Art Theft: And the Case of the Stolen Turners

In 1994 two important paintings by J.M.W. Turner (then valued at 24 million pounds) were stolen from a German public gallery while on loan from Tate Britain, London. Sandy Nairne (then Director of Programmes at the Tate) became centrally involved in the pursuit of the pictures, and the negotiation for their return. In Art Theft he relates for the first time this complex, 8-year, cloak-and-dagger story, which finally concluded in 2002 with the Turners going back on public display. In addition to this narrative, Nairne discusses other high-value art thefts, trying to resolve the puzzle of why thieves steal well-known works of art which cannot be sold, even on the black market.