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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionseBook editionsThe Gardner Heist: The True Story of the World's Largest Unsolved Art Theftby Ulrich Boser
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:In recent years, several of Americas leading art museums have voluntarily given up their finest pieces of classical art to the governments of Italy and Greece. The monetary value is estimated at over half a billion dollars. Why would they be moved to such unheard-of generosity? The answer lies at the Getty, one of the worlds richest and most troubled museums, and scandalous revelations that it had been buying looted antiquities for decades. Drawing on a trove of confidential museum records and frank interviews, Felch and Frammolino give us a fly-on-the-wall account of the inner workings of a world-class museum and tell the story of the Gettys dealings in the illegal antiquities trade. The outlandish characters and bad behavior could come straight from the pages of a thrillerthe wealthy recluse founder, the cagey Italian art investigator, the playboy curator, the narcissist CEObut their chilling effects on the rest of the art world have been all too real, as the authors show in novelistic detail. Fast-paced and compelling, Chasing Aphrodite exposes the layer of dirt beneath the polished façade of the museum business. Review:"In the early morning hours of March 18, 1990, thieves posing as cops entered Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and left with a haul unrivaled in the art world, including three Rembrandts and a Vermeer, valued today at $600 million. Boser, a contributing editor at U.S. News and World Report, turned amateur sleuth after the death of a legendary independent fine arts claims adjuster, Harold Smith, who was haunted by the Gardner robbery. Boser carried on Smith's work, pursuing leads as varied as James 'Whitey' Bulger's Boston mob and the IRA. Along the way, he visited felons — including the notorious art thief Myles Connor — and Bob Wittman, the FBI's only art theft undercover agent. Boser's rousing account of his years spent collecting clues large and small is entertaining enough to make readers almost forget that, after 18 years, the paintings have still not been found: the museum is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to their return. Photos." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:The Gardner Museum in Boston is a monument to the idiosyncrasies of the rich. A replica of a Venetian palazzo, it embodies the vision of Isabella Stewart Gardner, who built a world-class art collection and displayed it her way. The museum's holdings include "works by Titian, Velazquez, Raphael, Manet, and Botticelli." Until 1990, the Gardner housed even more treasures; that was when thieves dressed... Washington Post Book Review (read the entire Washington Post review) Book News Annotation:The Gardner museum in Boston is the idiosyncratic collection of one
woman, who bought art apparently as the mood stuck her. But along the
way Isabelle Gardner acquired some of the most important paintings in
Western art. In March of 1990, the museum was robbed of several
works, including Rembrandts, a Manet, Vermeers and several Degas. To
date, no one has been convicted of the theft and none of the
paintings have been recovered. Crime writer Boser inherited the files
of Harold Smith, who investigated the theft. This is the story of
Boser's increasing obsession with the mystery. Over several years, he
learned a great deal about the shady underworld of art theft. In this
case, he believes that at least one of the perpetrators is a career
gangster named David Turner. In many ways, the tale is one of
frustration, like most real investigations. Smith died without ever
solving the crime. Boser seems to have gotten much further but, of
the missing art, there hasn't been a whisper.
Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Synopsis:
Shortly after midnight on March 18, 1990, two men broke into the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston and committed the largest art heist in history. They stole a dozen masterpieces, including one Vermeer, three Rembrandts, and five Degas. But after thousands of leads, hundreds of interviews, and a $5-million reward, not a single painting has been recovered. Worth a total of $500 million, the missing masterpieces have become the Holy Grail of the art world and one of the nation's most extraordinary unsolved mysteries. Art detective Harold Smith worked on the theft for years, and after his death, reporter Ulrich Boser inherited his case files. Traveling deep into the art underworld, Boser explores Smith's unfinished leads and comes across d one stand-alone novel. A mother-and-son writing team, they live in Delaware and North Carolina, respectively. About the Author Ulrich Boser has written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, Smithsonian magazine, Slate, and many other publications. He has served as a contributing editor at U.S. News and World Report and is the founding editor of The Open Case, a crime magazine and web community. He lives in Washington, D.C. What Our Readers Are SayingAdd a comment for a chance to win!Average customer rating based on 1 comment: 
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