album of water colours of Calcutta by James Baillie Fraser (?254,000). Last year agents acting for Sheikh Saud applied for export licences for the objects. However, he unexpectedly cancelled the planned exports, while retaining ownership of the pieces, after institutions including the British Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the National Trust, announced they would try to match the asking price under the system that gives them the right to buy pieces they want kept in Britain. This was criticised in the reviewing committee's annual report published last month, although it does not name Sheikh Saud. The committee said: "We cannot overstate our concern about the practice of some applicants for export licences indicating that they will accept a matching offer and subsequently changing their mind. "This put those raising the money to very great trouble and effort, which are entirely wasted. We do not consider this practice runs with the grain of the Waverley system [of export controls], and we are considering whether to recommend changes in the procedures." Sheikh Saud could not be reached for comment yesterday. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Sun Jan 1 10:40:40 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2006 10:40:40 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Book review. Art theft leads to many tales: The World to Come. Dara Horn. Norton. $24.95. 320 pp. Message-ID: <200601010940.k019edeq093507@smtp-vbr5.xs4all.nl> NOVEL Art theft leads to many tales By Susan Hall-Balduf Detroit Free Press January 1, 2006 The World to Come. Dara Horn. Norton. $24.95. 320 pp. In 2001, a small painting by Russian-born surrealist Marc Chagall was stolen from the Jewish Museum in New York during a singles party. It turned up later, no explanation, in Topeka, Kan., of all places. Novelist Dara Horn has taken this event as inspiration for The World to Come, bringing to life a fictional thief, his family and the painting, Study for `Over Vitebsk.' The thief is Benjamin Ziskind, a professional nerd: He writes questions for a TV quiz show. When he was a child, he had his own quiz show, "Beat the Wizkind." Being a professional smarty-pants has never been a social asset. He was further set off from his peers while growing up because he had to wear a brace to straighten his back and because his father died young. Now he feels cut off from the world: His mother just died and he can't get over his humiliating divorce. When his twin sister, Sara, bullies him into attending a singles event at the Museum of Hebraic Art, he is attracted not to potential dates but to a painting -- a small, dark work he knows well. It used to hang over the couch in his parents' apartment. So he steals it. Horn abruptly switches the story to 1920s Russia, where a shell-shocked Jewish orphan receives a painting from his art teacher, Comrade Chagall. The gift is witnessed by Chagall's friend Der Nister -- the Hidden One -- whose stories would have made an interesting counterpart to Chagall's artwork if Der Nister had ever been able to leave Soviet Russia. His tales, which Horn re-creates from the writer's real-life stories, are so fantastical, they steal all the scenes where she inserts them. It's disappointing overall when the novel returns to Ben. He's so numb, even when he's busted by the Chagall exhibit's charming curator, that it's hard to feel anything for him -- really, he's no more than a device to get the story going. But, oh, what a story, or collection of stories. Even the account of Ben's father, Daniel, losing his leg in Vietnam has a richness of detail not expected from a war where it seems every possible grenade has already been exploded. Most of all, The World to Come is a celebration of Jewish culture, a lament for what has been lost and an invitation to seek out what remains. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Sun Jan 1 15:17:40 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2006 15:17:40 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Austria removes more art exhibits about EU Message-ID: <200601011417.k01EHcU3011308@smtp-vbr15.xs4all.nl> Austria removes more art exhibits about EU Published: Sunday, 1 January, 2006, 12:17 PM Doha Time VIENNA: After two posters were removed from an Austrian art exhibit about the EU for being too provocative, a couple more have been pulled for criticising the European ideal, the daily Kurier said yesterday. Public debate about government funding of the poster project continued in Vienna as Austria prepared to take over the presidency of the European Union today. The two pictures of the EU-themed art campaign "EuropArt" - one representing the European ring of stars as a noose and the other criticising anti-terrorism policies - were removed on Friday, the Kurier said. The measure was taken "under official and political pressure" and demonstrated "the shocking reality in a country that sees itself as progressive and liberal", the Kurier quoted curator Walter Seidl as saying. The images are being shown on 400 rolling electronic billboards in Vienna and Salzburg until the end of January. On Thursday, a poster showing an orgy featuring people wearing masks of the French, British and American heads of state, and another entitled "EU panties" were removed following a campaign by a popular daily and politicians, who deemed the works too provocative. "Not a single poster portrays Europe in a good light," Karl Doutlik, the head of the European Commission representation in Austria, was quoted as saying by the Kurier. One of the remaining 146 artworks by over 70 artists from all 25 EU countries, shows a European flag with a peace symbol, the symbol for the Euro currency - but also a swastika and a hammer and sickle replacing the gold stars on a blue background. Social-Democratic politician Josef Cap said the government "appropriated the people's money" to finance pornographic images when it made a 500,000 euro ($590,000) grant to the art project. But in an interview with the daily Die Presse published yesterday, Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel said he "did not regret" the project, adding its aim was to "present different artistic voices" in Austria. - AFP From museum-security at museum-security.org Sun Jan 1 15:19:56 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2006 15:19:56 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Canada, Tuesday January 3, 2006: tv show about looted mummy in Niagara Falls Museum Message-ID: <200601011419.k01EJrAh099731@smtp-vbr11.xs4all.nl> Chuck Barney's TV picks for Jan. 1-7. Tuesday (January 3, 2006): It's a tantalizing mystery: Could a shriveled mummy that has lain neglected at a Niagara Falls museum be the remains of a long-lost Egyptian king? In the latest episode of "Nova," a trail of clues hints at how the looted mummy may have made its way to North America a century and a half ago. 8 p.m., Channel 9 (PBS). More: http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/13528651.htm From bameq at yahoo.com Sun Jan 1 18:31:26 2006 From: bameq at yahoo.com (Nader Rastegar) Date: Sun, 1 Jan 2006 09:31:26 -0800 (PST) Subject: [CPProt.net] Baku Tries to Divert Attention from Destruction of Armenian Monuments in Nakhichevan Message-ID: <20060101173126.37883.qmail@web31407.mail.mud.yahoo.com> Baku Tries to Divert Attention from Destruction of Armenian Monuments in Nakhichevan 27.12.2005 22:29 GMT+04:00 /PanARMENIAN.Net/ ???Neither in Yerevan suburbs, nor in Masis settlement there has never been any Azeri sanctuary named Agadede,??? reported head of Research of Armenian Architecture NGO Samvel Karapetyan. In his words, there are Iranian architectural values in Yerevan and near Yerevan, but they have nothing in common with Azerbaijan. This is also true of the mosques, which are ???protected and preserved.??? ???The reports of the Azeri party on destruction of an Agadede sanctuary situated near Yerevan aim at misleading the international community and conceal the fact of barbaric destruction of Armenian Khachkars (headstones) at Old Julfa cemetery in Nakhichevan,??? Karapetyan added, reported IA Regnum. It should be noted that yesterday Azeri media reported alleged destruction of an over one thousand years old Agadede sanctuary 10 km away from Yerevan, ???The Agadede sanctuary, situated to the south of Yerevan next to Masis settlement, was one of the principal sanctuaries of Azeris living in Armenia. Materials of ancient buildings and stone constructions, hundreds of headstones are demolished and robbed. Graves of Sefevids, Gajar Beks and Irevan Khans were situated at the cemetery.??? Reproduction in full or in part is prohibited without reference to ??PanARMENIAN.Net??. http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=15926 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://duvel.te.verweg.com/pipermail/cpprot/attachments/20060101/bfd5e1b8/attachment.htm From museum-security at museum-security.org Mon Jan 2 10:23:41 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 10:23:41 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Blaze destroys work by famous Scots artists Message-ID: <200601020923.k029NbDw039953@smtp-vbr4.xs4all.nl> Blaze destroys work by famous Scots artists LAURA ROBERTS "I keep on remembering more and more things that are lost. It is truly awful. The fire spread with such speed, blowing out the windows of the drawing room." - MAGNUS LINKLATER "My wife noticed the flames first and within seconds the whole tree was on fire. The fire brigade guided us out through the smoke and falling glass." Story in full PAINTINGS by some of Scotland's most revered artists, including Samuel Peploe and William MacTaggart, have been destroyed in a devastating New Year fire caused by faulty Christmas tree lights. The works of art, along with antiquarian books, were lost at the ?1 million home of Magnus Linklater, a former chairman of the Scottish Arts Council, in Edinburgh's New Town. The fire consumed the entire contents of the drawing room, which was filled with books and irreplaceable works of art. Among the works lost were two paintings by the Scottish Colourist Peploe and two by MacTaggart. Three paintings by Robin Phillipson and one by William Gillies were also lost, as were works by the Scottish modern artist Alison Wood and Anne Redpath, one of Scotland's most important artists of the 20th century. Last night, art experts said the works had huge cultural value and their loss was a tragedy. Mr Linklater, a former editor of The Scotsman, and his wife, Veronica, were entertaining guests for Hogmanay when the fire started in the early hours of yesterday. As he surveyed the damage, Mr Linklater said he was still trying to account for all the precious items that had perished. "I keep on remembering more and more things that are lost," he said. "It is truly awful. The fire spread with such speed, blowing out the windows of the drawing room. "My wife noticed the flames first and within seconds the whole tree was on fire. The fire brigade guided us out through the smoke and falling glass." The couple, who own three floors of an A-listed Georgian townhouse in the city's Drummond Place, also lost their collection of antiquarian books, including a rare edition of works by Sir Walter Scott and a complete collection of the writings of Rudyard Kipling. Mr Linklater said the destruction of irreplaceable bound manuscripts of books by his father, Eric Linklater, was "a devastating loss". The couple and their seven guests were in the drawing room when the Christmas tree lights ignited at 1:20am, setting fire to the curtains and quickly spreading throughout the room. Mr Linklater tried to put out the blaze with an extinguisher before calling the fire brigade. He was the last out of the house after ensuring that people asleep in the top-floor flat were alerted as smoke filled the upper levels. He said: "I managed to shut the doors, which prevented the house from going up, but everything in the drawing room is lost. There was a brilliant and unique William MacTaggart picture of the view of the house which is irreplaceable called In The Garden. It once hung in the Scottish Gallery of Modern Art." When asked if his collection was insured, Mr Linklater said: "I hope so." He estimated the paintings alone had been worth about ?100,000. He was treated in hospital for smoke inhalation and minor burns to his hands but was discharged shortly afterwards. The Linklaters were relieved to discover their Siamese cat, Selkie - the Orcadian for seal - half-way up a chimney on the top floor when they returned yesterday to survey the damage. Mr Linklater said: "We got all the people out but at the time the cat was unaccounted for so we were very pleased. We consider ourselves amazingly lucky we all got out. We are determined to restore the house to its former glory, no matter what it takes. "Unfortunately, things like the original fireplace were also destroyed. The great thing about these wonderful New Town houses is they are very splendidly built. The stone is all still there, even if all the wood is gone." Four fire crews tackled the blaze for four hours. Although the fire was confined to the drawing room, there was considerable smoke and water damage to the rest of the rooms. Paul Stirton, a senior lecturer in the history of art at Glasgow University, said the loss of the collection was a tragedy. "In cultural terms, Mr Linklater's collection is priceless, to some extent. The fact that they have gone is a great loss," he said. Dr George Rawson, a fine art librarian at the Glasgow School of Art, said: "These paintings are of enormous cultural value. Peploe is particularly highly rated, but they are all significant. I wouldn't be able to put a financial value on them, but it would be significant. It's a very sad loss that they have now all gone." Linklater at top in arts and journalism MAGNUS Linklater, the first salaried chairman of the Scottish Arts Council, from 1996 to 2001, is best known as a journalist and broadcaster, with a career spanning 40 years. Mr Linklater grew up in Orkney and was educated at Eton. He started his career as a reporter on the Daily Express in Manchester before moving to the Evening Standard in London as a diarist and then to the Sunday Times in 1969. He had a number of roles during his 14 years at the paper, and was features editor, news editor and assistant editor. After three years as managing editor of the Observer, he was named editor of The Scotsman in 1988, staying in the post until 1994. Since then, Mr Linklater has been a regular columnist for The Scotsman's sister paper Scotland on Sunday and the Times. Now 63, he won a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Scottish Press Awards last April. At the time he said: "I am very honoured and flattered to win this award, although it does make me feel rather old. My time as editor of The Scotsman I regard as the best days of my career." Mr Linklater has published several historical books, the majority of which focus on aspects of Scottish life and history. He describes his interests as cricket, fishing and book collecting. He married Veronica Lyle, now Baroness Veronica Linklater of Butterstone, in 1967. She was made a life peer in 1997 after she contested the Perth and Kinross seat as a Liberal Democrat candidate. They have two sons and one daughter. This article: http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=2822006 From museum-security at museum-security.org Mon Jan 2 10:29:16 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 10:29:16 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Storm brews over treasures sunk in 1814. Historical artifacts at risk if U.S. firm digs up N.S. wreck for profit, critics say Message-ID: <200601020929.k029TCqo049409@smtp-vbr5.xs4all.nl> Storm brews over treasures sunk in 1814 Historical artifacts at risk if U.S. firm digs up N.S. wreck for profit, critics say By JANE ARMSTRONG Monday, January 2, 2006 Page A3 HALIFAX -- A U.S. treasure hunter's bid to scavenge a famed War of 1812-era shipwreck off the coast of Nova Scotia has met a storm of protest from underwater experts, who say the province's rich maritime history is being pillaged by modern-day pirates. HMS Fantome was laden with loot believed to have been stolen from Washington -- including from the White House and Capitol building -- when it ran aground on a treacherous shoal south of Halifax in November, 1814. The crew of the British naval vessel survived, but its cargo was lost to the stormy sea. Now, a Pennsylvania-based treasure hunter has obtained a licence from the Nova Scotia government to excavate what is believed to be the wreck site, a move that has angered divers and underwater archeologists who say the ship's bounty could include priceless historical artifacts, which should not be sold for profit. "If these international treasure hunters, in co-operation or under the auspices of the Nova Scotia government, started coming up with silverware from the White House and selling it . . . I would think we would have an international incident on our hands," said Halifax filmmaker John Wesley Chisholm, who is leading a campaign to repeal Nova Scotia's Treasure Trove Act, which allows for underwater treasure hunting. Nova Scotia is the only province that permits the private sector to mine sunken ships for their potential treasures. Around the world, there is a growing movement to halt treasure hunting, said Mr. Chisholm, who intends to film a documentary about the site. Critics say sunken shipwrecks should be treated with the same care as above-ground archeological sites, such as Greek and Roman ruins. By permitting treasure hunters to scavenge the Fantome site, Mr. Chisholm argued, it's possible that stolen White House valuables could wind up on e-Bay. In mid-December, the U.S. State Department and the Smithsonian Institution weighed in, warning that if the wreck site does contain American artifacts, they should be returned to the U.S. government. "We would want to work with both Canada and the U.K. to see those artifacts returned to us," said a State Department spokesman, who asked not to be identified. He said the U.S. government was drafting a letter to Ottawa saying the Fantome's contents shouldn't be mined by private interests. Paul Johnston, curator of maritime history at the Smithsonian Institution, agreed. "Obviously the historical value would be immeasurable," Mr. Johnston said. "We certainly did not give up title to those objects that were removed by the British fleet." A number of European countries and the United States forbid the salvaging of sunken warships without the consent of the country for which the ship sailed. Divers and underwater archeologists interviewed say Nova Scotia's lax laws lure underwater gold-diggers to the province. They say the same law that fails to protect shipwrecks leaves modern disaster sites equally vulnerable, namely the Swissair crash site off Peggy's Cove, just a few kilometres from where the Fantome sank. Already, three applicants have asked permission to excavate the Swissair debris site, including the London insurer Lloyds. The passenger jet, which crashed off Peggy's Cove in 1998, killing 229 passengers, was carrying millions of dollars worth of diamonds, gold and bank notes. All three applications have been turned down, said Tim Dunne, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Ministry, which is responsible for the treasure act. Mr. Dunne said the province has no plans to change the treasure law, noting that when these valuables were first lost, they were private -- not public property. It's believed as many as 10,000 shipwrecks are lying on the ocean floor off the province's rocky, reef-ridden coast. Unearthing the Fantome, whose demise is already shrouded in mystery, has been likened to hitting the archeological motherlode because the cargo could have both historical and financial value. The British raid on Washington in the final months of the War of 1812 was a humiliating moment in U.S. history. Invading British and Canadian soldiers easily defeated American soldiers, then set fire to the city after ransacking the White House and Capitol building. Nearly 200 years later, one of Canada's top underwater archeologists said the Fantome site should be protected. "Every country in the world protects the cultural heritage of its land," said Robert Grenier, head of underwater archaeology for Parks Canada. "I cannot go to Nova Scotia with my shovel and my trowel and dig holes under an archeological site. I will be arrested and I will be threatened under law. So, why are some countries or some states or some provinces allowing this to happen [underwater]. What is the difference? This heritage underwater is as important. "A shipwreck is a time capsule," he said in a telephone interview from Ottawa. "A shipwreck is the stoppage of time. It's a fantastic legacy we can leave if they are well preserved and well handled." The founder of the holding company searching the Fantome site dismissed criticism that his company was looting Nova Scotia's underwater history. Curtis Sprouse, the CEO of Sovereign Exploration Associates International, said treasure hunters, who finance the costly excavations with money from investors, unearth far more shipwrecks than publicly funded salvage operations. Their reputation as modern-day pirates is unfair, he said. Mr. Sprouse rejected suggestions he intends to sell historical artifacts to the highest bidder if the shipwreck proves to be the Fantome. He plans to work with museums. Under Nova Scotia law, private hunters can keep treasures found beneath the sea, but must pay a 10 per cent royalty to the province. The act also requires treasure hunters to work with an archeologist and to hand over non-valuable artifacts to the province. So far, there's no proof that the site Mr. Sprouse's team is excavating is where the Fantome broke apart. The waters there, dubbed by locals as the Fantome Fangs, contain house-sized boulders that have smashed the ship to bits. Nor is there any proof that the stolen White House treasures were loaded onto the Fantome. The plunder was put aboard a convoy of British ships, which many believe set sail for Halifax. However, some historians said the Fantome was in Maine at the time. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Mon Jan 2 10:29:16 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 10:29:16 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] With Thousands of Items Reported Stolen, Art Theft Is Big Business. The FBI estimates the value of the works at $5billion annually. Big, isolated estates are an easy target, along with many smaller museums. Message-ID: <200601020929.k029TCqp049409@smtp-vbr5.xs4all.nl> http://www.latimes.com/business/la-ft-art2jan02,1,3223822.story?coll=la-head lines-business >From the Los Angeles Times GOBAL REPORT With Thousands of Items Reported Stolen, Art Theft Is Big Business The FBI estimates the value of the works at $5billion annually. Big, isolated estates are an easy target, along with many smaller museums. By Rhymer Rigby Financial Times January 2, 2006 LONDON - As the Henry Moore Foundation discovered last month, two-ton sculptures really do get stolen. The robbery of Moore's "Reclining Figure" - a 2-meter-high bronze masterpiece taken at night from the foundation in Much Hadham, Hertfordshire - was audacious by any standards, yet hardly the work of a suave master thief. Experts believe that it most likely was taken by a notorious gang of travelers that specializes in burgling country houses. Moore's figure may shortly be reclining in a more permanent state of repose: It is feared that the sculpture may be melted down for scrap, turning a work valued at 3 million pounds (about $5.2 million) into a lump of bronze worth 5,000 pounds. The best hope is that someone involved will respond to the 100,000-pound reward the foundation is offering for information leading to its recovery. Art theft is big business. Interpol reckons that it ranks fourth among the highest-value criminal activities, after drugs, arms smuggling and money laundering. The FBI puts its value at $5 billion a year. "We have 160,000 items listed as lost, stolen, looted or missing," said Sarah Jackson of the Art Loss Register, an international database of missing artworks. "We start at 2,000 pounds, but some of them, like Leonardo's 'Madonna with the Yarnwinder,' are worth tens of millions." Although the Da Vinci painting, stolen from Drumlanrig Castle in Scotland in 2003, was a well-planned robbery, it highlights a popular misconception: that high-value items are stolen to order. "It's very unlikely," Jackson said. "There are maybe one or two cases a year. The majority of art is stolen to fund other criminal activities." Vernon Rapley, a detective in the art and antiques unit of London's Metropolitan Police, agrees that the crime lord with an aesthetic streak is a figment of the public imagination. Indeed, even crazed collectors are rare. The only recent example is Stephane Breutweiser, a Frenchman who stole 172 artifacts from museums across Europe. On his arrest in 2002, his mother destroyed about $1.7 billion worth of art he had amassed. Art may be stolen from all sorts of places: museums, private homes and even corporate collections, though examples of the latter are rare as business premises are typically well protected with 24-hour security. But as the Henry Moore theft and others have shown, large private houses, particularly in the country, are an easy target, along with many smaller museums. "You get professional thieves who steal a lot of stuff in transit," Rapley said. It is more or less impossible to sell a stolen work from the A-list of artists without instantly alerting experts to its identity. "With very high-level property," Rapley said, "the majority is stolen with buy-back ransom in mind, usually 1 million pounds - a nice easy pay day." This is why, he continues, the police often treat this kind of crime more like kidnap than theft. The physical safety of the object is paramount. As with kidnappings, the police never pay ransoms (although private individuals may). But a stolen masterpiece has other uses. Criminal gangs sometimes use them as surety in deals: a drug dealer might give a supplier a $5-million painting in return for a batch of cocaine. When the dealer has sold the cocaine, the supplier is paid and the painting returned. As a token of value, famous paintings can be a useful way for criminals to move money about. "One of the easiest ways to transfer value across international borders is to roll up a painting in a tube," said Rapley. "If you're caught, unless it's very well known, you'll probably be able to convince customs officials that you bought it at an antiques market." The same cannot be said for a suitcase full of cash or white powder. Yet even second-tier artifacts will be listed on databases, making them harder to sell. They are very unlikely to pass through big auction houses, says an official at Sotheby's, because the larger houses conduct thorough checks on provenance. But there will always be dealers and auctioneers less diligent in their approach. Even when checks are carried out, though, identifying stolen works may not be easy. A pair of Georgian candlesticks worth $35,000 may be unique but they are unlikely to be as recognizable as, say, a Canaletto. A thief in need of a quick return may prefer to realize the value of the materials in an artwork rather than risk selling the item. A gold box worth $17,000 could be worth $850 melted down; similarly jewelry can be broken up and diamonds recut. Overall, says Radley, the recovery rate for stolen art is about 11% a year. http://www.latimes.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Mon Jan 2 16:55:02 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 16:55:02 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] 'The Mummy Who Would Be King' (I need help from subscribers in the USA, Ton Cremers) Message-ID: <200601021554.k02FswSi040892@smtp-vbr8.xs4all.nl> 'The Mummy Who Would Be King' TV program is avaliable to buy through the Internet. Most unfortunately the site accepts only USA orders. Is any of the mailing list subscribers willing to help me out and order this DVD for me at: http://shop.wgbh.org/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=2185 4&storeId=11051&catalogId=10051&langId=-1 I want the DVD, NOT the VHS. Your help will be very much appreciated. Ton Cremers www.pbs.org/nova/mummy. Marissa Moss wrote to alert me to another great NOVA special. She said: "I hope you'll check out this great online package hitting the web to coincide with the premiere of NOVA's 'The Mummy Who Would Be King,' " which premieres at 8 p.m. Tuesday on PBS. "It is a tantalizing idea: Could a shriveled mummy that has lain neglected on a dusty shelf in a museum at Niagara Falls be none other than the remnants of a long-lost Egyptian pharaoh? The special hints at how a trail of clues to the looted mummy may have made its way to North America a century and a half ago. To accompany the premiere, there is a comprehensive online package stuffed with fascinating information and slide shows." Of course, I have a special interest in all things Egyptian this year, but the truth is, shows about the ancient pharaohs are among the most popular on the History Channel and Discovery Channel, as well as PBS, so I know I'm not alone in my desire to see this new chapter of the story as it unfolds. From museum-security at museum-security.org Mon Jan 2 20:51:11 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2006 20:51:11 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] SAFE Premieres "NETWORK" at Archeological Institute of America Annual Meeting in Montreal on January 6, 2006 Message-ID: <200601021951.k02Jp6al055833@smtp-vbr3.xs4all.nl> SAFE Premieres "NETWORK" at AIA Annual Meeting in Montreal on January 6, 2006 On Friday, January 6, 2006, SAFE / Saving Antiquities for Everyone will present the North American premiere of NETWORK, an eye-opening documentary about the network of looters, middlemen, buyers and sellers who participate in, or benefit from, the global trade of illicit antiquities from Greece and the Mediterranean region. This much-anticipated film will be screened at the Archeological Institute of America's Annual Meeting in Montreal in Room 525 B of the Palais des congr?s de Montr?al (Convention Centre) on Friday, January 6, 2006 at 7:00 pm. Exposing the dark underside of the antiquities trade and the deeper crisis facing our shared global cultural heritage, NETWORK tells a story that no archaeologist, museum curator or director, professor, collector or student can afford to ignore. The 80-minute video surveys the most significant antiquities cases from the past three decades, including the Marion True cases, the Euphronius krater dispute, the Corinth Museum theft, the looting of Aidone, the Elie Borowsky controversy, the Robin Symes, Giacomo Medici and more. The film features in-depth interviews with more than a dozen major figures from the museum world (Thomas Hoving), prominent antiquities dealers (James Ede, Jerome M. Eisenberg, Ph.D.), collectors (George Ortiz), academics (Lord Colin Renfrew, Dr. Neil Brodie), journalists (Peter Watson) and key law enforcement figures (in Greece, Italy, Switzerland and the US). NETWORK is "a 'must-see' for museum directors, curators, collectors, art historians and art history students," says Ton Cremers of Museum Security Network. "Dealers and auction houses too should see this fascinating documentary, even though I am very pessimistic that it will change their attitude towards the trade in unprovenanced antiquities." SAFE / Saving Antiquities for Everyone, the exclusive distributor of NETWORK DVDs in the U.S. and Canada, will make a limited number of disks available for sale after the January 6th screening in Montreal and will begin selling NETWORK at www.savingantiquities.org/network on January 7, 2006. The price for the DVD is $30.00 USD ($25.00 + $5.00 shipping & handling). Inquiries: ? DVD sales in US & Canada, please contact: network at savingantiquities.org ? EU and US television rights and DVD sales in EU (not including UK and Greece), please contact: info at deckert-distribution.com ? All other inquiries, please contact: rea at anemon.gr Contact: SAFE / Saving Antiquities for Everyone, Inc. Emily Jateff network at savingantiquities.org From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 06:58:09 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 06:58:09 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] New internet site - http://www.nepsite.org/ - addresses sacred site destruction Message-ID: <200601030558.k035w6PB088400@smtp-vbr9.xs4all.nl> New internet site addresses sacred site destruction C Indian Country Today January 02, 2006. All Rights Reserved Posted: January 02, 2006 by: Staff Reports / Indian Country Today ISLAND PARK, Idaho - Native Earthworks Preservation, an organization devoted to stopping the destruction and desecration of American Indian sacred sites and burial mounds, has launched a new Web site: www.nepsite.org. NEP was founded in 2003 by John Koda Miller, John Red Hawk Wills and Linda Benfield. Miller, the group's spokesman, travels throughout the United States to speak about the importance of preserving Native burial mounds. ''Amazingly,'' Miller said in a recent interview, ''many people think burial mounds are protected, and that most are on public lands like National Park Service land. But many are on private property, and every year, more and more are endangered by development. ''NEP members are the voice of the ancestors. It is time that people take on this growing problem of neglect, abuse and disgrace that has happened to our sacred sites,'' said Miller. Imagine driving to a cemetery where a family member is buried and finding that it is now sitting under a condo development. This would not happen today, because cemeteries are protected and many are maintained with local tax dollars. Not so with land where our nation's first people were laid to rest. And it isn't just burial sites. Medicine wheels, vision sites and other sacred areas are relentlessly slated for development, and artifacts are found and sold - not returned to tribes. Some states require archaeological review of large-scale developments and public works projects to see if construction would harm archaeological treasures. Some state laws require that the nearest tribe be notified if burial mounds and artifacts are discovered. Tribes can repatriate the remains, roads can be rerouted or developers can set the sacred space aside. Miller said national legislation is needed to protect all burial sites on private land, and to require that sonar be used to search for artifacts and bones at large development sites. He named the legislation the John Wills Act after NEP cofounder Red Hawk Wills, who fought for sacred site protection in Ohio. The act would require: * That before any major construction, sonar be used to ensure that there is not a burial ground or bodies beneath the ground. * Once bodies are found, the site must follow the guidelines of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. * Any tribe within the location of the site must be notified. * States with no tribal governments must contact the Congress of American Indians. * Every off-reservation find must be noted, counted and marked by American Indians before excavation. * Any Native sites with more than three bodies must be labeled a tribal burial ground. A petition asking Congress to pass the John Wills Act can be accessed at the NEP site. So far, it has more than 600 signatures. Also on the site are a link to sign up for NEP's newsletter, a history of the Mound Builders, Native news, links to members of the Congressional Native America Caucus and links to NEP chapters. NAGPRA, a federal law passed in 1990, provides a process for museums and federal agencies to return Native cultural items - human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects and objects of cultural patrimony - to lineal descendants, culturally affiliated Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations. It does not extend to private land. Miller said NEP is looking for archaeologists and historians to join nonprofessional NEP members to fight sacred site destruction, help raise awareness of the John WIlls Act and provide NEP's Web site with historical information about sacred sites. http://www.indiancountry.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 07:46:21 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 07:46:21 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Maxico. Grave en la entidad el robo de arte sacro Message-ID: <200601030646.k036kHe0039412@smtp-vbr3.xs4all.nl> Grave en la entidad el robo de arte sacro Adriana Monje Domingo 01 de Enero de 2006 - 22:16:53 Armando Ruiz, encargado de la Comisi?n de Arte Sacro en la Arquidi?cesis de la ciudad de M?xico, afirm? que Morelos es uno de los estados donde se comenten m?s robos del arte sacro en las Iglesias y a ?ste se suma Tlaxcala, Texcoco, Estado de M?xico e Hidalgo que comprenden la zona de los volcanes. Afirm? que lamentablemente en la mayor?a de las iglesias no se cuenta con un inventario que contenga las caracter?sticas de los bienes y mucho menos con fotograf?as lo que dificulta que en caso de robo no se puedan identificar f?cilmente. Subray? que se ha detectado que parte de los objetos religiosos han ido a parar a Estados Unidos, ?esas piezas no tienen el valor econ?mico que se les atribuye, tienen un valor extraordinario pero no el econ?mico?. Manifest? que algunas est?n revestidas de oro ?puede que sea verdad- pero son micras de este material valioso que no llegan a constituir un valor econ?mico importante, sino que constituyen un significado para la historia y patrimonio de cada pueblo, ?es como un antepasado?. Consider? que es necesario que la poblaci?n conozca m?s sobre el arte sacro porque de esta manera se evitar? que se comentan m?s robos al interior de las Iglesias. Indic? que la Santa Sede ha emitido una serie de recomendaciones para el cuidado de los bienes culturales de la Iglesia, entre los que se encuentra la catalogaci?n y el inventario de los mismos a fin de poder recuperarlos. ?Cada iglesia o p?rroco debe tener la preocupaci?n de contar con un inventario de los bienes que es encargado, por desgracia muchos de ellos cuentan con fotograf?as, y a veces cuando hay un robo no siempre es f?cil identificar las piezas?, mencion? Armando Ruiz. El encargado de la Comisi?n de Arte Sacro, a?adi? que se ha trabajado mucho en la formaci?n de cat?logos sobre el arte sacro tanto en el Instituto Nacional de Antropolog?a e Historia (INAH), como la Direcci?n de Sitios y Monumentos as? como la propia Iglesia Cat?lica, ?pero estamos lejos todav?a de llegar a terminar esa labor?. Coment? que las autoridades judiciales s? han combatido ?ste problema; sin embargo, existen casos en la mayor?a de las ocasiones, que se conoce poco de aquello que se roban, porque no existen inventarios ?que todos quisi?ramos tener y que son indispensables para conservar el arte de inspiraci?n religiosa?. Record? que dentro de las cosas positivas dentro de toda esta situaci?n se encuentra la creaci?n del Instituto Manuel Toussaint que permitir? la conservaci?n y promoci?n del arte sacro. Adem?s de que acaba de aparecer una gu?a de los retablos de la ciudad de M?xico que es una aportaci?n importante para la conservaci?n y conocimiento de ?ste oficio. http://unomasunomorelos.serveftp.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 07:46:21 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 07:46:21 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Scotland. Linklaters' insurance fear after fire Message-ID: <200601030646.k036kHe1039412@smtp-vbr3.xs4all.nl> Linklaters' insurance fear after fire LAURA ROBERTS January 3, 2006 FORMER Scottish Arts Council chairman Magnus Linklater fears he may be significantly under-insured after a devastating fire wiped out his valuable collection of Scottish art. A total of 14 paintings were destroyed after Christmas tree lights caught fire during a Hogmanay party at Mr Linklater's home in Edinburgh's New Town. Although the pictures were insured, they have not been revalued for ten years. Two paintings by the Scottish Colourist Samuel Peploe and two by William MacTaggart were among the collection. Mr Linklater said the paintings were insured for between ?50,000 and ?100,000 in total. However, a sale at Christie's in October saw three Peploe paintings fetch between ?120,000 and ?433,000. At the sale, Peploe's Pink Roses, Fruit and Books was estimated to sell for ?200,000-?300,000 but it went under the hammer for nearly ?500,000. The most expensive Peploe painting is The Black Bottle, sold for ?520,750 in 2001. Mr Linklater, his wife Veronica and their seven guests were unable to save any of the paintings and books because of the speed with which the fire spread through the room. The group was celebrating Hogmanay in the first-floor drawing room when the fire broke out at 1:20am on New Year's Day. The Christmas tree swiftly ignited the curtains, which set the room alight and filled the house with smoke. Mr Linklater said: "We just won't know how much everything was worth until we go through each item individually. "Everybody is under-insured. The point for us is not the commercial value of the pictures, but that they have been in the family for two generations and were collected by my father from the painters themselves. My father bought them pretty much off the easel in the 1920s and 1930s, so they have always been in the family. "They were personally linked to the artists themselves and that is invaluable." The most valuable pictures were all in the drawing room, which was completely destroyed. Mr Linklater estimated the paintings were probably worth a minimum of ?120,000 to ?140,000, with each painting worth on average between ?10,000 to ?15,000. Among a collection of antiquarian books consumed in the fire were limited edition leather-bound copies of novels by Mr Linklater's father, Eric, which were a gift from his publisher. The most valuable book in the collection was a first edition work by Sir Walter Scott. The family have been told they will be unable to move back into the house for at least three to six months, and are staying with friends in Edinburgh. Mr Linklater added: "We shall probably have to redecorate the whole house due to the damage done by smoke and water." Guy Peploe, Samuel Peploe's grandson and managing director of the Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh, declined to speculate on the value of Mr Linklater's paintings. However, he recommended that works of fine art be revalued every two to three years for insurance purposes. He said: "If you are under-insured, you are not insured. Since the major exhibition of Scottish Colourists at the Gallery of Modern Art in 2000, the good news has spread about the value of these artists." He added: "I feel immensely sad at the loss of these paintings. This is obviously incredibly sad for the family. One of the Peploe pictures was a portrait of my grandmother, a unique picture done in the later stages of my grandfather's life. It is tragic." Patrick Bourne, managing director of the Fine Art Society and owner of Bourne Fine Art in Edinburgh, said: "It is a good idea to revalue regularly for insurance purposes. I would put the value of the Peploes between ?50,000 to ?70,000. [The] Anne Redpath, which Mr Linklater also owned, has also doubled in value in the last four years." Timothy Clifford, director general of the National Galleries of Scotland, expressed his sympathy for the Linklaters and said he would offer the galleries' experts to see if anything could be restored. He said: "Magnus had some very nice paintings and it is a terrible shame. I shall be contacting him to see if there is anything we can do to restore some. This is a very worrying time for them." One painting unaffected was a portrait of Mr Linklater himself, which he had lent to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery for an exhibition of pictures of editors of The Scotsman. Lost artworks Samuel Peploe: Mother and Child Samuel Peploe: Portrait of a Woman Robin Phillipson: The Boy King Robin Phillipson: Mending the Nets Robin Phillipson: Lovers Alison Watt: Abstract painting William Gillies: Landscape William MacTaggart: In the Garden (bought for ?18,000) Anne Redpath: Flowers Victoria Crowe: Italian scene Meninsky (French artist): Portrait of Veronica Linklater's mother, Elizabeth Sinclair William MacTaggart: Evening Glow Renoir etching (limited edition print) Goya etching (limited edition print) This article: http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=7522006 From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 10:36:49 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 10:36:49 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] =?iso-8859-1?q?Le_bronze_poids_lourd_d=27Henry_Moore?= =?iso-8859-1?q?_court_toujours=2E_Scotland_Yard_mobilise_ses_force?= =?iso-8859-1?q?s_depuis_bient=F4t_trois_semaines=2E?= Message-ID: <200601030936.k039ajZv066656@smtp-vbr8.xs4all.nl> Le bronze poids lourd d'Henry Moore court toujours Scotland Yard mobilise ses forces depuis bient?t trois semaines. Par Agn?s Catherine POIRIER mardi 03 janvier 2006 Depuis le 15 d?cembre, les forces sp?ciales de Scotland Yard sont sur les dents, Interpol ronge son frein et les plus grands experts avouent leur perplexit?. Une seule question les hante : mais o? diable a disparu le chef-d'oeuvre sign? Henry Moore, Figure ?tendue, sculpture en bronze de 2 m?tres de haut, 3,60 m de large et pesant plus de deux tonnes (Lib?ration du 19 d?cembre 2005) ? Le nom de code de la vaste op?ration de police charg?e de retrouver l'oeuvre d'art ?valu?e ? 5 millions d'euros ne manque pas d'ironie : ?Op?ration Souffl?? (en fran?ais dans le texte). De preuves, la police ne dispose toujours pour le moment que des images captur?es par les cam?ras de surveillance aux alentours du mus?e Henry-Moore dans le comt? du Hertfordshire (? l'ouest de Londres). Et que r?v?lent-elles ? Temps ?clair. A 22 h 13 exactement, le 15 d?cembre, deux v?hicules, un 4x4 de marque japonaise suivi d'un camion de marque allemande, s'approchent de la sculpture entrepos?e temporairement au fond du jardin de la fondation ? Much Hadham. De fa?on m?thodique et en un temps ?clair, dix minutes montre en main, trois hommes, portant capuche et casquette, hissent ? l'aide d'une minigrue l'oeuvre de Moore sur le camion puis disparaissent dans la nuit. Deux jours plus tard, Scotland Yard retrouve les deux v?hicules abandonn?s pr?s d'Epping dans le comt? d'Essex, ? 30 km du lieu du vol. Ils ont ?t? d?rob?s ? leurs l?gitimes propri?taires une heure avant le larcin. Pass?s au peigne fin, ils ne r?v?lent aucun indice, ni empreinte digitale, ni trace d'ADN. La presse anglaise rit sous cape. ?En mati?re de vol ? la tire, c'est le pompon, digne du livre des records?, ?crit Robin McKie dans The Guardian. C?t? mus?e Henry-Moore, c'est la consternation: ?Nous sommes boulevers?s. Comment aurions-nous pu imaginer qu'une chose pareille serait un jour possible ?? d?clare Gareth Spence, de la fondation Moore. Une r?compense de 150 000 euros est offerte ? quiconque permettra le retour sain et sauf de l'oeuvre. Police et experts d'art craignent que les voleurs aient ?t? tent?s par la revente du m?tal au poids aupr?s de ferrailleurs ou d'une fonderie de Londres. Au prix du march?, deux tonnes de bronze valent 7500 euros. Les enqu?teurs de l'Op?ration Souffl? se sont pr?cipit?s chez deux ferrailleurs connus de l'East End de Londres mais n'ont trouv? aucun indice. Henry Moore, l'un des artistes britanniques les plus connus au monde, a laiss? ? sa mort, en 1986, une collection de 666 sculptures, 3000 dessins et 8000 gravures, estim?s aujourd'hui ? plus de 200 millions d'euros. Ses oeuvres semblent particuli?rement attirer la convoitise des voleurs. En 1995, deux malfrats d?capit?rent sa sculpture, King and Queen, install?e en plein air pr?s de Dumfries en Ecosse. La police a fini par retrouver la t?te. En 1997, un de ses bronzes, haut de 25 cm, est subtilis? en plein jour ? la galerie Waddington de Londres puis retrouv? quelques heures plus tard dans un taxi. Mark Ross, chef de l'Op?ration Souffl?, ? la t?te d'une brigade sp?ciale de 25 enqu?teurs, n'?limine aucune piste : ?Les motifs peuvent ?tre nombreux. Soit le voleur, ignorant sa v?ritable valeur, l'a revendue imm?diatement au poids ; soit il a entrepos? la pi?ce quelque part et attend de se faire oublier pour la revendre ? un collectionneur ; soit, enfin, le voleur va bient?t nous appeler pour toucher la r?compense.? Dick Ellis, ancien directeur de la brigade sp?cialis?e dans les vols d'art et d'antiquit?s de Scotland Yard, est plus pr?cis : ?La fa?on dont les voleurs ont conduit leur op?ration montre une grande organisation. Je ne pense pas qu'il s'agisse de vulgaires ferrailleurs. La sculpture est peut-?tre d?j? ? l'?tranger, en Europe de l'Est par exemple. Ou alors, elle attend quelque part en Grande-Bretagne d'?tre achet?e par un collectionneur peu scrupuleux. Cela peut prendre des ann?es.? ?Cymbales?. En attendant d'autres indices, la presse anglaise continue ? persifler. Lucy Mangan du Guardian : ?Si les voleurs ont vendu la sculpture ? la fonte, vous pouvez ?tre s?r que d'ici un an les percussionnistes britanniques frapperont des cymbales Henry Moore, ? moins que les caisses des supermarch?s du pays ne soient envahies de 140 252 fausses pi?ces de 2 pence. Mais soyons optimistes et esp?rons qu'apr?s avoir r?alis? leur ?norme gaffe les voleurs renvoient g?n?reusement leur butin au mus?e Henry-Moore.? http://www.liberation.fr/page.php?Article=348493 From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 11:54:43 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 11:54:43 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Engaging mummy mystery unravels at Niagara Falls museum. Amazing but true - An ancient curiosity draws just the right set of eyes, which leads to a surprising identification. Message-ID: <200601031054.k03AseJJ014123@smtp-vbr14.xs4all.nl> Engaging mummy mystery unravels at Niagara Falls museum Amazing but true - An ancient curiosity draws just the right set of eyes, which leads to a surprising identification FACTBOX Tuesday, January 03, 2006 TED MAHAR "The Mummy Who Would Be King" is a clever title that sets the tone for an engaging "Nova" documentary that mixes history, drama, comedy and a dash of farce. It also illustrates the absurdly dominating role simple coincidence can play in both history and the discovery of history. The title mummy's almost-certain identity is kept from the viewer until late in the show, but if you saw the news a few years ago, you know. The mummy that is probably Rameses I was identified and returned to its rightful place in Egypt. But he was dug up in the 1800s, one of scores of mummies and other Egyptian antiquities unearthed, sold and shipped worldwide. Today, we consider mummies precious relics that deserve reverence as former people and as objects uniquely suited to helping us understand the past. Since the crusades, visitors from all over snatched up what they could. But they were not plunderers. They were customers. Egyptians regarded the ancient objects -- outside of jewels and precious metals -- as providentially commercial. Mummies and other objects were findable and cost nothing. They were like money lying around. Gullible visitors paid the local equivalent of a year's income for them. Buyer and seller parted happily, each knowing he had blithely and openly cheated the other. Egyptian individuals and clans discovered tombs, kept them secret and lived for decades on their spoils. A rivalry led someone from one family to rat out another in the late 1800s, when official Egypt was beginning to appreciate its heritage. Egyptian historians and scientists began to persuade the authorities that treasures that could be institutionally studied should be preserved in Egypt. Even so, the British expedition that found Tutankhamen removed him in the early 1920s. Before all that, Europeans and others had unwrapping parties. Mummies by the scores amused revelers and were discarded. Others were retrieved for museums of widely differing qualities. One, on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, held ancient treasures, curiosities such as two-headed animals, other tributes to the art of taxidermy, the preserved corpses of deformed humans -- and the mummy who would be king. He amused visitors for more than a century. Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant and P.T. Barnum signed the guest book. Thousands saw the mummy, but just the right set of eyes did not fall on him until the late 20th century. Someone thought he saw him for what he was. But his evaluation was debunked. But, even debunked, his theory drew serious attention from professional Egyptologists. The mummy quietly stimulated many serious minds. Then along came DNA testing. It could not be applied to this mummy, but it bolstered other technologies. Then, yet another individual joined the discussion, a scientist who had perfected an analytical technology that might offer an answer as nothing else could. He is an elderly scientist, and he subjected the mummy, finally, to a test that could not have been attempted even 20 years ago. By this time, the mummy's home was an Atlanta university, another story in itself. The documentary shows how coincidence favored the identifying of (almost certainly) Rameses I for millennia. Time and again, the mummy might have been missed, overlooked, bought by the wrong person or even dumped, as scores were. It's another tale that has to be true, because, as fiction, it would be laughed off the stage. To explain Rameses' story, "Mummy" replays key elements of Egyptian history, the intricacies and variations of the 3,000-year-old practice of mummification and why the Rameses dynasty -- 10 pharaohs descended from a commoner -- was such a big deal. Tombs and even pyramids were plundered soon after the intended tenant took up residence. Logic suggested that most were looted quickly, often by the builders or their progeny. But Rameses I made it to the 1860s. Tut made it to the 1920s. We may hope that undisturbed tombs still wait. And now, in the 21st century, new technologies exist to find them and to study them. "To speak the name of the dead is to make them live again," says a millennia-old tomb inscription. But it was unreadable, even by Egyptians, from the time of Cleopatra to the discovery of the Rosetta Stone by a soldier of Napoleon in Egypt. Like Rameses I, other mummies -- maybe scores, maybe hundreds -- may still slumber, awaiting the wakeup call from just the right scientist with just the right tool. Ted Mahar: 503-221-8228; tedmahar at news.oregonian.com From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 12:36:02 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 12:36:02 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Does anybody know this man? Message-ID: <200601031136.k03BZw51085572@smtp-vbr1.xs4all.nl> January 3, 2006 Please be so kind as to see information about Ken Karner (an American living in South-Africa dealing in African cultural heritage) at: http://www.lukanga.co.uk/ken-karner.pdf If you know this man, please do get in touch with me off list at: toncremers at museum-security.org Thanks in advance. Ton Cremers _________________________ Museum Security Network http://www.museum-security.org/ http://cpprot.te.verweg.com http://msn-list.te.verweg.com Sample file of Video Project http://www.lukanga.co.uk/lukanga-sample.wmv http://www.lukanga.co.uk/lenelly.wmv http://www.lukanga.co.uk/sample2.wmv _________________________ From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 19:20:47 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 19:20:47 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Thieves have stolen the contents of a display cabinet from Liverpool Football Club's museum Message-ID: <200601031820.k03IKhRB032564@smtp-vbr15.xs4all.nl> TUESDAY 03/01/2006 16:08:10 Liverpool FC museum pieces stolen Thieves have stolen the contents of a display cabinet from Liverpool Football Club's museum, a club spokesman said today. Eight pennants presented to the Reds` captain Steven Gerrard by opposing teams before each round of the 2004-2005 Champions League competition have been taken from the museum. The haul included the pennant from the final against AC Milan in Istanbul in May which Liverpool won, making them champions of Europe for the fifth time. It is thought the thieves forced open a display case and took the pennants sometime between 10 and 11am on December 27. A spokesman for LFC described the theft as a "selfish act". He added: "This selfish act has robbed us all of the pennants handed to Steven Gerrard before each round of the 2004-05 Champions League, including the final. "The eight pennants are clearly identifiable, with the date and game embroidered on all but two of them, and a unique museum number starting with "LFC" on the reverse in black, indelible ink. "With your help, we will find the person or persons who did this, and hopefully secure the return of these vital pieces of our history." The club said a reward would be offered to anyone who could secure the return of the pennants. http://u.tv/newsroom/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 19:31:44 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 19:31:44 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Police seize artifacts stolen from Iraq Museum Message-ID: <200601031831.k03IVe0v063350@smtp-vbr9.xs4all.nl> Police seize artifacts stolen from Iraq Museum By Saadoun al-Jaberi Azzaman, January 3, 2006 Iraqi border police have seized 174 archaeological pieces which were looted form the Iraq Museum, a police source said. The source, refusing to be named, said the artifacts were seized in southern Iraq as the smugglers were trying to take them out of the country. "Seven suspects have been apprehended and they have already admitted that they intended to smuggle the pieces to a foreign country," the source added. Antiquities experts who studied the seized artifacts say they were part of the possessions of the Iraq Museum which were looted shortly after the 203 U.S.-led invasion. "They are precious pieces as they include ancient silver ornaments such bracelets, rings, chains as well as other precious stone decorations," the source said. Massive looting of the Iraq Museum, one of the world's riches in ancient artifacts, took place in the aftermath of the U.S.-led invasion. Experts say as many as 15,000 objects disappeared and at least 10,000 of them are still unaccounted for. The museum library, the Middle East's richest in sources on ancient civilizations, was set on fire and prices Mesopotamian artifacts were smashed by looters. While looting of museums has stopped, experts say robbers continue plundering many of the more than 10,000 archaeologically registered ancient sites in the country. http://www.azzaman.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Tue Jan 3 19:31:44 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 19:31:44 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Israel denies Temple Mount excavation Message-ID: <200601031831.k03IVe0u063350@smtp-vbr9.xs4all.nl> Israel denies Temple Mount excavation ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Etgar Lefkovits, THE JERUSALEM POST Jan. 3, 2006 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Israel dismissed as "blatant lies" and "preposterous and unfounded allegations" claims voiced by the top Muslim religious authority in Jerusalem and the firebrand leader of the Islamic Movement in Israel Tuesday that Israel built a synagogue and was trying to destroy a mosque on the Temple Mount by its recently-completed construction of a visitor's center near the Western Wall. Islamic leaders have been fuming for weeks now over Israel's recent construction of the visitor's center, adjacent to the Western Wall tunnels, angered over the project which highlights Judaism's connection to Jerusalem and the Western Wall. The lavish new state of the art tourist center at the Western Wall tunnels incorporates ancient and modern Jewish history and includes an elaborate sound and light show that highlight both recent discoveries of artifacts and infrastructure dating back thousands of years. The high-tech center, which aims to link the past with the future in an effort to reach out to Israeli youth, includes one of the world's oldest aqueducts, a ritual bath from the Second Temple period, a First Temple wall, as well as exhibits on modern day Jewish history, such as the Holocaust and Israel's fallen soldiers. The top Muslim clergyman, or mufti, of Jerusalem, Ikrema Sabri, on Tuesday called the archaeological project an "aggression" that threatened the mosque compound and demanded an immediate end to the digs. "These violations and aggression lead to tension in the region," he said at a Jerusalem press conference. Sheik Raed Salah, a radical leader of Israel's Islamic Movement, who was freed from prison last year after serving a two year sentence for a series of security offenses including financing Hamas activities called the construction a "black stain" on Israel and accused the government of plotting to destroy the mosques to build a new temple. Salah who heads the extremist northern branch of the Islamic Movement of Israeli Arabs which denies Israel's legitimacy has repeatedly warned supporters in the past that "Al-Aksa is in danger" and that Israeli extremists intended to attack the mosque at the Jerusalem holy site. "These are lies, and there is nothing behind what they are saying," Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch said Tuesday. "Archaeological excavations have never been carried out, and are not being carried out today, under the Temple Mount compound," Israel's Antiquities Authority said in a statement. Though nearby, the visitor's center is hundreds of meters away from the Temple Mount compound. The Islamic leaders' tirade comes just weeks after the Palestinian Authority's official website lambasted the construction project in a report that called into question Judaism's very connection to Jerusalem. From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 08:51:18 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 08:51:18 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] At a Pioneer Square studio, a puzzling theft draws concern. Message-ID: <200601040751.k047pDLM019036@smtp-vbr6.xs4all.nl> Have You Seen This Painting? At a Pioneer Square studio, a puzzling theft draws concern. By Lynn Jacobson Photo: http://seattleweekly.com/arts/0601/art-theft.php A baffling art heist in Pioneer Square has left some artists wary about opening their doors to the public on First Thursdays. Eight paintings by Susan A. Lockwood were reportedly stolen from her studio at 619 Western Ave. late Christmas Day or early the day after, along with other works of art, tools, and music equipment from adjoining workspaces. Although the building had been broken into before, Lockwood and her fellow artists were surprised by the theft of so much art. When she was notified of the break-in by police, Lockwood said, "I thought, 'I don't have anything to worry about. What would [a thief] do with my paintings?'" Though each canvas was priced between $350 and $1,000, Lockwood acknowledges that she doesn't have a big enough name to command high figures on the black market. Paintings like hers can't be pawned, and at nearly 3 feet square, they're too large to be easily hidden or transported. Seattle Police Department spokesperson Rich Pruitt said this kind of art theft is pretty rare. Apparently, once the thief or thieves gained entry to the building, they took their time prying open and breaking down studio doors. They were choosy about what they took, rifling through stacks of canvases, taking favorites, and leaving others. They nabbed a single piece from Lockwood's studio mate, Marcia Riwney-the biggest and most valuable she had. They also paused long enough to drink a bottle of wine they found in Riwney's refrigerator. "They only liked white," Lockwood said. "We had a whole case of reds, and they didn't touch those." The missing paintings represent months of effort by Lockwood and Riwney, and both artists say they are deeply discouraged. "When you're working on something a long time-anything, whether it's a quilt or some other project-once it's gone there's a real sense of loss," Riwney said. "We don't feel comfortable. The thought of being open again on First Thursday-we're going to be really suspicious." Said Lockwood: "I like that First Thursday makes art and artists accessible to people, but this makes me feel differently about it." Both artists plan to keep their studios closed this Thursday, Jan. 5. Not every Pioneer Square studio and gallery is as vulnerable as those at 619 Western. Tina Bueche, a longtime neighborhood business owner and activist, said 619 is "a great building, but problematic. They're a multistory building with multiple units, and no one at the front door. The door is open during the day, and people are free to walk in." Because so many tenants come and go, "there are lots of keys, tons of keys," in circulation. SPD's Pruitt said that once people gain entry to a building like 619, "they can go upstairs, and there are lots of places to hide" until tenants leave. Also, landlords that offer affordable rent to artists aren't usually in the habit of installing high-tech security devices-cameras and electronic alarm systems-like those at established galleries. The owner of one gallery, James Harris, on Third Avenue South, said he doesn't have any major concerns about security in regard to First Thursdays. He noted that anybody can come in and case any gallery any day of the week. "Any business open to the public, you take that risk," he said. He called the thefts at 619 Western "a tragic sort of flattery: It's terrible they got stolen, but someone must've really loved those paintings." That's small comfort to Lockwood, who is now kicking herself for not getting around to insuring her work. "It was on my list of things to investigate in the new year," she said. In the meantime, she's getting over the incident the best way she knows how-by returning to her studio, and painting. ljacobson at seattleweekly.com From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 08:59:19 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 08:59:19 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] New Jersey Police Uncover 27 Stolen Baby Jesuses Message-ID: <200601040759.k047xEpX075466@smtp-vbr10.xs4all.nl> New Jersey Police Uncover 27 Stolen Baby Jesuses By Mary Jo Patterson Religion News Service Photo: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/182/story_18232_1.html Sayreville, N.J. - Detectives investigating the theft of a baby Jesus statue from an outdoor Nativity scene at a Sayreville church followed a trail on Monday (Jan. 2) that led them to the missing statue -- and 26 other baby Jesus figurines. Police said they assumed all 27 statues had been stolen, although they did not know from where. Police spread the figurines out on a counter at police headquarters to take inventory. All lay, in swaddling clothes, on their backs. "It looks like a nursery here," said police spokesman Ken Kelly. The figurines, most of them plastic, were found stashed "in plain view" in a car parked outside the home of Christopher Olson, 18, of Old Bridge, N.J.,police said. Detectives canvassing the church neighborhood on Sunday had been given a description of a "suspicious" car by residents, police said. Authorities jailed Olson and two other men -- Michael Payne, 19, of Old Bridge, and Nicholas Hess, 18, of Matawan -- in connection with the theft of the Nativity infant from St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, and the desecration of objects at the church's cemetery. A 15-year-old boy was also taken into custody. Payne's truck contained several items from the church cemetery, police said. "It was supposed to be some kind of Jesus burning party. I guess they were going to burn everything up," Kelly said, adding that local prosecutors would determine whether the incident constituted a bias crime. "There was nothing sprayed or written. Is it a crime against Christians? I don't know. We'll be looking at that," Kelly said. Frank Payne, the father of Michael Payne, said the theft "wasn't a hate crime." "Michael has been hanging around the wrong people. He goes to college. He's an outstanding young kid," he said. The discovery brought relief to the parishioners of St. Stanislaus Church, who had taken the theft of their statue very hard, according to the Rev. Ken Murphy, their pastor. The theft, as well as the theft of a smaller baby Jesus from the church's school and the toppling of a 15-foot crucifix in the church's cemetery, took place late last week (Dec. 30 or 31). "As I told people ..., the most important thing is, we celebrated the birth of Jesus," he said. "Jesus is in many different places. If they saw the display and saw he wasn't there, they would be reminded that he is in them." Sayreville police called the pastor about 11 a.m. on Monday to report that they might have found the statue. Murphy drove to Old Bridge and identified it. Because Polish tradition calls for keeping Nativity scenes on display for 40 days after Christmas, the statue soon will be restored to its place in the manger. But first, he said, "police said they had to dust it for fingerprints." The plaster statue, life-sized and more than 25 years old, was easy to identify as it had a fresh coat of paint, Murphy said. The priest said he himself was not sure religious bias played any role in the theft. "As aggravating as it is, I know these things happen. Children do pranks. It has happened in other places I have been, from Christmas displays both religious and secular," he said. "I'm just so happy the infant has been returned." By late Monday, word of the baby Jesus stash had begun to circulate in Old Bridge. Lou Saverese, a resident of the street where the car was found, said a mystery had been solved. About three weeks before Christmas, he said, the baby Jesus in his Nativity scene disappeared. "My wife thought the wind might have taken it away, but then we noticed other people on the block were also missing their baby Jesus," he said. Then, in a park down the road, he saw two more plastic Jesus figures hanging from a telephone pole. Police cut them down. "Hopefully, they got the right people," he said. "Kids should know better." From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 10:53:10 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 10:53:10 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Australia: Curator appeals for return of war medals Message-ID: <200601040953.k049r569096768@smtp-vbr12.xs4all.nl> Wednesday, January 4, 2006. 2:39pm (AEDT) Curator appeals for return of war medals The owner of a business in Bentleigh, Melbourne is appealing for public information over the theft of war time memorabilia. Thieves stole almost $13,000 worth of medals and other items from the Old Tin Hat shop, between December the 29 and New Year's Eve. The shop's curator, Carl Johnson, says many of the items were on loan to the business from local families. He says most of the items are irreplaceable. "There's an obvious monetary value on the world market with the medals at least, outside that these people are disgustingly heartless individuals," he said. "This display is for the public, it's been open for 12 years, it's a non-profit display." http://www.abc.net.au/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 11:08:26 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 11:08:26 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Mecca Conference Criticized for Hypocrisy on Holy Site Destruction Message-ID: <200601041008.k04A8LEZ023505@smtp-vbr7.xs4all.nl> Mecca Conference Criticized for Hypocrisy on Holy Site Destruction Sherrie Gossett Staff Writer (CNSNews.com) - Leaders of a recent conference in Mecca, which emphasized the safeguarding of historic and holy Islamic sites in Jerusalem, are being criticized for turning a blind eye to the reported destruction of such sites in Saudi Arabia. Their statements condemning terrorism have also been criticized. Representatives of 57 countries, including the prime minister of Malaysia and King Abdullah Ibn Abdulaziz, who holds the title "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques," attended the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which held its summit Dec. 7-8 in Mecca. The summit was convened to address "internal and external threats" facing the wider Muslim community -- or "Ummah" -- in the 21st century. The OIC was founded in Morocco on Sept. 25, 1969, following an arson attack against the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Aug. 21 of that year. Moral outrage over what the OIC still calls a "Zionist" attack has been an organizing principle of the conference ever since, even though the perpetrator of the arson turned out to be a deranged Australian tourist who belonged to a Christian sect. While the December summit tackled diverse issues such as poverty, disaster relief and terrorism, a uniting theme was concern for the safety and state of historic Islamic sites in Al-Quds (Jerusalem), including the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Documents issued by the conference indicated that member states should make contributions to "preserve the holy sites in the city of Al-Quds" and "safeguard the sacred city's cultural and historic landmarks and Arab-Islamic identity." The documents cited the need to counter "the judaization of the Holy City." A statement released by the OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu warned of "illegal Israeli practices" and "aggressions" that aim to alter "historic landmarks." In a report issued the month before the conference, the secretary expressed "grave concern" over the "deteriorating condition of religious and historical sites" in Jerusalem due to "Israeli practices" such as excavations and the building of the separation wall. The OIC should "spare no effort to preserve the Islamic historical and religious identity of Al-Quds Al-Sharif," wrote Ihsanoglu. OIC leaders also cited the need to counter the "desecration of Islamic holy sites." "It is very ironic," said Ali Al-Ahmed, director of the Washington-based Institute for Gulf Affairs. "The same place where they had their meeting, not one mile away, there are Islamic landmarks much more important in Islamic history than all Islamic landmarks in Jerusalem, that are being destroyed." Prophet Mohammed's childhood home set to be demolished Al-Ahmed, a Saudi scholar and expert on Saudi political affairs, estimates that the majority of Islamic landmarks in Saudi Arabia have already been destroyed. Islamic architecture expert Sami Angawi told media earlier this year that at least 300 historical buildings have been leveled in Mecca and Medina over the past 50 years. "A telling example is the house where the Prophet Mohammed was born and [another] house he lived in until he was 29 are going to be demolished," Al-Ahmed said. Also destroyed was the 18th -century Ottoman-era Ajyad Fort. "They destroyed it at night. They blew up the hill where the fort was situated to make room for hotels," Al-Ahmed said. In 2002, the Saudi Embassy released a statement saying the fort was not listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage site and that the Saudi government had called for its "rebuilding by experts in the same traditional way it was first built and at the same location, albeit not on Bulbul Hill." Other reportedly destroyed sites cited by Al-Ahmed include: the first house in Islam, where the prophet Mohamed held secret meetings with his followers, which was destroyed in the 1980s; the houses of the prophet in Medina, where he lived for the last 10 years of his life; the Al-Fadik mosque in Medina built during Mohammed's life and destroyed in July 2003; and the Ali Al-Oraidi Mosque and Shrine in Medina destroyed in 2004. "It had been in operation for 1,200 years," said Al-Ahmed. Behind the destruction is the Wahhabist strain of Islam, which seeks to destroy any revered physical structures that clerics believe could lead believers to idolatry, said Al-Ahmed. Real-estate development, especially around Mecca and Medina, which hosts millions of pilgrims every year, is also a major factor. Religious politics also plays a role. When authorities allegedly destroyed one of the five renowned "Seven Mosques" built by the Prophet Mohammed's daughter and four of his "greatest Companions," Wahhabists were approving. "The mosques are not welcomed by Wahhabis," said Al-Ahmed. "It's partly political. They don't want Shia to go there to pray." Where the Abu Bakr mosque stood, there is now an ATM machine, said Al-Ahmed. The home in which the founder of Islam grew up is slated to be destroyed, as well as his birthplace, which has a library built over it. Two major battlefields with both historic and religious significance have also reportedly been paved over. In June of last year, the Islamic Supreme Council of America called for the support of the world community, UNESCO and the United Nations to stop the destruction of venerated Muslim sites in Saudi Arabia. The exclusive emphasis of the OIC on the danger such sites in Jerusalem allegedly face at the hands of Israeli Jews is a "highly selective politicization of the issue," said Al-Ahmed. "Jerusalem is actually more authentic than Mecca today -- the preservation is much better than that of Mecca," he said. If a historic Islamic site in Jerusalem such as the Dome of the Rock were ever to be destroyed, Al-Ahmed said, "we'd have a bloodbath." By comparison, Al-Ahmed noted the irony of a tape of the late Sheikh Mohammed bin Othaimeen, who he described as the "number one Wahhabi cleric." "On the tape he says, 'We hope one day we'll be able to destroy the dome of the Prophet Mohammed," al-Ahmed quoted bin Othaimeen as saying in reference to the "Green Dome" (Gunbad-e-Khadra), under which Mohammed is buried in the Al Nabawi Sharif mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Al-Ahmed's Institute for Gulf Affairs is planning a report and a conference on the issue in the upcoming year. The report will contain commissioned photographs and details of the destruction. "Throughout the centuries, Muslims had no problem preserving these sites; now, we have this new Islam that wants to destroy them. It is very sad and very disturbing," Al-Ahmed added. The OIC summit also addressed terrorism and social and political issues in several documents it issued. Calls for solidarity among the 57 member nations were accented by the voiced need to "counter foreign threats" and "reject unilateral sanctions." The OIC jointly condemned "the alarming phenomenon of "Islamophobia" and noted the "moral obligation" of Western powers to provide socio-economic aid for its part in causing harm over the years to Muslims. The OIC also resuscitated the idea of establishing an International Islamic Court of Justice in Kuwait to settle matters between member states. 'Criminalize every single terrorist practice' Leaders at the summit affirmed the need to "criminalize every single terrorist practice" and supported the establishment of an International Counter-Terrorism Center as endorsed by the Riyadh International Conference on Combating Terrorism. While all of the summary documents issued by the OIC condemned terrorism, the secretary general's report noted the "lack of consensus on the definition of the term" and "insisted on its differentiation from the right to resist aggression, foreign occupation and self-defense." The statements don't carry much weight with those serious about counter-terrorism, according to Yehudit Barsky, director of the Middle East and International Terrorism department at the American Jewish Committee headquartered in New York City. "This is very similar to previous statements made by Arab countries and by the Arab League," said Barksy. "They leave the door open for what they call resistance movements. Legitimizing resistance movements is legitimizing terrorism." Nihad Awad, director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), attended the Mecca summit. He did not respond to a request from Cybercast News Service for comment on the conference, nor did he respond to a request to give his opinion of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine and whether he believes their use of violence is justified. Regarding CAIR's previous condemnations of terrorism and violence against "innocent" civilians, Awad also did not respond to the following question: "Do you believe Israeli victims of suicide bombings are 'innocent victims,' or are they legitimate targets of violent resistance...?" http://www.crosswalk.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 22:43:51 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 22:43:51 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] The International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection (IFCPP) proudly announces its 8th Annual Conference Message-ID: <200601042143.k04LhkWu067964@smtp-vbr16.xs4all.nl> The International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection (IFCPP) proudly announces its 8th Annual Conference, Seminar, Exhibits & Certification Program...and...we're baaaackk...to the Hearst Castle, October 3-6, 2006! The last gathering here was hard to beat...but be assured of an even better experience with exciting new programs, innovative new concepts, a great certification program, state of the art exhibits, and much more. Our friends at the Castle welcome us October 3 for our traditional welcome reception, with general sessions and certification course work beginning on the 4th, and meeting wrap-up on the 6th, leaving our participants with a weekend full of free time or organized activities and excursions. This is the "HOW TO" conference, with programs geared towards YOU, our members, supporters, advisors, and attendees. While General Sessions will cover all new subject matter, we're going to emphasize the basics in guard force management, customer relations, IT security, construction security, human resource management, and loss prevention. We'll hear from a professional panel of directors, registrars, curators, and facility managers discussing how to close the gap in administrative relationships. Other all new, special workshops with leading national presenters will be available for attendees, spouses, and special guests. If you haven't attended an IFCPP gathering in the past, talk to one of our regulars.over 70% of our audiences come back each year. You just can't find a better opportunity for networking, professional education sessions, the only available source for professional certification...and the magnificent surroundings of San Simeon, CA, not to mention the world renowned Hearst Castle. Side trips will include visits to local vineyards, a nearby seal beach, and much more. Don't wait until the spaces are gone...this one WILL fill up, space is limited. We're also pleased to announce that the Fall 2007 Annual Conference will be held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, hosted by the Reynolda House, Museum of American Art. We are very excited about this unique opportunity to explore a new and outstanding cultural community. Dates and additional details will be announced soon. Additional 2006 certification opportunities include: January 26 and 27 - Certified Institutional Protection Manager (CIPM) and Certified Institutional Protection Specialist/Supervisor (CIPS) workshops in Naples, Florida. Hosted by the Philharmonic Center for the Arts. March 15- Certified Institutional Protection Manager (CIPM) and Certified Institutional Protection Specialist/Supervisor (CIPS) workshops in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. May 1 - Certified Institutional Protection Manager (CIPM) workshop in Boston, MA. Hosted by the American Association of Museums. May 22 - Certified Institutional Protection Manager (CIPM) workshop in Las Vegas, NV. Hosted by the CPM Contingency Planning Expo. We wish you, your staff, and families a very happy New Year! For information/registration contact IFCPP Headquarters at 800-257-6717, or Rob at IFCPP.org. Online registration will be available at www.ifcpp.org From museum-security at museum-security.org Wed Jan 4 23:25:14 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 23:25:14 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Priverno. Tele rubate, recuperate dai Carabinieri Message-ID: <200601042225.k04MP8jG004164@smtp-vbr5.xs4all.nl> Priverno. Tele rubate, recuperate dai Carabinieri Ieri i Carabinieri di Priverno hanno recuperato quattro tele ad olio, realizzate nel 1998 dal pittore Luigi Centra. Le tele, tutte delle dimensioni di cm 70 x 50, due delle quali raffiguranti Greta Garbo, uno Ingrid Bergman e l'ultima raffigurante Marilyn Monroe, fanno parte di complessivi 15 quadri, trafugati da ignoti nel 1999 ad Anzio, nel corso di una mostra delle opere dell'autore. I quadri sono stati recuperati lungo la via Marittima II, all'interno di una grotta sottostante un vecchio casolare abbandonato. All'epoca del furto, il singolo quadro aveva un valore commerciale di circa 10.000.000 di lire. Sono in corso approfondite indagini per risalire agli autori del furto ed ai possibili ricettatori di opere d'arte. Il brillante risultato conseguito, fa seguito al recupero di un leone in marmo del XII secolo, operato in novembre dai Carabinieri della stazione di Priverno. http://parvapolis.panservice.it/index.php3?idnotizia=26760 From museum-security at museum-security.org Thu Jan 5 09:11:03 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2006 09:11:03 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] New Zealand: Police are concerned that people are dealing with criminals themselves in order to recover stolen property. Message-ID: <0ISM0024H1E7HY@smtp18.wxs.nl> Don't accept ransom demands - police 05 January 2006 Police are concerned that people are dealing with criminals themselves in order to recover stolen property. Yesterday a Christchurch car-yard operator paid a $5000 "ransom" for the return of a rally car once used by Possum Bourne. Last year, a Paul Dibble sculpture was returned to a Waikanae restaurant after a "cloak and dagger" operation facilitated by the editor of the Kapiti Coast Observer. A $10,000 ransom was paid to the thieves. Police were not told of the transaction until it had been completed. Police spokesman Jon Neilson said police should always be contacted if a ransom demand is made for safety reasons. "We suggest people don't pay it, they need to be in touch with us because we need to be aware of the fact a ransom's being asked. "That artwork in Waikanae was an example of where the police were not very happy, and. quite rightly, that they weren't made aware of it because people paying the ransom don't know who they're dealing with either," he said. AdvertisementAdvertisement"The police reaction to that was pretty much as expected - we need to be in on it and we strongly urge people not to deal directly with people seeking ransom." Police do not keep statistics for ransom demands. They are recorded under "intimidation and threats" or "kidnapping and abduction". Statistics for both categories show a slight drop in recorded occurrences between 2002 and 2005. http://www.stuff.co.nz/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Thu Jan 5 09:12:43 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2006 09:12:43 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Artist Searches for Stolen Paintings: Art Taken from Library Message-ID: <0ISM00AKX1H1PW@smtp16.wxs.nl> Artist Searches for Stolen Paintings: Art Taken from Library Published on 1/5/2006 Chester - Someone might have received the gift of an original watercolor painting or two over the holidays that (one would hope) they would certainly not accept if they knew those pieces had been stolen. Chester artist Monique Hanson is distraught over the loss of her two framed paintings, both of which she discovered missing from a private display at the Guilford Free Library. Hanson believes the pieces were taken sometime after Nov. 22, which was the last time she saw the art on display. She discovered the loss when she came to retrieve her work on Nov. 28. In an effort to recover the paintings, one of which was planned as a gift for her daughter, Hanson has placed posters depicting the works around Guilford. As of press time, no one had responded to Hanson's plea at the top of her poster, "Please, bring them back!" Hanson had returned to the library's first floor meeting room on Nov. 28 to retrieve her paintings, along with other students who were part of a show offered by an Old Saybrook class headed by artist Stan Carver. When she found blank spaces on the wall where her pictures had been, Hanson said her teacher told her he thought she had already removed the pieces. Hanson said she held out hope that one of her classmates had removed the paintings and was planning to return them at class that Friday. "I was still dreaming and hoping when I went to painting class [on] Friday that someone had taken them and they would be brought to me. When saw there was nothing, I went to the police," she said. Hanson had also contacted the library, which is not responsible for items left in private shows in the meeting room. Hanson said a third painting, done by another artist in Carver's class, was also stolen from the exhibit. "My two paintings were on one wall on the right side of the room. His was on the other side of the room," said Hanson. Even after she contacted police and the library, Hanson felt she still had to do something more. Luckily, Hanson's husband had taken photos of her two works shortly after each was set in fruitwood frames (at a cost of more than $200). Hanson took the photos and put together her poster, which states "no questions asked." She even offered the other artist a chance to include a picture of his stolen painting, but "...he just shrugged his shoulders," she said. It's a bit more difficult for the landscape artist to let go of her paintings, which represented her first attempts at working in watercolors. Hanson added she doesn't offer her pieces for sale. "I don't sell my paintings--I do them for me and for family and friends," she said. With her posters in hand, Hanson returned to Guilford last week. The first Guilford organization that agreed to display her poster was the Guilford Free Library. "They were very nice. When I called [to report the stolen paintings], I was pretty upset. They explained they had no insurance for such things, a private show in a public place," said Hanson. As library director Sandra Ruoff explained, "We have always made it clear that we have never had any coverage for exhibits. It's done at their own risk." Of course, Ruoff added, the staff was saddened and dismayed to learn of the missing art. "We sent her a written letter of apology and hung up her poster in a public place," she said. Ruoff added the library has since followed up with police to review security. The door through which Hanson believes her art was carried out, a separate meeting room entrance off the parking lot, needs to be open and accessible during library hours due to fire codes. Ruoff said the missing art represents the first time any such pieces have been stolen from building. "I've worked at the library for 29 years and we have never lost anything from an exhibit," said Ruoff. For Hanson, the Guilford show was her first time she had agreed to place her work on exhibit. "It was my first show and it will probably be the last," she said. In the meantime, Hanson is hoping an article and pictures in the newspaper will spread the word to help locate her stolen paintings. "I still have a very vague hope. It is my only hope at this point, that someone will report [seeing the paintings]. There are a lot of nice souls out there," she said. Hanson's missing paintings include one 11 _ " x 24" framed piece containing four smaller matted paintings of leaves in fall colors; and one 19" x 12 _ inch framed painting of a forest, done in purples and yellows, with scenery of trees and flowers. If found, please return them to the Guilford Free Library or call 860-526-2324 http://www.shorepublishing.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Thu Jan 5 09:16:32 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2006 09:16:32 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] South Africa: Historic German plaques stolen from beachfront Message-ID: <0ISM002881NCI5@smtp18.wxs.nl> Historic German plaques stolen from beachfront Jan 4 2006 By LEW ELIAS VANDALS have stolen the historic bronze plaques from the German Settlers Monument at the East London beachfront. The plaques would fetch "at most a few hundred rand from scrap dealers", but have historic value and are also works of art sculpted by German artist Bodo Kampmann in 1960. The plaques were the finishing touch to the monument honouring the German Settlers who came to the Eastern Cape in 1857 and 1858, and the monument - sculpted by South African artist Lippy Lipschitz - is the only one of its kind in South Africa. The plaques were paid for by the then West Germany government and by some of the towns from which the settlers came. The five plaques, all 1 metre x 80cm, have relief work on them showing the settlers leaving home, travelling to South Africa, their arrival, their work and their optimistic future. Most scrap dealers in the area have been contacted and alerted to the theft but none say they have seen any bronze that could resemble part of the missing monument, East London Historical Society representative Kenneth Gradwell said yesterday. The East London Museum's Kevin Cole said the theft was a huge loss to the city's heritage and the local German community are also very upset. Gabriella Schuch, a member of the local German community and part of the German Settlers Monument committee which leased the site from the municipality in 2000, said she was devastated at the theft. "Some years ago we were trying to have the plaques cast in resin after another attempt was made to remove them. We would have made casts from the plaques, but now we can't do that as they are gone and it is unlikely that the original casts still exist." Schuch said the German government said it would help with some of the costs of recasting the plaques in resin on the understanding that the original plaques be housed in the East London Museum. "But not that is not to be." The theft has been reported to police who are still investigating. http://www.dispatch.co.za/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Thu Jan 5 09:22:38 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2006 09:22:38 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] =?iso-8859-1?q?_La_polic=EDa_impidi=F3_el_robo_de_ci?= =?iso-8859-1?q?nco_piezas_arqueol=F3gicas?= Message-ID: <0ISM000B21XJVH@smtp14.wxs.nl> La polic?a impidi? el robo de cinco piezas arqueol?gicas ( 2006-01-05 ) Photo: http://www.cronica.com.mx/nota.php?idc=219232 La polic?a mexicana frustr? y detuvo en el aeropuerto de M?rida al estadunidense Rafael Angel Cosme, quien pretendi? sacar del pa?s cinco piezas arqueol?gicas con destino a EU, informaron hoy fuentes oficiales. La Secretar?a de Seguridad P?blica federal (SSP) indic? en un comunicado que agentes de la Polic?a Federal Preventiva evitaron que el extranjero partiera con destino a Miami (EU) con los valiosos objetos de cer?mica, de los cuales dos son de origen prehisp?nico, dos de la ?poca colonial y una r?plica. Se?al? que el decomiso de los objetos arqueol?gicos, cuyo valor no fue precisado, se pudo hacer tras alertar del posible contrabando el personal del Instituto Nacional de Antropolog?a e Historia (INAH) de M?xico. La dependencia dijo que Rafael Angel Cosme fue detenido a la espera de que se investigue el caso para evaluar los cargos. Hace 20 a?os se dio el robo m?s grande de objetos arqueol?gicos en la vida moderna de este pa?s, cuando 140 piezas fueron sustra?das el 25 de diciembre de 1986 de 140 piezas del Museo Nacional de Antropolog?a, mismas que fueron recuperadas en su mayor?a cuatro a?os despu?s. La senadora del Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI), Victoria Eugenia M?ndez, refiri? hace poco que en M?xico se registra un preocupante incremento en el ?ndice de robo y tr?fico de piezas arqueol?gicas y de arte sacro, ?esto ante la total indiferencia de las autoridades culturales?, sean federales o locales. En esa ocasi?n la legisladora priista explic? que el tr?fico de piezas arqueol?gicas o de arte en general, ha aumentado debido a la demanda que existe por parte de coleccionistas, as? como por las enormes ganancias que reporta a las mafias dedicadas a estos il?citos. En el mismo tenor, el doctor Enrique Ortiz Lanz, coordinador nacional de Museos y Exposiciones del INAH, explic? que el robo de piezas as? como los saqueos son parte de la descomposici?n que se da en el mundo, situaci?n que se ve reflejada en el incremento de este tipo de actividades. Recintos tan importantes como el Museo del Prado (Espa?a), el Munch (Oslo) o el mismo Louvre (Par?s), han resentido hechos de este tipo. No obstante, el funcionario mexicano afirma que el incremento de la seguridad en los museos nacionales, regionales y de sitio a cargo del INAH se ha puesto en pr?ctica en los ?ltimos a?os con dos enfoques: humano y tecnol?gico, lo que ha permitido evitar el robo de piezas. Agrega que ?el INAH ha tomado las medidas pertinentes para enfrentar el problema?. Abunda en que se ha dado un cambio radical en el concepto de la seguridad en los museos mexicanos. En contraposici?n con estas afirmaciones, se recuerda que reientemente se dio el robo del catalejo de Julio Verne, mientras ?ste era exhibido en la biblioteca Jos? Vasconcelos, durante la exposici?n de los Viajes Extraordinarios. Por su parte, el diputado Arturo Nahle Garc?a asegur? en declaraciones a la prensa mexicana que ?existe un aumento desmedido del robo de arte sacro, arqueol?gico y de monumentos coloniales, sin que exista un programa de control o un cat?logo de piezas en el pa?s?. A esto contribuye el hecho de que ?las sanciones para los traficantes son m?nimas y ahora no s?lo se refieren a piezas arqueol?gicas o sacras, sino incluso a documentos hist?ricos sustra?dos del Archivo General de la Naci?n?, refiri?. http://www.cronica.com.mx/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Thu Jan 5 10:00:34 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2006 10:00:34 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Nigeria. Jos: Where it's always autumn. Nok sculpture literally sprang to the fore, while miners were digging for tin. Message-ID: <0ISM00DC03OR8A@psmtp02.wxs.nl> Jos: Where it's always autumn By MAURICE ARCHIBONG Thursday, January 5, 2006 .View of Ahmadu Bello Road, Jos. Photos: MAURICE ARCHIBONG More Stories on This Section It's not for nothing, we have chosen Jos as Sun Travels' overture for this year. Lying in Nigeria's so-called Middle Belt, the Plateau State capital is a confluence of the nation's austral and northern parts. An examination of the root of the Birom, aborigines of Jos, reveals why this city is a veritable microcosm of Nigeria. We returned to Jos exactly a month ago today. To kill two birds with one stone, as is often said, our visit was decidedly fixed to coincide with a weeklong conference, which took place inside the Unity Hall of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Kuru. Compared with many cities in the temperate climes, Jos doesn't lag far behind. In fact, the Plateau State capital beats most of such towns on at least one score: In Jos, it's autumn every season of the year. Not here, the harsh torrid heat of the tropics or the bone-numbing cold of winter; in Jos the weather is favourable all year round. We had been warned, and the Plateau State capital did not disappoint with regard to its chilly ambient temperature. Standing at over 1, 200 meters above sea level, Jos was as cold as could be in the month of December. Such is Jos weather between November and January that each guest is usually given a bucket of hot water every morning in virtually all the budget lodges, where bathrooms have no heater. And, if you had been bathing with cold water, the attendants give something extra: Advice you can't afford to ignore. "Please don't bathe with cold water.It is bad for your chest." He probably meant the lungs, and you failed to heed that warning at your own peril. Many inhabitants in Jos are quick to tell the visitor that severe cold spells had in the past claimed many lives in this town. To keep warm, inhabitants of Jos consume plenty of tea, coffee, cocoa drinks and other hot beverages. For the same reason, balms, analgesics, jackets and coats are in high demand in Jos. Jos' quasi-temperate climate is probably one of the reasons the tourist is not likely to find many a teetotaler in Nigeria's Tin City. Welcome to Jos. Tin City was foisted on Jos because of that town's role as Nigeria's centre of tin mining. Eventually, this town would evolve into the hub of mining in Nigeria, generally. Jos truly deserves its Tin City epithet but did you know that in some quarters, Jos is taken as an acronym for Jesus Our Saviour? How this tallies with the etymology that Jos is a corrupt form of Gwosh is hard to see. Some sources say Jos might have evolved from Geash, the name of a Birom village, which stood close to the present site of the National Museum. Whatever the root of its sobriquet, Jos is now a melting pot of sorts. Jos stands on the Jos Plateau; formerly called Bauchi Plateau and the town is around River Dilimi near the source of the Jamaari. Further downstream, the Jamaari River is called Bunga. Since the British discovered vast tin deposits in these parts around 1903, this Birom town has never been the same. The Encyclopaedia Britannica expatiates: "Although Africans had extracted tin and iron from river and stream beds on the plateau long before the arrival of Europeans, (it was) not until 1904, when the British commenced large-scale operations, that the region's immense tin deposits begin to be fully exploited. Since that time, the Jos Plateau has been one of the world's major suppliers of tin." It is worth noting that the Jos Plateau is not floating on tin only. "The world's largest known deposits of columbite, an ore of niobium associated with tin, have also been exploited (around Jos) since the 1940s, according to that encyclopaedia. Industrial scale tin mining, which began in Naraguta (a tin-working centre since the 18th century), 6km north of Jos around 1905, propped up this town's economic profile. Just as coal mining paved the way to Enugu being linked by rail to the littoral Port Harcourt, tin mining also facilitated the extension of rail lines to Jos. Interestingly, before the Bauchi Light Railway was built in 1914 to carry tin from Jos and nearby Bukuru to Zaria and later by rail to Lagos, hundreds of men were employed to ferry tin by head to Port Loko along the Benue River. From Port Loko, the metal was subsequently shipped to Forcados in the Niger Delta for export. Aside tin, Jos also put Nigeria on the world map as largest producer of columbite. Columbite mining, which was very important during World War II, so complemented industrial activities here that in the early 1960s, smelters were installed near Jos. To this day, Jos is still very important because Nigeria's tin and columbite exports to the US and Europe are got from this part of the country. Moreover, some quantities of tantalite and kaolin (a form of clay used in making ceramics) are also traded around Jos. Tantalite is related to tantalum and is a special metal because of its melting point (at over 2, 990 degrees Celsius) as well as its boiling point, which is almost 5, 000 degrees Celsius. A very hard, chrome-coloured element, Tantalum is also much sought after because of its excellent resistance to all acids except hydrofluoric at ordinary temperatures. Scientific sources say "the most important uses for tantalum are in electrolytic capacitors and corrosion-resistant chemical equipment." There is also the possibility that, given its very high melting point, tantalum could be useful in the making of an aircraft's Black box. The Jos Plateau boasts numerous other metals such as tantalite, zircon and uranium. Lead and iron ore are also found in the eastern and central parts of Plateau State. Moreover, gold and silver deposits are located near Shendam Town. Furthermore, Jos is the hub of some manufacturing enterprises in Northern Nigeria. These enterprises include breweries, food processing, toiletries and cosmetics, jute bags and rope. Some of the items that roll off the city's heavy industry plants are cement and asbestos production, crushed stone and rolled steel. Jos is also the hub of northern Nigeria's printing and publishing. Such is the inestimable wealth of this area. It was, therefore, to be expected that job opportunities would exert an almost irresistible gravitational pull on people from virtually all nook and crannies of country. That is how Nigerians of apparently all ethnic groups came to make Jos their home. Foreigners, though to a much lesser extent, have also settled in this town. Jos had further succeeded in attracting more inhabitants; especially cattle herders and shepherds because the environment is tsetse fly free. With regard to the local hospitality industry, Jos boasts a hill resort (The Hill Station Hotel), established in the mid-1940s. Countless other lodges and leisure laden (shops) have mushroomed across this town over the years. Many of this city's streets are wide, with some even boulevard-like. Jos is the major reason Plateau State is celebrated as Home of peace and tourism, going by car number-plates. Three morbid riots may have left Plateau's claim of home of peace in tatters but its other claim to fame, tourism, remain intact. In fact, while virtually everyone we spoke to in Jos agreed these riots, whatever the motives of the perpetrators, have left indelible dents on this city and Nigeria's image as a whole, they were nonetheless unanimous that Jos is still one of the safest and most hospitable settlements in Nigeria. And this wasn't just the conclusion of ordinary folks. Chief Solomon Akanbi Olugbodi, His Highness Igwe Joseph Nnamdi Ejimbe and Obong Akaninyene Emmanuel Archibong all corroborated this view. Their Highnesses, Olugbodi, Ejimbe and Archibong are Oba of Yoruba, Eze Ndi-Igbo and Obong of Akwa Ibom Communities in Jos respectively. The Plateau State capital is also worthy of celebration as an important nerve-centre of Christian evangelism in Nigeria. Apart from the countless Christian missions that operate from Jos, the Nigeria Bible Translation Trust is also based here. When it comes to sightseeing, Jos and the entire Plateau area throw up ample opportunities. Examples: The Jos Museum, founded in 1952, also hosts a School of Archaeology, run in conjunction with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Interestingly, Jos had been contributing to museum studies decades before the National Museum for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) berthed here. In deed, it was Jos that led to the discovery of Nok, an art form named after a village in the southern parts of Kaduna State. Nok sculpture literally sprang to the fore, while miners were digging for tin. The Encyclopaedia Britannica reveals: "A series of accidental finds of fine terra-cotta figurines by tin miners on the Jos Plateau revealed an ancient culture named for the village of Nok, where some of them were found. The Jos Museum complex also holds the Museum of Traditional Nigerian Architecture (MOTNA); an eatery-cum-bar called The Bight as well as a Zoological Garden, where several wild animals are held captive. According to Mr. Adamu Liya, a chief zoological officer, that animal farm boasts a boa constrictor, hyena, crocodiles, olive or dog-faced baboons (papio anubis), among others. However, I was more interested in the chimps. My interest in these chimpanzees goes back many years. In the 1990s, during one of my many trips to this repository, Paulina had just had a baby. The father of that baby chimp, named Rahina, was one Peter. When I asked after Peter, Mr. Liya said the father chimp had since died. On a more cheery note, Paulina, now 42, shares her cage with another female chimp called Bobby. A tag on their inescapable confinement says these chimps came from Angola, and were donated to the Jos Museum authorities by Mr. and Mrs. Morris D. Graham. Rahina and her cage-mate Suzy seemed to be doing well. Liya said Suzy was bought somewhere in Taraba State and brought to Jos Museum's zoological garden. We (the unfortunate captives and I) shared some bananas, oranges and peanut. When I made to leave, the animals let out a chorus of haunting hollers. As you can guess, it wasn't enough. This left me wondering: When was the last time these animals had a meal? Given the perennial underfunding plaguing the NCMM and other cultural institutions, I won't be surprised if these animals hadn't been fed for days. Thus, we had to squeeze out more money to haul in more oranges, bananas and peanut. After about an hour all together, it was time to go. Glad to say the captives were so preoccupied with whatever was left of their meal, they didn't complain as we made our way out of their prison yard. Getting there Once upon a time, it was possible to travel by rail from Port Harcourt to Jos. That 600km journey was made possible with the construction around 1927 of a line linking the southern port city to Jos and the mines at Bukuru. Although rail travel is no longer as reliable as used to be the case in Nigeria, Jos lies 608km southwest, on the railroad to Port Harcourt. The Plateau State capital is accessible by road from virtually all parts of Nigeria through Abuja, Lafia, Bauchi, Kaduna, and Zaria. The city can also be reached by air. Previously, flights landed and took off from the old Jos airfield, which lies 3.2 km south of the city centre. However, a bigger airport had since been opened in the Haipang area. People Observers say the Jos Plateau people historically paid "particular attention to personal adornment, especially of the hair." To date, the peoples of the Jos Plateau reflect these traditions. The Encyclopaedia Britannica again: "In the early 19th century, the population of the plateau increased as various non-Muslim groups fled to its hills to escape the ravages of the mounted warriors of the Fulani jihad. These small independent groups include the Birom, Jerawa (Jaranci), Mama, Angas, and Ron (Baram) peoples; they were never organized into a traditional state and remain almost entirely non-Muslim." 'We're all smugglers' It's Wednesday evening and I'm standing at Abuja Drive inside the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Kuru. The date was December 7, 2005, and it was my third day visiting this institution founded some 30 years ago. I was one of hundreds of people that had converged on Jos for the 2005 Annual Conference of the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). The recently concluded five-day summit was into its third day, when the NCS Comptroller-General Elder Jacob Gyang Buba declared that every Nigerian is a smuggler. The NCS chief observed that many people complain about checkpoints, without thinking deeply about the reasons behind the mounting of such roadblocks. According to the NCS boss, ignorance, greed and want of patriotism were among the reasons many Nigerians tried to cut corners, when it came to meeting their financial obligations to the state. The NCS comptroller-general, who holds the title of Elder of a Christian mission, had observed that, "If people could attempt to defraud God by not paying tithe, how much more a government." The opening ceremony of that confab, which revolved around the theme Common External Tariff: The implication for the Nigerian Economy drew a constellation of both national and international dignitaries. The Plateau State Governor Joshua Dariye, the summit's Chief Host was present as was the Gbong Gwom Jos, HRM Dr. Victor Dung Pam at the summit, where President Olusegun Obasanjo was penned down as Special Guest of Honour. The Executive Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Dr. Mohammed Ibn Chambas sent a representative, Mr. Awudu Gumah; while Alhaji Shehu Musa, a former head of the National Population Commission attended in person. Ghana Customs top brasses that attended the 2005 C-G summit in Jos were Mrs. A. V. Dumelo, Mr. Edward Noi and Mr. Robert Kwami. Finance Minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who was represented by Alhaji Jibrin Zarewa, when the exercise opened, actually turned up later to give, as usual, a thought-provoking address. As if to reflect the cordial relationship between the NCS and the military and paramilitary services, the Chief of Army, Lieutenant-General Martin Luther Agwai and his Air Staff counterpart Air Marshal Jonah Wuyep were physically present, while Commodore I. I. Ibrahim, represented the Chief of Naval Staff. Major-General S. O. Ango (retired), and Brigadier General John Shagaya (retired), a former Sole Administrator of NCS and former Minister of Internal Affairs respectively were there, too. The conference also attracted Chief Okwara Uche Kalu, acting Comptroller-General of Nigerian Prisons Service as well as representatives of the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Immigration Service; Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission, Senator Effiong Bob, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance and Mr. Jide Mike, Director General of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN). It would be difficult to reel out the list of every VIP that witnessed the flagging off of the 2005 C-G confab. However, while many of the speakers entertained the audience with rib-cracking quips and repartees, some remarks made by the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Mr. Adams Oshiomhole literally threatened to bring down the roof. But let's recall some of the things the comptroller-general said. Elder Buba described the Nigerian situation, where the value of exported goods account for a paltry 5 percent, against 95 per cent recorded for imports as unhealthy. The C-G said the NCS wished the reverse of this disparity, which he called staggering, was the case or at worst that the high imports volume was matched by equally high exports. Elder Buba had also revealed that 166 operatives of the Service were facing various disciplinary actions, including suspension, demotion and even dismissal. On the positive side, the Comptroller-General said the NCS grossed almost 260 billion in the first three-quarters of 2005. This figure, the C-G continued "is N21, 246, 516, 404.10 higher than the amount collected into the Federation and non-Federation accounts in 2004." Moreover, about N157 billion had also been collected into the Federation Account last year, he remarked. Given this level of income generation, it is easy to understand why the NCS is the second highest income earner for the nation outside the petroleum sector. According to Elder Buba, the robust anti-smuggling efforts of the NCS yielded almost 1, 600 seizures of various types of vehicles, 213 containers freighting sundry goods, such as rice, used tyres, second-hand clothing items, weapons and ammunition, narcotic substances and so on, in the first nine months of last year. The NCS boss put the duty paid value of these seizures at roughly N10.9 billion. During the summit, Nigeria's Labour leader Adams Oshiomhole had been discovered "hiding" among the crowd. One of the Masters of Ceremony (MC) had consequently observed; "Had Dr. Oshiomhole been sitting on the high table, I would have addressed him as a top brass or something similar. But since the labour chief had chosen to sit among the people, I have no option but to invite Comrade Oshiomhole, who uses ever-ready battery, to come up here to say a few words." This was an allusion to the popular belief that the Labour President is brilliant enough to make sense every time he opens his mouth. And the labour leader, again, rose to the occasion. He started by saying he had not been invited to the event. "I invited myself out of my busy-body". After the laughter had died down, Oshiomhole continued, "In other words, I gate-crashed out of my desire to know more about the Customs because of their cardinal role to the national economy." The labour boss then went on to commend the current NCS leadership for commencing the C-G conference. Oshiomhole said it was important to have such a forum, where stakeholders could take stock of any agency's progress through the year in order to forge strategies for improvement. The labour leader then recalled that Nigeria once spent colossal sums of money on pre-shipment inspection exercises contracted to foreigners. He didn't think this was a wise decision "because we cannot pretend that there's anybody out there that can claim to love our nation more than ourselves." Oshiomhole again: "Had part of the huge fees paid to foreign pre-shipment inspectors been invested in local human resources and better equipment for our Customs, we would have a better economy." http://www.sunnewsonline.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 09:18:20 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 09:18:20 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] FW: Reducing Risks to Collections 2006 - Course Announcement Message-ID: <0ISN009DFWEB46@smtp19.wxs.nl> _________________________ -----Original Message----- From: Collections Unit [mailto:collections at iccrom.org] Sent: 05 January 2006 12:55 To: securma at xs4all.nl Subject: Reducing Risks to Collections 2006 - Course Announcement REDUCING RISKS TO COLLECTIONS 2006 ICCROM and the Canadian Conservation Institute are pleased to announce the 2006 session of the international course on "Reducing Risks to Collections". The purpose of the course is to discuss and practice the risk management approach to the management of cultural property. The course will take place in Ottawa, Canada, from 16 to 27 October 2006 (two weeks). It is designed for collection managers, curators, registrars, conservators, and also directors of small to medium size museums, galleries, and archives, from all regions of the world. The course will also interest educators and professionals who teach collection management and preventive conservation, in either an academic or a vocational environment. The application deadline is 28 February 2006. A brief description of the course and full information on the application process is available at http://www.iccrom.org/eng/training/events/2006-2007/PCC.htm Please distribute this information through your networks. Thank you in advance for your kind collaboration REDUIRE LES RISQUES POUR LES COLLECTIONS 2006 ICCROM et l'Institut Canadien de Conservation ont le plaisir d'annoncer la session 2006 du cours international "R?duire les risques pour les collections". L'objectif du cours est d'?tudier et d'appliquer l'approche de la gestion des risques ? la gestion des biens culturels. Le cours aura lieu ? Ottawa, Canada du 16 au 27 Octobre 2006 (2 semaines). Le cours est destin? aux responsables de collections, aux conservateurs, aux archivistes, aux conservateurs-restaurateurs et aux directeurs de mus?es, de galeries ou d'archives de petite ou moyenne taille, de toutes les r?gions du monde. Le cours int?ressera aussi ceux qui enseignent la conservation du patrimoine et la mus?ologie. La date limite d'inscription est le 28 F?vrier 2006. Une br?ve description du cours et toute l'information sur les modalit?s d'inscription sont disponibles ? http://www.iccrom.org/fran/FormationConf/Evenements/2006-2007/PCC.htm Merci de bien vouloir diss?miner cette information. From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 09:20:19 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 09:20:19 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] three Much paintings at auction have been removed from German museums by the National Socialists in 1937. Message-ID: <0ISN001KTWHLGG@smtp17.wxs.nl> Article about eight Munch-paintings to be auctioned at Sotehby's in February, three of which have been removed from German museums by the National Socialists in 1937. http://www.sueddeutsche.de/kultur/artikel/474/67407/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 09:36:29 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 09:36:29 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Theft from National Museum in Zimbabwe. Reward offered. Message-ID: <0ISN003MYX8KLB@smtp13.wxs.nl> Jan 5, 2005 Theft from National Museum in Zimbabwe. Reward offered. http://www.michelvanrijn.nl/artnews/zimbabwe.htm From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 15:36:58 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 15:36:58 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Museum theft. FBI will continue probe of Everhart thefts Message-ID: <0ISO00B0WDXCFA@smtp15.wxs.nl> 01/05/2006 FBI will continue probe of Everhart thefts By Stacy Brown , Staff Writer The FBI will continue to do all it can to bring to justice those responsible for the theft of two paintings from the Everhart Museum in November, a spokeswoman said Wednesday. Despite frustrating efforts to determine the value of one of the paintings and statements made last month about whether the federal agency would continue to investigate the case, the FBI said it has no plans on dropping its investigation. "I believe there was a misunderstanding (on whether the FBI would continue investigating the Everhart theft)," said FBI spokeswoman Jerria Williams. "We still consider this case an ongoing investigation, and we will continue in our attempts to identify and charge those persons responsible for this crime," Williams said. In December, Williams had presented scenarios in which the FBI would consider dropping the case, including the criteria for FBI involvement in art theft cases - the paintings value must be at least $5,000 and 100 years-old or worth at least $100,000. However, Williams said Wednesday there had been no formal discussions as to whether the agency would stop its investigation. Williams said the inability of the museum and its insurance company to come up with a value of a 1949 Jackson Pollock painting taken in the Nov. 18 heist has not affected the FBI's investigation. A reportedly similar painting by Pollock sold at a 2004 New York auction for $11.6 million. However, museum officials have also been unable to verify the painting's authenticity. Museum officials said a 1984 Andy Warhol painting, stolen along with the Pollock piece, was worth between $15,000 and $30,000. The FBI have been working with Scranton Police Detectives trying to crack the case. "There isn't anything new at all with the case, we're still working and hopefully at some point we'll get a break in the case that will lead to the capture of those responsible and the recovery of the paintings," Scranton Detective Capt. Al Leoncini said. Museum spokesman Joe Palumbo said also that he had not been informed of any new developments in the case. Everhart executives have been meeting with representatives of Murray Insurance since the theft, trying to work out the value of Pollock's work. The painting's owner, a local artist who lent the work to the museum three years ago and has requested anonymity for what he called safety reasons, has said the Pollock painting had only sentimental value to him. "It's worth nothing," he said. "There is no value. I never insured it and never requested the Everhart to insure it." http://www.zwire.com/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 15:36:58 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 15:36:58 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Two museum Rembrandts 'are fake' Message-ID: <200601060639390.SM02924@smtp15.wxs.nl> Two museum Rembrandts 'are fake' Two oil paintings purported to have been the work of Rembrandt have been shown to be fakes, the director of the museum where they are kept has said. The works were donated to the municipal museum in Faro, southern Portugal, in 1944 and were displayed for 25 years despite doubts over their authenticity. Tests have now shown the 17th Century Dutch master could not have painted them, Dalia Paulo told AFP news agency. This was because they used pigments not available until the 19th Century. Anniversary plans The paintings, one a supposed self-portrait of Rembrandt and the other said to depict one of his friends, were donated to the state-run museum by Portuguese diplomat Amadeu Ferreira de Almeida. They were on display at the museum, which was visited by 22,000 people last year, from 1973 until 1998. They were not tested for authenticity until last year. Ms Paulo said: "We felt it was time to have the tests done. We could not delay any longer." The 112-year-old museum plans to put the "fake" self-portrait back on display in July to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt's birth. The museum's collection includes several works by European painters of the 16th to 19th Centuries, as well as a large collection of Islamic art and Roman mosaics. http://news.bbc.co.uk/ From museum-security at museum-security.org Fri Jan 6 15:59:41 2006 From: museum-security at museum-security.org (Museum Security and Cultural Property Protection (Ton Cremers)) Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2006 15:59:41 +0100 Subject: [CPProt.net] Sweden. Statue by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles stolen from outside hospital Message-ID: <0ISO00CZQEZ8L8@smtp14.wxs.nl> Posted on Thu, Jan. 05, 2006 Statue by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles stolen