In 1973, Frances Vieta, an Italian American journalist living in Rome, is incensed to learn that New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art has purchased a priceless Greek vase, the Euphronios krater, for $1 million. Ms. Vieta suspects the antiquity was illegally looted from Italy and smuggled out of the country. She sets out to investigate the acquisition, teaming up with Rodolfo Siviero, an Italian minister and art recovery expert, and the Carabinieri Art Squad, a special unit of the Italian army dedicated to protecting cultural heritage.
Ms. Vieta’s investigation uncovers a vast network of tomb robbers, smugglers, and unscrupulous dealers who have been plundering Italy’s archaeological sites for decades, fueled by the demand from wealthy collectors and prestigious museums.
Her pursuit of justice takes her on a journey through the dark underworld of the international art market. As an undercover agent, she encounters shady characters, corrupt officials, and powerful collectors. Along the way, she learns about the history of art theft in Italy – primarily the devastating impact of World War II, the techniques used by looters and forgers, and the challenges faced by law enforcement in recovering stolen artifacts from a thriving black market. Ms. Vieta’s determination to expose the truth and return the Euphronios krater to its rightful home becomes a lifelong mission, spanning over 35 years and involving countless investigations and legal battles.
Now expanding internationally—coming Fall 2026 in Italian!
ISBNs
978-1-63777-665-0 / 978-1-63777-666-7
Genres
Hoaxes & Deceptions
Art theft
294 pages
Language: English
Imprint: Red Penguin Books
Born and raised in New York City, Frances Vieta later lived in Rome, Italy for twenty-seven years as a journalist/writer for both the American and Italian media including Time Magazine and Reader’s Digest. Her expert articles include terrorism, art and food.
For much of that time she worked with the specialized offices of the Italian government as a would-be buyer to recover Italian stolen art.
She has been a consultant with the United Nations with frequent travel in Africa and on several occasions, Ethiopia.
She lives in New York and has two grown children.
Reviews
It’s a true story. Vieta seems to know everybody in the world of Italian antiquities. As a reporter, she interviews grave robbers, fences, forgers, and smugglers who find rare and sometimes priceless objects. She reveals how restoration artists put shards together, touch up paint, and “age” pottery well enough to satisfy dealers whose wealthy patrons or museums will purchase despite the absence of proper paperwork.
Frances Vieta’s crusade to rescue looted antiquities springs to life in this serious story that manages to be intimate and witty at the same time. Vieta evokes Rome and her characters so beautifully that the reader might feel herself transported to a dark corner of a cafe sipping wine and making a plan with the local authorities. A wonderful memoir.
An intimate and revealing story of a lifetime spent trying to recover stolen (or “Looted”) classical art treasures. Takes the reader behind the headlines with a very personal account of the author living out a commitment to the recovery of stolen art treasures. For anyone interested in the history of contested cultural patrimony that is such a major issue of our own day, Frances Vieta’s LOOTED is essential (and enjoyable) reading.