Possession: The Curious History Of Private Collectors From Antiquity To The Present
by Erin Thompson
Buy on AmazonA riveting account of private art collectors' passion from Roman times to the present Whether it's the discovery of $1.6 billion in Nazi-looted art or the news that Syrian rebels are looting UNESCO archaeological sites to buy arms, art crime commands headlines. Erin Thompson, America's only professor of art crime, explores the dark history of looting, smuggling, and forgery that lies at the heart of many private art collections and many of the world's most renowned museums. Enlivened by fascinating personalities and scandalous events, Possession shows how collecting antiquities has been a way of creating identity, informed by a desire to annex the past while providing an illicit thrill along the way.…
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"All the best art history books carry the sense that they’re telling secrets, and Erin Thompson knows it; reading Possession feels like sneaking through a dark museum late at night. From a discussion of how Roman antiquities were used centuries later to build political and cultural identity to a chapter on smuggling, Thompson’s scholarship is on display, but it’s the anecdotes that make this one a delight. If you’re looking for an art history book that also rats out a couple of popes, you’ve found it."
NPR Books We Love — 2016 · apps.npr.org