After more than 25 years of debate and delay, we have moved beyond words and into action. This commission is not just a technical body; it is a commitment to historical integrity and a long-awaited bridge to justice for those whose heritage was stolen.
The returns, announced by the Manhattan District Attorney's office, follow multiple criminal investigations into international trafficking networks. According to the DA's office, traffickers exploited periods of instability and weak oversight to plunder sites such as Bubon, routing objects through Switzerland, the UK and the US. Once in New York, prosecutors say, dealers allegedly fabricated provenance records that allowed looted artefacts to be exhibited, published, and sold.
connoisseurship and provenance research with laboratory science and proprietary AI, and then backs the conclusion with an insurance policy from an A+ rated global insurer. If a certified attribution is later proven incorrect, the policy will cover financial loss to the artwork's owner.
The National Gallery of Victoria has quietly returned a 17th-century painting to the descendants of a Jewish family who lost it during the Nazi era, without public announcement or explanation. The painting, Lady with a Fan by Gerard ter Borch, was removed from the NGV's website in early September. The only public trace of its return appeared weeks later, in an update to the Lost Art Database in Germany.
Set to be unveiled next March, the new Gilbert Galleries have been designed by the London-based Citizens Design Bureau practice. The number of galleries will increase from four to seven and will occupy adjacent former offices overlooking both the John Madejski Garden and Exhibition Road, as part of the V&A's Future Plan development programme. Project funders include the Gilbert Trust for the Arts and The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
It looked like a ship's wheel, a kitschy bit of decor you might see at a nautically themed bar. But he was drawn to it because of its maker. Timepieces from Chelsea Clock Co. were renowned for their design and precision. The company's clocks could once be found on Navy battleships during World War II, and adorned mantels, walls and desks at the White House for presidents ranging from Dwight Eisenhower to Joe Biden.