by Keri Douglas (Special to plundered art)
Artifacts Source: Keri Douglas |
"The story of each of these of artifacts tell us about the talent of great masters of painting, of sculpture and of the written word as well as tell of the time that each of the masters dedicated to beauty, to art, civilization and of course, the Lord." said Italian Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero hosting the ceremony at the Italian Embassy in Washington, DC with U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.
Ceremony Source: Keri Douglas |
Ceremony Source: Keri Douglas |
Ambassador Bisogniero said, "Criminals should have no illusion Italy and the US are firmly together in this effort and are strongly committed to combat these crimes."
However, when asked to explain the rare prosecutions in the United States despite the stated link of art trafficking to organized crime, John Morton, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director explained that these cases are very difficult to prosecute. The challenges are due to the complicated patterns traffickers create; the time elapsed from the actual theft and the time of sale or appearing in the public domain; and the forgery of documents. Often, Morton said, the perpetrator is dead.
Morton made clear though that the Italians are monitoring the global art market and the evolving Italian organized crime networks. The office of the Italian Carabinieri for the Protection of Cultural Heritage General B. Pasquale Muggeo is arresting and prosecuting individuals. In fact, the discovery of these seven objects were the result of the Italian law enforcement community aggressively monitoring the internet and art sale catalogues for stolen Italian art.
Keri Douglas is a writer/photographer and communications consultant with www.ninemusesinternational.com. Follow her on Twitter at @keridouglas.