May 23, 2001

RE: very severe fire during restoration project

Tom McDowell's post reminded me of a visit recently to a museum in an old courthouse building, run by a friend. I asked him how he kept the roofing contractors from burning the place down with their torches. He replied that he had a very good, smart contractor who did all of the hot work off site. There was virtually no hot work at all on the roof.
No doubt my friend slept much better during the roof job!
It can be done, but the time to take precautions is when the RFP is being written, not when the work is taking place.
Claudia J. Nicholson
Curator
Museum Collections Department
Minnesota Historical Society
345 Kellogg Blvd. W.
St. Paul, MN 55102-1906
Phone: 651/297-7442
FAX: 651/297-2967
e-mail: claudia.nicholson@mnhs.org

From: "Eric Podell" epodell@shangrilaentertainment.com
Subject:

query museum security for film

How can I find information about the common forms of Museum security (alarms, triggers, sensors)? This is for a film I am working on. I want it to be detailed, up-to-date, and correct when dealing with the issues of security.
Thank you.
Eric

N.M. Museum Keeps Virgin Mary Image

By DEBORAH BAKER, Associated Press Writer
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - A collage of the Virgin of Guadalupe clad in a flowery two-piece swimsuit will remain on display at a state-run museum despite protests from some Roman Catholics.
A museum committee recommended Tuesday that ``Our Lady,'' by Los Angeles artist Alma Lopez, continue on display at the Museum of International Folk Art. However, the entire exhibit of which it is a part will close earlier than previously scheduled.
full story:
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20010522/us/bikini_virgin_3.html

CBI arrest three antique smugglers

The Central Bureau of Investigation has busted a gang of antique smugglers with the arrest of its three members who allegedly stole three precious 18th century idols worth Rs 30 million, a senior official said Tuesday. CBI Joint Director Neeraj Kumar told reporters that the idols made of 'Panchdhatu' belong to the Vijay Nagar Empire dating back to the 18th century and were reported to be stolen from Sri Channakeshvaswami Temple in Chitlure village in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh. Mr. Kumar identified the three members of the Nellore-based gang as Rakesh Dhiman (a businessman), owner of Hotel Adarsh M Jagdeesh Rao and a thief Ramesh. The CBI is on the look out for the other members of the gang. ''We are looking for 4-5 gangmen who are also part of the international operation,'' he said. The senior official said though the value of the idols of Lord Vishnu, Goddess Sridevi and Goddess Bhudevi in the Indian market was valued at Rs ten million each, their cost in the international market could be much more. The arrests of Rakesh and M Jagdeesh Rao was made after several months of investigation by the sleuths of the Antiquities Branch of the Bureau at Bangalore, Mangalore (both in Karnataka) and Nellore in Andhra Pradesh. The case was transferred to the CBI for further investigation by the Bangalore Unit of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence after making the seizure on February one, 2000 from Hotel Adarsh in Mangalore. Inquiries by DRI revealed that the room had been booked in a fictitious name. During investigation by the CBI, it came to notice that the owner of the hotel was in regular touch with Rakesh Dhiman, a resident of R T Nagar, Bangalore for procurement of precious antiques for smuggling out of the country. Rakesh in turn had contacted an antique thief through a middlemen who has also been identified. The idols after being stolen were brought to the hotel for being shown to antiques dealers. The idols were registered since 1982 with the Registering Authority under Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972 with Andhra Pradesh government in Nellore. These idols were deeply revered by the people living in that area. They were stolen from the temple on the intervening night of September 29 and 30 in 1999, Mr. Kumar said. The agency was also investigating the involvement of other persons in the case.
http://www.indiaexpress.com/

Thieves take fountain from War Memorial

A bronze fountain was stolen from the gardens of the Grosse Pointe War Memorial either Sunday night or Monday morning. The fountain, known as "The Nude" is an original work by Harriet Whitney Frishmuth. It is of a nude woman bending at the waist with her arms at her side. Three fish heads at the woman's feet spray water. The fountain weighs more than 500 pounds and stands about 6 feet tall. It had been in the gardens near the War Memorial ballroom since the 1960s. It is worth about $100,000. The thieves removed the fountain after sawing apart copper pipes at its base. Marks on the pavement nearby indicate it was dragged to a vehicle. The theft was reported to the Grosse Pointe Farms Police Department. "This is very disheartening," said War Memorial President Mark Weber. "Taking the statue is a loss not just to the War Memorial but to the community." Outdoor art and decorative lighting have been stolen across metro Detroit during the past few years. Thieves have hit Marygrove College, the Fisher Mansion, University of Detroit Mercy, Assumption Grotto Church, Wayne State University and the Birmingham home of sculptor Marshall Fredericks.
Anyone with information in the case is asked to call the Grosse Pointe Farms Police Department at 313-885-2100.
http://www.freep.com/

Boijmans Foundation Reconsiders Returning Holocaust Art

The Boijmans Foundation Board of Directors will meet May 28 in Rotterdam to discuss returning the Toorop drawing Faith in God to New York banker Walter Eberstadt. The Gestapo looted the drawing from Eberstadt's grandparents after they fled Germany for the Netherlands in 1937 and left their possessions behind in storage. Mr. Eberstadt's grandparents were killed in a German concentration camp in 1944. In 1943, two prominent Rotterdam businessmen, Willem van der Vorm and H. van Beek, bought the drawing from a German collaborator and donated it to the foundation. The collaborator, the art dealer D'Audretch, had purchased Faith in God in 1942 from a German living at the Luftwaffe Headquarters in Amsterdam. The Foundation had previously refused to return the drawing to Mr. Eberstadt saying that a foundation that buys art for a museum should not return anything that was lawfully acquired. The van Beek family has since asked the foundation to return the drawing to Mr. Eberstadt. The Boijmans Foundation was set up to purchase art for display in the Boijmans van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam. Museum Director Chris Dercon has also asked that the drawing be returned to Eberstadt and declared that if it is not, he will have it removed from the museum premises. Faith in God (valued at approximately 18,000 dollars) is not displayed by the museum but kept in storage.
From: Todd Kushner (Kushnerta2@state.gov)
Todd Kushner
U.S. Embassy