Threads of Heritage. Down the Rabbit Hole of Art Crime (2025) is a documentary that takes the viewer into a long-running criminal investigation into a criminal network that illegally looted archaeological objects from Italian soil, then exported them from the country without permission to sell them on the international art market. The case revealed in the documentary also has links to the Allard Pierson, where intensive research is being conducted since 2023 to critically re-examine the provenance of the archaeological collections. This documentary presents the Italian perspective on the matter from the point of view of law enforcement, government, and museums, and offers insight into the technological innovations developed within the European project RITHMS to better protect cultural heritage against looting.
Programme
- 17:00 Welcome with refreshments
- 17:20 Welcome by the directors of the Istituto Italiano di Cultura and the Allard Pierson
- 17:30 Introduction to the documentary Threads of Heritage and provenance research at Allard Pierson (by Rogier Kalkers)
- 17:40 Screening of the documentary Threads of Heritage
- 18:25 Panel discussion
19:00 End
This screening is organised by the Allard Pierson, in collaboration with the Istituto Italiano di Cultura in Amsterdam and the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia – Centre for Cultural Heritage Technology, with financial support from the Embassy of the Italian Republic in The Hague.
