THE ARCHIVE BY COUNTRY
Published reports from our archive, newest first.
A country may refer to the theft, recovery, return or legal proceedings. A case can be linked to more than one country.
79 reports · Page 3 / 4
A life-size bronze lion was stolen between 27 and 28 July 2022 from the Born Free Foundation’s exhibition on the Downs in Clifton. The 190 kg sculpture was one of 25 lions installed for the charity’s touring display. Image: Born Free Foundation/PA.
Inigo Philbrick sentenced to seven years in art-finance fraud — artwork or case documentation from the linked image source. Image source ↗
Federal prosecutors announced an eighty-four-month sentence in a fraud involving more than $86 million. The case concerned false ownership and financing representations involving artworks by Basquiat, Wool and Stingel, not forged paintings.
Francisco Goya, The Duke of Wellington, detail — The National Gallery, London. Image source ↗
On 19 August 2021, ITV reported that the National Gallery had released ransom notes and notices concerning the 1961 theft of Francisco Goya’s The Duke of Wellington. The painting was returned in 1965 and was back on museum display. This is historical coverage accompanying an archive release, not a new theft. Cross-checked with the National Gallery.
London's Court of Appeal upheld an order requiring Fairlight Art Ventures to repay Sotheby's about $5.37 million, plus interest and costs, after a private sale of An Unknown Man was rescinded. Sotheby's refunded the buyer after laboratory analysis identified the portrait attributed to Frans Hals as a modern forgery. This was a civil contractual ruling, not a criminal conviction for forgery.
Three paintings were stolen in March 2020. Rechecking confirmed the return of the Rosa in 2024, recorded separately in this archive. Image shows the Van Dyck.
Oscar Wilde friendship ring returns to Magdalen College — artwork or case documentation from the linked image source. Image source ↗
Magdalen College confirmed the return of the gold ring given by Oscar Wilde and Reginald Harding to William Ward. It had been stolen in 2002 and recovered through Arthur Brand’s efforts.
Polly Rome bronze fox pictured in the theft appeal / Hampshire Police. Image source ↗
Hampshire Police sought two bronzes stolen from a Rockbourne home on 17 October 2019: a running fox signed Polly Rome and a metre-high woman with raised hands by the same artist. They were taken from a porch and garden while the owners were out. This historical appeal does not announce a recovery.
America by Maurizio Cattelan, pictured in the AP/ABC7 theft report; earlier display. Image source ↗
Maurizio Cattelan’s solid-gold toilet America was stolen from Blenheim Palace early on 14 September 2019, two days after its installation. Police reported damage and flooding caused by its removal. A 66-year-old man had been arrested but not charged; the artwork had not been recovered at the source date.
Heirs sought restitution of Portrait of Miss Mathew, later Lady Elizabeth Mathew from Japan’s Fuji Art Museum. The museum asserted valid title through good-faith purchase. This records an ownership and restitution dispute, not a verified court judgment.
National Portrait Gallery examinations in 2004–2005 dated the portrait to the nineteenth century. Cross-checked with Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Timothy Sammons sentenced for defrauding art clients — artwork or case documentation from the linked image source. Image source ↗
Sammons was sentenced to four to twelve years after pleading guilty to grand larceny and scheming to defraud. The case concerned misuse of clients’ artworks and sale proceeds, rather than an authenticity determination.
The stolen bronze hare statues in the police appeal / Hampshire Police. Image source ↗
Hampshire Police appealed after bronze hare statues were stolen from a front garden in Church Lane, Goodworth Clatford. The theft occurred between the afternoon of 5 July and the morning of 6 July 2019. Police reported a value of £3,000–£4,000 and released a photograph; the appeal announces no recovery.
Quartzite head of Amun with Tutankhamun’s features — Christie’s, via The Art Newspaper. Image source ↗
After Christie’s sold a quartzite head of Amun bearing Tutankhamun’s features on 4 July 2019, Egypt said it had contacted INTERPOL and retained a British law firm to file suit. The 9 July report records a contested ownership claim and announced legal action, not a judgment or a proven theft. Christie’s denied wrongdoing and defended its provenance and ownership checks.
A Madonna and Child relief by Luca and Andrea della Robbia, stolen from a Scansano church in 1971, was traced to a collector in Canada. A predella attributed to Manfredino da Pistoia, stolen in Varazze in 1988, was recovered in London. Both returned to Italy and were presented on 17 April. The photograph, published by Eccoci Toscana, shows the relief.
The British Museum formally handed eight antiquities to the Iraqi embassy in London after tracing them to Tello, ancient Girsu. London police had seized the objects in 2003. The returned group included Sumerian inscriptions and stamp seals. The image shows an inscribed mace-head fragment from the group.
Rediscovered Artemisia self-portrait acquired by London’s National Gallery — artwork or case documentation from the linked image source. Image source ↗
The National Gallery acquired Self Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria following its reappearance at auction. The report records rediscovery and acquisition, not theft or restitution.
Stanley Spencer’s Cookham from Englefield returned to owners — artwork or case documentation from the linked image source. Image source ↗
The UK government confirmed the painting’s return five years after its theft from a gallery. Police had discovered it beneath a bed during a west London drugs investigation.
Case diagram by ArtTraceX · Smidt van Gelder collection · Jacob Ochtervelt · The Oyster Meal. Image source ↗
Taken from a bank vault in Arnhem in 1945, Jacob Ochtervelt’s painting was returned by the City of London to Smidt van Gelder’s daughter in November 2017.
Conservation and technical examination at the Holburne Museum supported attributing Wedding Dance in the Open Air to Pieter Brueghel the Younger. The unsigned painting had been kept in storage and was previously considered the work of a follower.
ITV reported a prison sentence in a fraud case involving paintings falsely presented as works by the North East artist Norman Cornish. Image of works passed off as Cornish paintings: Northumbria Police, via ITV.
The UK Spoliation Advisory Panel recommended displaying the object’s history in the former owner’s collection during the Nazi era. It declined to recommend a return or an ex gratia payment.
