Analisi criminologica e gestione del rischio dei reati contro il patrimonio culturale: mappatura e recenti evoluzioni delle rotte commerciali illecite

Abstract

The lack of adequate regulation in the art market, combined with the frequent complexities in verifying the exact provenance and authenticity of artworks and antiquities, intensifies with alarming frequency a long series of risk factors associated with cultural heritage, from illicit excavation and looting to forgeries and unlawful imports that originate from the artistically and archaeologically richest countries, reaching – following numerous cross-border passages – up to Western markets. The article analyzes the main criminological characteristics of this phenomenon, assessing how some market operators usually play the role of interfaces between the legal and illegal domains. Providing criminal networks free access to the sale of illicitly stolen goods, contributing to attributing them a false origin and, consequently, high profitability, these actors can foster fraudulent schemes disguised as sales operations.

Keywords

• cultural heritage
• art crime