Stolen Art: The Illegal Antiquities Trade Is Still Going Strong

by Lindsay Shapka in , ,


National Geographic Magazine recently ran an article highlighting how rampant tomb raiding and trade in stolen antiquities still is. I know what you're thinking. Tomb raiding is nothing new — the looting of ancient art has been going on for hundreds of years. So, why is it being written about and highlighted now? What's changed?

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Reads For The Road: "Master Thieves—The Boston Gangsters Who Pulled Off The World's Greatest Art Heist" by Stephen Kurkjian

by Lindsay Shapka in , , ,


Investigative journalist Stephen Kurkjian has written the definitive, revealing history of the famed Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist that took place 25 years ago. Master Thieves: The Boston Gangsters Who Pulled Off the World’s Greatest Art Heist takes a look at the investigations, theories, blunders, and complex web of the Boston mafia that all contributed to the paintings being stolen and remaining hidden for all this time.

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The Mind-Blowing Paintings Of Ben Johnson

by Lindsay Shapka in ,


British artist Ben Johnson is in no rush to get his paintings done. In fact, he has spent the equivalent of 17 years on one painting alone!

He is best known for his works that show intricate architectural spaces, and large-scale city skylines from places like Hong Kong, London (you can see this one at the National Gallery in London), Jerusalem, and Liverpool.

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Is Michelangelo's Sistine Ceiling at The Vatican Under Threat?

by Lindsay Shapka in , , ,


The Sistine Chapel recently celebrated its 500th Birthday and, along with a huge party, it also got a warning — it may soon have only a limited amount of visitors.

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