https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/art-crimes/RSS feed for Art CrimesenMon, 19 Oct 2026 21:13:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-burning-of-this-french-city-hall-was-a-catastrophe-for-heritage-tragically-reminiscent-of-the-notre-dame-fire-180989711/French authorities say that the Limoges city hall, built in the late 19th century and celebrated as an architectural gem, was the victim of an arson attack amid mass protests in France over the weekendMon, 19 Oct 2026 21:13:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-burning-of-this-french-city-hall-was-a-catastrophe-for-heritage-tragically-reminiscent-of-the-notre-dame-fire-180989711/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/two-recently-stolen-renoir-paintings-were-found-hidden-behind-a-cinderblock-wall-french-police-used-dna-evidence-and-vehicle-tracking-to-crack-the-case-180989678/The bungled heist took place at the Renoir Museum on the French Riviera in September. French authorities made six arrests and believe they prevented another "imminent" theft, possibly at a nearby modern art museumWed, 14 Oct 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/two-recently-stolen-renoir-paintings-were-found-hidden-behind-a-cinderblock-wall-french-police-used-dna-evidence-and-vehicle-tracking-to-crack-the-case-180989678/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-pulled-off-another-shocking-art-heist-in-france-this-time-they-took-a-330-pound-bronze-book-cover-designed-by-salvador-dali-180989638/The volume, "Livre de l’Apocalypse," was a "masterpiece" collaboration of 14 artists and writers. It is one of the heaviest and most expensive books ever madeThu, 08 Oct 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-pulled-off-another-shocking-art-heist-in-france-this-time-they-took-a-330-pound-bronze-book-cover-designed-by-salvador-dali-180989638/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/an-arson-investigation-is-underway-after-a-suspected-sensless-act-of-vandalism-destroys-a-newly-installed-benjamin-harrison-statue-180989605/The 3D-printed piece was created by students and faculty at Indiana University Indianapolis and had been installed on September 16Fri, 02 Oct 2026 13:33:31 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/an-arson-investigation-is-underway-after-a-suspected-sensless-act-of-vandalism-destroys-a-newly-installed-benjamin-harrison-statue-180989605/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-cubist-painting-with-a-mysterious-provenance-hung-in-the-art-institute-of-chicago-for-decades-now-the-museum-will-return-it-to-its-rightful-jewish-heirs-180989553/Infrared imaging links the 20th-century Jean Metzinger work to a collector whose pieces were forcibly auctioned under Nazi orders during World War IIWed, 23 Sep 2026 20:18:46 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-cubist-painting-with-a-mysterious-provenance-hung-in-the-art-institute-of-chicago-for-decades-now-the-museum-will-return-it-to-its-rightful-jewish-heirs-180989553/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mysteriously-stolen-more-than-30-years-ago-and-illicitly-transported-to-the-us-this-300-pound-sculpture-is-finally-back-home-in-france-180989507/Alfred Lepère’s hulking “Faune Chasseur” artwork is once again on display at the Musée de Picardie, in AmiensWed, 16 Sep 2026 15:03:21 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mysteriously-stolen-more-than-30-years-ago-and-illicitly-transported-to-the-us-this-300-pound-sculpture-is-finally-back-home-in-france-180989507/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/A-Rare-Nazi-Looted-Painting-lost-for-Some-80-Years-Turned-Up-in-a-Real-Estate-Listing-Now-a-Judge-Has-Ordered-It-Returned-to-Its-Rightful-Heirs-180989488/Missing since it was stolen in Amsterdam in 1945, Giacomo Ceruti’s ‘Portrait of a Lady’ will be restored to its true owners, a court in Argentina has ruled in a landmark decisionMon, 14 Sep 2026 14:29:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/A-Rare-Nazi-Looted-Painting-lost-for-Some-80-Years-Turned-Up-in-a-Real-Estate-Listing-Now-a-Judge-Has-Ordered-It-Returned-to-Its-Rightful-Heirs-180989488/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-broke-into-a-french-museum-and-made-off-with-renoir-paintings-worth-more-than-25-million-180989462/Early today, burglars stole four artworks from the Renoir Museum, in the French Riviera, only to drop two of them as they escapedTue, 08 Sep 2026 19:21:19 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-broke-into-a-french-museum-and-made-off-with-renoir-paintings-worth-more-than-25-million-180989462/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-steal-3000-year-old-treasure-in-a-super-professional-museum-heist-that-took-only-four-minutes-180989418/Officials were shaken after dozens of ancient artifacts vanished from the local archaeological museum in Villena, Spain. The thieves left only a few pieces from the Bronze Age treasure behindMon, 31 Aug 2026 17:11:11 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/thieves-steal-3000-year-old-treasure-in-a-super-professional-museum-heist-that-took-only-four-minutes-180989418/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-landlord-found-a-peculiar-print-hanging-in-a-vacant-apartment-it-turned-out-to-be-an-original-picasso-print-that-had-been-missing-for-eight-years-180989417/When "Torero" vanished from a Milwaukee art gallery in 2018, the owners didn't know whether they'd ever see it again. The man who found the etching turned it over to the police earlier this monthFri, 28 Aug 2026 15:37:31 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-landlord-found-a-peculiar-print-hanging-in-a-vacant-apartment-it-turned-out-to-be-an-original-picasso-print-that-had-been-missing-for-eight-years-180989417/