Antiquities stolen from the Middle East have resurfaced in art markets all over the world. Now the police have teamed up with archaeologists for a global investigation to stop criminal networks from trafficking in these priceless artefacts.
The pillaging of archaeological artefacts began on an unprecedented scale with the destruction of Palmyra in Syria by ISIS and it continued with artefacts stolen from Iraq and Libya. Stolen antiquities have been exhibited at renowned galleries and sold around the world in online markets.
In this unprecedented year-long investigation we shadow European specialist police units and investigative archaeologists to reveal a sprawling criminal network. From auction rooms in Paris, Brussels, and New York we follow the thread back to Libya, the new centre for crooked dealers, some of whom have links with terrorist groups like ISIS.
Faced with an ever-growing demand for precious metals and dwindling extraction sites, the world's oceans are being seen as a new Eldorado. Thousands of shipwrecks litter the ocean floor with cargoes of these 'precious metals'.
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This is the story of a spectacular case of robbery that is changing the art world. An iconic temple statue, looted during the chaos of the Cambodian civil war, turns up in Sotheby’s auction catalogue 40 years later - with a price tag of three million dollars.
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This documentary investigates the clash of principles between these rich museums and source countries. Is art universal and belong to humanity or is it right to return it to its country of origin?
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