Are You Missing Any Works of Art?

The FBI is asking for your help. Long story short: William M.V. Kingsland, a Manhattan collector, died in 2006. He left no will and had no heirs, so his property reverted to the City of New York. The New York City Public Administrator hired two auction houses to catalog and sell Kingsland's art collection. While Christie's (one of the houses) was researching provenances, a big problem emerged: some of the pieces had been reported as stolen in the 1960s and 70s.

This discovery quite naturally (1) brought any thought of sales to a screeching halt and (2) got the FBI involved. The Art Theft Program now needs all available sets of eyes to peruse the gallery of Kingsland's collection and help identify the works' rightful owners. Keep in mind that these works had been tucked away for upwards of 40 years--you might be looking at something your late Great-aunt or local art museum "lost" decades ago.

Please help spread the word on this crowd-sourcing project. And, as it says at the bottom of the press release:

"If you have information on the provenance, acquisition, or ownership of any work of art from the Kingsland collection shown here—or if you want to make a claim—please contact Agent Wynne at (718) 286-7302 or by e-mail at James.Wynne@ic.fbi.gov."

Image credit:

Childe Hassam (American, 1859-1935)
Mill Site and Old Tidal Dam, Cos Cob, 1902
Oil on canvas
24 x 26 in. (61 x 66 cm)
William Kingsland Collection
Image courtesy Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Art Theft Program