Unfortunately for art enthusiasts, unscrupulous millionaires like Dr. No aren't just silver screen fantasies. They're real people willing to pay huge sums for art, no questions asked. Leading art dealers, however, have vigorously denied knowingly handling smuggled or stolen works. The Illicit Trade in Cultural Material , the report charges that art and antiquities are being stolen from archaeological sites, museums, churches, and libraries in record amounts. With the aid of organized crime syndicates, corrupt government officials , and compliant art dealers , these plundered treasures are finding their way onto the booming international market, which is flush with collectors willing to shell out record sums of money.
Art thefts have a cultural impact.
Because entire archaeological sites are being plundered, scholars are losing valuable clues to the past. Experts point out that some ethnic peoples, especially in Africa and the Americas, may never be able to fully learn about the life and the religion of their ancestors. Dr. No Meets Miami Vice Miami is singled out as the center of the illegal international art market by the report. A natural destination for artwork from Latin America , Miami attracts treasures from all over the world. The report says this may be because of the huge amount of drug money circulating in the city.