It is no wonder, then, that art theft is a costly criminal enterprise. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimates that nearly six to eight billion dollars of art is stolen each year. Why is art and other cultural property (such as objects taken during tomb raids) so valuable? Why would a piece of linen canvas splattered with colorful gobs of paint be worth $40 million?

Art and other cultural property are objects that provide an insight into the conditions of a society during a specific period in time. In other words, they are a reminder of where we came from; they provide us with information about our ancestors and the lives they led.