Theft

By Elizabeth Ruffner, ISA, AM – Fine Art, Ruffner Art Advisory* Understanding the Difference Between Retail Replacement Value and Fair Market Value Can Save Your Collection—and Your Taxes Ask what a painting or fine artwork is worth, and a qualified appraiser will answer with a question of their own: worth to whom, for what purpose,…

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. With apologies to Dickens, this phrase could well describe the past month for the TPC, the Italian Carabinieri’s elite art theft unit. On August 14, the TPC announced the successful recovery of three pieces of artwork which had been stolen last March during a late-night smash-and-grab…

Last week marked the three-month anniversary of the Louvre Museum robbery; arguably the most notorious art heist of the 21st-century. A daring crime that was first and foremost in the news cycle for nearly two weeks was quickly replaced by more current events. Three months later the Louvre heist merits sporadic attention in the media.…