NewsMuseums & Heritage
Unesco under fire for using Met objects in anti-trafficking campaign
Advertisements said that the works were looted in recent years, but Met documentation shows that they have a much longer provenance
NewsArt market
The devil is in the paperwork—don't be caught out by provenance fraud
The rise of the online art market means due diligence on purchasing art is becoming increasingly complex
NewsArt market
Quran quietly sells for record £7m despite questions over its provenance
Manuscript sold at Christie's first live sale in London since the coronavirus lockdown, but academics say its ownership history should be more transparent
NewsProvenance
Curator reveals how a Jewish collector snuck a medieval tapestry out of Nazi Germany
Victoria Reed, the provenance curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has been sharing the history about a work from the collection each day on Twitter while the museum remains locked down
NewsAppointments
Nazi loot expert joins Louvre to investigate its wartime acquisitions
Hire of French art historian Emmanuelle Polack suggests a more proactive stance on Nazi-era provenance research at Paris museum
NewsLaw
Family claims quarter share of disputed Isleworth Mona Lisa
The painting, long the subject of an attribution dispute, is now at the centre of a legal conflict over ownership
ArchiveForgeries
Chain of custody ruling could change the legal landscape for art forgery cases in New York
Establishing the defendant is at fault just got that much trickier
ArchiveNazi loot
Nazi loot claim for Tate’s Constable
Beaching a Boat, Brighton, has been claimed by the heirs of Baron Ferenc Hatvany
ArchiveRestitution
American museums increasingly proactive about restitution cases
30 memorial totems were repatriated to the Kenya last month
ArchiveRestitution
Getting back art from Gurlitt’s hoard of Degenerate art
While the legal status of stolen or confiscated works is as yet unclear, there is hope for those who make claims for restitution
ArchiveRestitution
Heirs of persecuted dealer Alfred Flechtheim reject provenance project over restitution claims
The Jewish dealer’s relatives say participating museums are not dealing satisfactorily with their claims
ArchiveProvenance research
Canada under pressure over potential Nazi loot
Montreal museum returns painting amid growing calls to fund provenance research and return disputed works
ArchiveRestitution
Getty Institute publishes Nazi auction data
Rise in restitution claims expected after launch of online German auction catalogues for 1930-45
ArchiveForgeries
Growth in internet sales forces fraud issue
Identifying forgeries being sold on websites is not enough to tackle the problem
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Elusive smile, elusive artist: is this really by Leonardo?
Despite a lavish, 300-page book and a high-profile presentation, strong doubts remain
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
A tale of two ladies
The mystery of Leonardo’s Madonna of the Yarnwinder
ArchiveFakes & copies
Scholars absent from State Hermitage Museum conference with controversial Degas bronzes on the agenda
Experts have been silenced by fears of legal action if doubts regarding the sculptures' legitimacy are voiced
ArchiveMalta
Polish-born collector Zdzislaw Bieganski to found museum in Malta
Works include Picasso and Van Gogh, but many are yet to be authenticated
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Portrait attributed to Leonardo in desperate condition
Possible self-portrait needs urgent treatment for mould and bacteria
ArchiveNational Gallery
Looking beyond Leonardo's blockbuster National Gallery exhibition
Where next after Leo-mania?
ArchiveForgeries
Knoedler forgery scandal grows
The gallery is being sued over an alleged fake Pollock, sold for $17m in 2007
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Is the Salvator Mundi a Leonardo? The National Gallery seems to think so
A new exhibition includes the newly discovered painting, ratifying it as the genuine article
ArchiveJean-Michel Basquiat
Williamsburg street art is Phil Frost, not Basquiat
As the appreciation of street art rises (as do its prices), attribution becomes critical
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Salvator Mundi Leonardo attribution: it’s all in the hand of the master
Proof of changes to the composition increases scholarly support
ArchiveSalvador Dalí
Dalí foundation fights the forgers
A conference in Catalonia will hopefully solve the ongoing problem with fake multiples in the market
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Appeal against Christie's concerning the Leonardo Princess fails on statute of limitations
Jeanne Marchig misses out
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Scholars divided over Leonardo attribution
Simon C. Dickinson Ltd is now the owner of Madonna and Child with St Anne and a Lamb, having reimbursed Nasser Kazeminy for the $7m he paid. If authentic, the gallery stands to make a profit, but if not then its value as an anonymous drawing is modest. So where did the drawing come from—and is it the real thing?
ArchiveJuly 2010
Eli Broad addresses the American Association of Museums: “Get art out of the basement"
The collector lectures museum professionals at their annual conference in Los Angeles
ArchiveEdgar Degas
Disputed bronzes cast from plasters attributed to Degas on show in Tel Aviv
Despite provenance of the plasters and the credibility of the project being under scrutiny, an exhibition at the Museum of Art has been set up by a New York dealer
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Books: The cautionary tale of America’s other “Leonardo”
The painting that still languishes in a vault, despite nearly a century of squabbling
ArchiveProvenance research
Munich pushes provenance research concerning possible Nazi looting
The project, led by Dr Vanessa-Maria Voigt and Dr Horst Kessler, came about by a chance find in a desk...
ArchiveRestitution
Minneapolis hands Léger to collector’s family
The painting was stolen from its Jewish owner during the Nazi occupation of France
ArchiveRestitution
The time has come for a statute of limitations on restitution: stemming the flow of works from museums
Since the late 1990s there has been a strong push towards provenance research of collections and museums, and restitution of items that were looted or taken by the Nazis during their period of power
ArchiveProvenance research
Dresden takes major provenance research project to Russia
Strives to break restitution “logjam”
ArchiveNazi loot
Dresden state museums expand provenance research — all the way to Russia
Strives to break restitution “logjam”
ArchiveProvenance research
Dresden to spend €15m and employ 65 researchers on biggest provenance study ever undertaken
1 million objects will be examined and recorded over 10 years
ArchiveJean-Michel Basquiat
Christie’s hits back over disputed Basquiat
Auction house seeks dismissal of lawsuit
ArchiveGoudstikker
Successful Amsterdam sale concludes the series of Goudstikker auctions
Old masters, recovered as a result of one of the world’s largest Nazi restitution claims, net $20m
ArchiveArt market
Trial Warhol prints may be authenticated in alleged policy adjustment for Authentication Board
A source close to the Andy Warhol Authentication Board hints at a change of heart
ArchiveGoudstikker
Norton Simon Museum of Art and Goudstikker heiress to go to court over fight for Cranachs
Marei von Saher claims they are Nazi loot, while Norton Simon believes it has legal title to the paintings
ArchiveIndianapolis Museum of Art
Why the Indianapolis Museum of Art will no longer buy unprovenanced antiquities
Moratorium will prohibit purchase of antiquities after 1970
ArchiveSevso silver
Questions arise surrounding legitimacy of items thought to be part of supposedly incomplete Sevso silver hoard
Documents seen by The Art Newspaper reveal that five bowls, 37 cups and 187 spoons were offered with the 14 pieces which make up the Roman treasure
ArchiveUnesco
Getty revises its guidelines for acquiring antiquities—again
Artefacts must have left their countries of origin by 1970, the year of the Unesco Convention, or have proper export documentation to be considered for purchase
ArchiveRestitution
Holocaust restitution: Lack of funding and cooperation have resulted in failure and injustice
A short history of nazi loot restitution efforts
ArchiveProvenance research
Provenance research is too expensive, museums tell Congress
The hearing concerning America's progress in returning Nazi loot to original owners discussed potential problems
ArchiveRestitution
Restitution pledge by US museums remains unfulfilled six years on
Results of survey lay bare how the US fell short
ArchiveGetty Museum
Trial of Getty Museum director is a moment of truth for all in the antiquities field
Recent trials forecast shift in collecting policies
ArchiveProvenance
US museum directors debate antiquities provenance dilemma
Should museums acquire objects without provenance, which may have been looted? Yes, say several panelists
ArchiveBooks
The political power of a painting
The story of Raphael’s St George and the Dragon
ArchiveZahi Hawass
“This mask belongs to Egypt”: Zahi Hawass demands repatriation of ancient Saqqara mask
Hawass, head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, is asking the St Louis Art Museum to return an supposedly looted antiquity
ArchiveArt theft
US colonel to lead antiquities anti-theft unit
Bogdanos attacks “cozy cabal of academics, dealers and collectors” who ignore provenance
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Leonardo underdrawings revealed, putting the authenticity of the Virgin of the rocks beyond dispute
Infra-red examination shows abandoned original design
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
Studying unprovenanced antiquities: The question of Schøyen's incantation bowls
University College London has set up an inquiry to examine the origin of “looted” bowls on loan from a Norwegian collector
ArchiveProvenance
Norton Museum’s war loot research grant
A grant will enable them to probe incomplete provenance records
ArchiveProvenance research
1933-1948—the dangerous years: how Sotheby's check art for tainted provenance
A Sotheby’s lawyer describes the work of its provenance research team
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
UK forwards new law to fight the illicit trade of antiquities
It is now an offence to handle an object if you know that it was illegally removed from a site anywhere in the world after 2003
ArchiveProvenance research
German museums commit themselves to provenance research concerning supposed Nazi loot
The younger generation has asked tough questions and come up with some answers
ArchiveProvenance research
"The AAM guide to provenance research" by Nancy Yeide, Konstantin Akinsha and Amy Walsh
A guide on how to best investigate provenance with specific emphasis on the specialist problems of the Holocaust-era, solvable using provenance research
ArchiveLaw
Former Met lawyer to advise private collectors and museums
Reflecting the continuous rise in the value of art and importance of provenance
ArchiveLooted art
Six hundred works of uncertain provenance listed in report on UK museums
This will assist in the identification of looted artworks
ArchiveProvenance research
“The Jewish people should be heirs to heirless art” says Knesset member, as plans are made to return Nazi-loot to rightful owners
Christie’s and Sotheby’s to help with provenance research projects
ArchivePablo Picasso
Picasso case determines that faith in dealers should be warranted
Court says non-professional buyers do not have to check “provenance”
ArchiveRestitution
400,000 pieces of Nazi silver loot sold by US in 1950
British and French authorities dismayed at disposals that they considered illegal
ArchiveArt market
The market for antiquities is growing, unfazed by protesters
As last month’s antiquities sales boomed, The Art Newspaper surveyed leading dealers and specialists in New York
ArchiveGetty Museum
Getty returns three stolen works to Italy
Curator voluntarily collaborates with Italy in accordance with museum’s policy
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Books: Leonardo's beginnings
This study maintains that Verrocchio’s “Tobias and the angel” in London is the first example of the artist’s hand
ArchiveNazi loot
Goodman restitution case settled out of court
Disputed Degas to go to the Art Institute of Chicago
ArchiveProvenance
Probing provenance: The importance of due diligence and insurance for defective title
The recent, widely publicised dispute over the provenance of two paintings by Egon Schiele, withdrawn last year from a loan exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art on the grounds of contested ownership, offered a vivid illustration of the problems facing museums and private collectors who may find themselves having to prove good title to their possessions
ArchiveLooted art
Florentine seizure of war-theft paintings on loan from New Zealand
It is alleged that they were stolen from the collection of Cino Vitta, head of the Jewish community in Florence during the war
ArchiveVincent Van Gogh
Forty-five Van Gogh fakes? How many really are there?
Scholars say that famous paintings are not by the artist. Provenances difficult to prove
ArchiveFakes & copies
A brush with the law: The FBI jump on two auction houses, but prosecution is no simple matter
It’s not a crime to sell a fake—unknowingly
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Rotterdam Kunsthal exhibits Leonardo’s only sculpture—or is it?
Bust of Christ is centrepiece of popular exhibition
ArchiveGetty Museum
The Getty Museum retreats from the antiquities market
In a radical change of policy, the Getty now favours archaeological conservation, research and education over collection building
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
Archaeological reforms needed in source countries: Reward the finder, excavate faster, keep what is important but allow a licit market
Laws now are obsessed with the objects rather than the sites
ArchiveCambodia
Pillaged Cambodian art sold at Sotheby’s and displayed in the Met
Despite being published last year by the International Council of Museums, severed stone heads are circulating in London and New York
ArchivePolitics
Former Greek premier caught red-handed with illegal antiquities
Almost all Minoan antiquities assembled by former premier, Mr Mitsotakis, appear to have an illegal provenance.
ArchiveSalvador Dalí
Divine Dalì's opera on birth, death, and Catherine the Great in her underwear
Opera conceived by Salvador Dalì in 1927 recorded in 1974, is released on CD
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
Only a legal antiquities market can curb the illegal market which destroys world history
Change needed in the face of a growing market
ArchiveArt law
Art lawyer Quentin Byrne-Sutton: "It is not acceptable that works be classified as national patrimony merely to fill gaps in public collections"
The European courts must decide what is a "national treasure"
ArchiveJoseph Beuys
Guggenheim Museum-Hummel deal on hold as Milan courts consider besmirched Beuys works
Row over dubious drawings comes to US
ArchiveJoseph Beuys
Fake Beuys drawings scandal in officially sponsored exhibition at Accademia di Brera
Thirty-eight works impounded while court searches for a reliable expert
ArchiveSotheby's
Sleeper found at Sotheby's found to be genuine fifteenth-century sculpture
Very few bronzes survive from this period, making the piece a remarkable find
ArchiveRembrandt
X-ray techniques date Rembrandt prints precisely
“In Sotheby’s N.Y. last May 28 out of 80 prints were later impressions”
ArchiveLeonardo da Vinci
Rival Buccleuch and Montreal “Madonnas of the Yarnwinder” to be judged side by side in Edinburgh
Leonardo da Vinci showdown comes to the National Gallery of Scotland
ArchiveForgeries
Matisse forgeries in the market is nothing new
Dealers fear more forged prints may emerge
CommentMuseums & Heritage
The only way is ethics: US museums should not neglect provenance research in the funding crisis
Ethical institutional practices such as staff equity and due diligence are essential investments, "not merely a luxury for flush times"
Elizabeth Campbell