Comments on: Polish Museum of America gets stolen artifacts back

By: livius drusus

livius drusus — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 21:44:54 +0000

It’s sad when you can’t trust the people who should be the most vigorous defenders of the objects in their care. Even the greatest, most elaborate anti-theft defenses can probably be broken by a determined insider. At the very least, museums should keep impeccable records and do regular cross-checks to catch any irregularities as soon as possible.

By: livius drusus

livius drusus — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 21:39:50 +0000

The authorities are keeping very mum on the curator issue, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they were still looking into that person. Maybe not to file charges, but at least to figure out what exactly was taken and where it might have ended up.

By: livius drusus

livius drusus — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 21:38:31 +0000

Agreed. I know it’s easier said than done, especially in museums with a large collection and a small staff, but they should always have an updated, accurate catalogue of the entire collection. Make taking inventory a yearly scavenger hunt, that way you know what you have and where everything is so if something goes missing you can alert the authorities. The less time has passed, the likelier they are to find the culprit and recover the stolen goods.

By: Mr. Murphy in VA

Mr. Murphy in VA — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 15:02:36 +0000

Getting the stuff back is more important than perverting the law to punish the participants. The youths evidently did not act with criminal intent. The museum astutely chose to focus on retrieving its assets rather quickly nailing the sellers. The dealer wisely elected to facilitate the retrieval. The FBI exercised patience until the arrangement began to unravel. The only apparent criminal was an insider–something all too common in the world of museums. Fortunately, experiences such as these have heightened security in the museum community worldwide.

By: Blake

Blake — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 13:17:00 +0000

I’m assuming the yoots will have to return the proceeds to the museum as well. I also can’t help but think there is some kind of legal recourse, at least a civil suit, or possibly some way to toll the statute of limitations on at least one of the items to allow criminal prosecution. Otherwise, where is the justice?

By: Haseeb Vaid

Haseeb Vaid — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 06:24:46 +0000

It is amazing how these historic pieces are just stolen and the museum finds out much later. Organization must be greatly improved or we will suffer the loss of many great historic treasures.