The Library

Below is a list of books and journals that the Center for Art Law compiles in our quest to keep track of the art law publications and relevant scholarship.

If you are working on a new title, or your book is already out, and you would like to have it included in the Repository, please send us information about it (Title, Author/Editor(s), Date of Publication; ISBN, short summary, link to your publisher/distributor).

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735 results
Provenance Research for Mediterranean Antiquities Art Law Library

Provenance Research for Mediterranean Antiquities: Methods and Resources

Judith Barr, Nicole Budrovich, David Saunders
English
August 2026

This practical volume is the first to gather resources specific to the provenance of Mediterranean antiquities in an accessible, comprehensive guidebook.

The first of its kind, this book is an accessible, comprehensive primer of methods and resources for researching the provenance of Mediterranean (Greek, Roman, and Etruscan) antiquities. In addition to outlining effective strategies for documentation and investigation, the volume features an annotated guide to key archives, databases, and twentieth-century dealers to facilitate a broad spectrum of research endeavors. Building upon a decade-long review of the Getty Museum’s antiquities collection, it draws together instructive case studies, legal perspectives, and practical experience to provide an efficient reference for museum professionals, scholars, collectors, and students. The authors aim to emphasize the need for diligent provenance research and to shorten the learning curve for such projects.

Cite

Judith Barr, Nicole Budrovich, David Saunders, Provenance Research for Mediterranean Antiquities: Methods and Resources, August 2026
The Art of Status Art Law Library

The Art of Status: Looted Treasures and the Global Politics of Restitution

Jelena Subotic
English
January 2026

An illuminating exploration of the relationship between the restitution of looted art, global status, and the international construction of national cultural heritage.

Why is art restitution a matter of politics? How does the artwork displayed in national museums reflect the international status of the state that owns it? Why do some states agree to return looted art and others resist?

National art collections have long been a way for states to compete with each other for status, prestige, and cultural worth in international society. In many former imperial nations, however, these collections include art looted during imperial expansions and colonial occupations. While this was once a sign of high international standing, the markers of such status, particularly in the context of art, have since significantly changed. A new international legal and normative architecture governing art provenance developed after World War II and became institutionalized in the 1990s and 2000s. Since then, there have been national and global social movements demanding the return of looted art. This shift has established not only that looting is wrong but, more importantly, that restitution is morally right. As a result of this reframing of what it means to own art, an artifact’s historical provenance has become a core element of its value and the search for provenance and demands for restitution a direct threat to state status. The same objects that granted states high international status now threaten to provoke status decline.

In The Art of Status, Jelena Subotic examines this relationship between the restitution of looted art and international status, with a focus on the Parthenon (‘Elgin’) Marbles, the Benin Bronzes, and a collection of paintings looted during the Holocaust that are now housed at the Serbian National Museum. Subotic tells the story of these artworks, how they were looted, how they ended up on display in national museums, and how the art restitution disputes have unfolded. While these cases are different in terms of their historical context of looting and ownership claims, the movements for their restitution, and resistance to it, illustrate the larger questions of how national cultural heritage is internationally constructed and how it serves states’ desire for international status and prestige.

An in-depth and nuanced account of art restitution disputes, The Art of Status illuminates the shifting political significance of art on the international stage, from ownership to restitution.

Cite

Jelena Subotic, The Art of Status: Looted Treasures and the Global Politics of Restitution, January 2026
Looted Art & Restitution Art Law Library

Looted Art & Restitution: The Exodus and Partial Return of Dutch Art Property During and After World War II

Rudi Ekkart, Eefke Muller
English
July 2024

Looted Art & Restitution relates the history of the trade, looting and restitution of works of art from the Netherlands before, during and after World War II. Countless artworks ended up in German hands during the occupation. The allies recovered a large number of works of art to the Netherlands after the war. It was the Dutch government’s task to return looted or forcibly sold works to their original owners. The mostly Jewish claimants, however, often encountered bureaucratic and unwilling authorities. Meanwhile, most of the artworks were distributed over museums and depots or auctioned off.

It was not until the late 1990s that, in accordance with international developments, the restitution policy became much more humane and a search for the rightful owners was implemented.

Cite

Rudi Ekkart, Eefke Muller, Looted Art & Restitution: The Exodus and Partial Return of Dutch Art Property During and After World War II, July 2024
The Many Faces of Art Forgery Art Law Library

The Many Faces of Art Forgery: From the Dark Side to Shades of Grey

William Casement
English
April 2024

Forgery is a provocative presence in the art world that captures attention in the press and inspires books about the exploits of famous fraudsters as well as scholarly articles and monographs. But missing until now has been a big-picture look at the phenomenon of art forgery. The Many Faces of Art Forgery provides a uniquetreatment that features historical highlights, philosophical insights, psychological profiles, economic theories, and legal statutes and cases.
Key features include:
The story of art forgery from antiquity to the present, including 80 named forgers, the tricks of their trade, and the social forces that ensure the existence of their enterprise.How scientific analysis is both effective and limited in exposing art fakes.Multiple definitions for the term “forgery” as applied to art.The effect on authenticity in legal terms, philosophical terms, and public opinion when an artwork undergoes extensive restoration, or artists hire surrogates to make their works, or they appropriate images from otherartists or styles from indigenous cultures.Forgers’ mentalities: their motivations, rationalizations, and strategies.The ethics of art forgery: from criminality to esteem for fooling experts.The possibility and aesthetic worth of a “perfect fake.”In all, readers will understand the substantial place forgery occupies in the realm of art, as well as that what constitutes authentic versus inauthentic is not always clear-cut, nor are legal and moral judgments about forgery. In conveying this message, the author provides a wealth of information in an accessible and engaging style suitable for experts and general readers alike.

Cite

William Casement, The Many Faces of Art Forgery: From the Dark Side to Shades of Grey, April 2024
Art Thieves Fakers & Fraudsters Art Law Library

Art Thieves, Fakers & Fraudsters: The New Zealand Story

Penelope Jackson
English
June 2017

Uncover the shocking truth behind New Zealand’s art heists, forgeries, and scandals.

Delve into the dark underbelly of the New Zealand art world with Penelope Jackson’s Art Thieves, Fakers & Fraudsters. This gripping exposé reveals the untold stories of stolen masterpieces, audacious forgeries, and elaborate scams that have rocked the nation’s art scene.

From the theft of Colin McCahon’s iconic Urewera Mural to the cunning Goldie forgeries that fooled experts, Jackson uncovers a world of intrigue, deception, and high-stakes crime. Explore the motives of the perpetrators, the vulnerabilities of art institutions, and the challenges of protecting New Zealand’s cultural heritage. Perfect for art enthusiasts, true crime aficionados, and anyone fascinated by the hidden side of the art world.

Cite

Penelope Jackson, Art Thieves, Fakers & Fraudsters: The New Zealand Story, June 2017