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New software will soon make it possible for investigators to instantly check whether a piece of art in front of them is stolen. “With Derdack’s software, investigators can take a photo of a suspicious painting with a cellphone or a personal digital assistant, send it wirelessly by GPRS or UMTS networks to international databases of stolen art and make a match – within seconds.”

Romania has a new museum of contemporary art in a giant palace built by dictator Nikolai Ceausescu. “The building is monstrous, a megalomaniacal blend of baroque, neo-Gothic and modernism, sprawling over the middle of Bucharest. Its cruel facade is lined with row upon row of windows: Romanians call them “the big eye of Ceausescu”. The critic Ami Barik, meanwhile, describes the Palace as “architectural pornography … meant to exhibit the organs of power in colossal erection”. Twenty per cent of the city, including some of its oldest churches, was torn down to make way for it. Workers died in near-forced labour conditions; others are said to have been killed to protect its secrets. No wonder Bucharest’s inhabitants view the House/Palace with a respect tinged with bitterness.”

Britons flocked to UK museums this year – “6 million more people passed through their doors, bringing the overall increase since admission charges were ditched for important national collections to 75%. Yesterday, the culture secretary, Tessa Jowell, called the figures “incredible”, and promised that free admission would continue to be a cornerstone of government policy. However, the Art Fund charity warned that the spectacular increase may prove “a hollow victory” without proper compensation for museums that formerly charged or adequate funds for museums that never charged but have lost out badly in recent spending rounds.”

The decision to allow the Barnes Collection to move to Philadelphia is just the beginning of a long process. And are the Barnes’ projections realistic? “The Barnes has budgeted $150 million to build a 120,000- to 150,000-square-foot building, to move into it, and to create an endowment.” Some experts question the plan: “All of the numbers are perfectly reasonable, but all are at the optimistic end of the scale of reasonable. Together in combination, the overall outcome is unreasonable. So the Barnes must either raise more than $150 million up front, or scale back its plans. That would require some tough, tough choices.”