Art theft often conjures images associated with such films as The
Thomas Crown Affair and Ocean’s Twelve - a sexy and glamorous world
of gentlemen thieves. In reality, art theft includes archaeological
looting, trafficking, and forgeries, in addition to more
traditionally envisioned art heists, and the consequences resonate
on an international scale. This class first seeks to give a broad
background of the history of art theft before delving into a more
detailed accounting of art crimes in the past century. The course
also examines material from a thematic perspective, including topics
such as the practices and consequences of war on art theft, methods
of art crime prevention, the investigative process, the media’s
portrayal of art theft, the connection between stolen art and the
financing of underworld operations, the current legislation
protecting cultural heritage, and the future legal and scholarly
steps that need to be taken to reduce the negative consequences
posed by art theft.