[ad_1]
Evidence cabinets in the Manhattan district attorney’s office often contain a number of items from the crimes it prosecutes.
Blind instruments. Heroin bags. Lots of cash. The kind of things that shouldn’t be let go, but no one would have a heart attack if you did.
Then there are the 2,281 fragile, priceless and often museum-worthy art objects – statues, statues, remnants of ancient civilizations – that the office has taken over and now needs to deal with.
Here, a bronze idol from India is worth $2 million. There is a vase from Italy made 300 years before the birth of Jesus.
“We’ve all been pretty good at packing,” said Matthew Bogdanos, deputy district attorney who led the 14-person unit that seized everything. “It’s one thing to pack a bronze or sandstone statue – it’s another thing to pack a 2,500-year-old Apulian vase that’s already cracked on the side. It’s absolutely frustrating and we look at each other and say, ‘We need more Bubble Wrap and more blankets.'”
Officially known as the Antiquities Trade Unit, Bogdanos’ team is largely a victim of its own success. Founded in 2017 with the approval of Manhattan district attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. to prevent cultural heritage smuggling, the company confiscated 3,604 illegal items worth $204 million. Of these, 1323 were returned to countries of origin such as Mexico, Afghanistan, and Tibet.
Still, there are some very good things to watch.
“I’ve noticed,” Vance said, “that we have some extraordinarily important works of art and heritage that we need to carefully protect, and that’s not something most offices need to worry about.”
[ad_2]
Source link