{"product_id":"book-nsqd","title":"The Great Chinese Art Heist","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe extraordinary story of the theft of priceless Chinese antiques around the world and the connection to crimes spanning more than two centuries—with present-day implications.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor the past decade, the art world has been rocked by a series of very costly and elaborately planned heists at major museums. The first took place the night of August 6, 2010 at the Drottningholm Palace in Stockholm, Sweden – the official residence of the Swedish Royal family. Others in France, Great Britain and other countries in Europe followed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Norway, masked men rappelled down from a glass ceiling into the prestigious Kode Museum on Bergen's picturesque central square, three blocks from police headquarters. In all of these break-ins, the thieves made away with ancient Chinese artifacts, most of which were originally displayed in the spectacular Old Summer Palace outside of Beijing nearly two centuries ago.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eThe Great Chinese Art Heist, \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author Ralph Pezzullo takes us back to the Second Opium War and the sacking of Old Summer Palace by French and British troops in 1860 and connects it to the current wave of heists that seem right out of a \u003ci\u003eMission: Impossible \u003c\/i\u003emovie. Comprehensive, balanced, entertaining, and expertly balancing diverse cultural and political perspectives, Pezzullo links these looted artifacts and roots of colonialism to today's billionaires and triad gangs, international banks and drug cartels. The wounds of the past, which is still called the \"Century of Humiliation\" in China, remain raw.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Great Chinese Art Heist\u003c\/i\u003e is a sweeping narrative filled with the voices of those who have lived it—art and art crime experts, and museum and government officials in China, Europe, and the US. In this riveting true crime, Pezzulo expertly grapples with the questions of ownership and cultural heritage, and embodies the words of art critic Holland Cotter—“The history of art is, in large part, a theft of history.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Dreamscape","offers":[{"title":"Audiobook","offer_id":49882295861552,"sku":"BDnsqd","price":34.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0879\/2784\/9264\/files\/744431-nsqd-Square.jpg?v=1749577041","url":"https:\/\/downpour.com\/products\/book-nsqd","provider":"Downpour","version":"1.0","type":"link"}