Non-Fiction Books:

Possession

The Curious History of Private Collectors from Antiquity to the Present
Click to share your rating 0 ratings (0.0/5.0 average) Thanks for your vote!

Format:

Hardback
Unavailable
Sorry, this product is not currently available to order

Description

A 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. Thompson's accounts of history's most infamous collectors—from the Roman Emperor Tiberius, who stole a life-sized nude Greek statue for his bedroom, to Queen Christina of Sweden, who habitually pilfered small antiquities from her fellow aristocrats, to Sir William Hamilton, who forced his mistress to enact poses from his collection of Greek vases—are as mesmerizing as they are revealing.

Author Biography:

Erin Thompson is assistant professor in the Department of Art and Music at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY.
Release date Australia
July 5th, 2016
Author
Audience
  • General (US: Trade)
Illustrations
17 b-w illus.
Pages
232
Dimensions
156x235x22
ISBN-13
9780300208528
Product ID
24145917

Customer reviews

Nobody has reviewed this product yet. You could be the first!

Write a Review

Marketplace listings

There are no Marketplace listings available for this product currently.
Already own it? Create a free listing and pay just 9% commission when it sells!

Sell Yours Here

Help & options

Filed under...