Italy Wrestles With Artifact Theft

Italy has a huge antiquities theft problem. “In an average week, carabinieri fly helicopters over archaeological sites taking aerial photographs to reveal illegal diggings. They go on offshore dives to prevent unauthorized underwater excavations. Still other officers in their stylish black-and-red uniforms show up unannounced at antique shops, auction houses and outdoor markets, to videotape items for sale to match against the more than 2.5 million missing objects cataloged in the art squad’s vast database.”