Discovered 2,100 famous artworks with sophisticated counterfeits, estimated at 5,500 billion VND

(CLO) Italian authorities have just seized more than 2,100 fake works by Banksy and Pablo Picasso, with an estimated market value of up to 200 million euros (about 5,500 billion VND).

Italian police have uncovered a large-scale counterfeiting network across Europe, specializing in the production and sale of fake artworks by Banksy, Pablo Picasso...

A Banksy work on display in Glasgow. Photo: The Guardian

The investigation began in 2023, after the discovery of about 200 fake works in the collection of a businessman in Pisa, including copies of works by Italian painter Amedeo Modigliani.

From this seizure, police traced a series of fake works sold at auction houses across Italy and discovered links to a group specializing in counterfeiting works by Banksy and Warhol.

According to The Guardian, on November 11, the Carabinieri paramilitary force and the Pisa city prosecutor's office announced that about 38 people in Italy, Spain, France and Belgium are being investigated on suspicion of conspiring to sell stolen goods and illegally producing and selling fake works of art.

Authorities seized more than 2,100 fake works, with an estimated market value of up to 200 million euros (about 5,500 billion VND) and discovered six counterfeit production workshops, including two in Tuscany, one in Venice and the rest scattered across Europe.

In addition to Banksy, the counterfeited works include masterpieces by renowned 19th and 20th century artists such as Claude Monet, Vincent Van Gogh, Salvador Dali, Henry Moore, Marc Chagall, Francis Bacon, Paul Klee and Piet Mondrian.

Preventing these fakes from entering the market helps authorities prevent the risk of major disruption to the art auction industry.

In agreement with the relevant authorities and with the support of the European Union's Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation - Eurojust, all works of art and forgeries seized in Spain, France and Belgium have been handed over to the Italian authorities for further analysis.

Previously, in 2017, police were forced to close a Modigliani exhibition in Genoa when an expert concluded that at least 20 of the 21 paintings on display were fakes.

In 1984, three marble heads were recovered from a canal in Livorno and were hailed as lost masterpieces, but turned out to be sculptures made by three students as a joke.

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/phat-hien-hon-2000-tac-pham-nghe-thuat-noi-tieng-lam-gia-tinh-vi-uoc-tinh-5500-ti-dong-post321103.html