Our Insights

Featured Posts Selected by Our Experts

Tholos Talks | The Dark Side of the Art Market: The Illicit Trade
Tholos Talks Podcast Hailey Hartigan Tholos Talks Podcast Hailey Hartigan

Tholos Talks | The Dark Side of the Art Market: The Illicit Trade

Deborah sits down with Tess Davis, Executive Director of The Antiquities Coalition and Basilinna Executive Director, to bring her unique perspective with an extensive history in fighting this form of cultural racketeering. Tess and Deborah discuss the cultural romanticization of artifact trafficking, the broader implications of cultural racketeering, and how we can collectively work towards preserving our shared history, and the impact of looted antiquities on global security.

Read More
Talking Points | Protecting Heritage through Partnership: Why U.S. Antiquities CPAs are Essential for At-Risk Nations
Talking Points Hailey Hartigan Talking Points Hailey Hartigan

Talking Points | Protecting Heritage through Partnership: Why U.S. Antiquities CPAs are Essential for At-Risk Nations

In a world where cultural artifacts can be plundered from archaeological sites, whisked away across borders, and then laundered onto the black market within just days or even hours, nations need robust, collaborative strategies to fight back. The United States has taken a step toward addressing this problem by signing cultural property agreements (CPAs) with countries threatened by the illicit antiquities trade.

Read More
Lost Treasures: Crisis and Guardianship
Hailey Hartigan Hailey Hartigan

Lost Treasures: Crisis and Guardianship

For centuries, the looting and trafficking of antiquities have never ceased. Yet the strength humanity shows in safeguarding its heritage is no less than the creative power of its ancestors. At the 4th Dialogue of the C.E.A. Museums Cooperation Initiative, Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO of Basilinna and Founder of the Antiquities Coalition, and Tess Davis, Basilinna and Antiquities Coalition Executive Director, both focused on the astonishing creativity of museums as guardians of culture.

Read More
A Discussion on Cultural Artifacts
Hailey Hartigan Hailey Hartigan

A Discussion on Cultural Artifacts

Deborah Lehr, Chair and CEO of Basilinna and Chairman of the Board of Antiquities Coalition, and Tess Davis, Executive Director at Basilinna and Antiquities Coalition, discuss the importance of detecting, identifying, reporting, and understanding how cultural artifacts can be used to move illicit funds.

Read More
The U.S. Art Market is a Sanctions Black Hole
Hailey Hartigan Hailey Hartigan

The U.S. Art Market is a Sanctions Black Hole

On February 23, a day before the second anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine and a week after the suspected murder of Alexei Navalny, President Joe Biden imposed over 500 new sanctions targeting “Russia’s war machine”.

Read More