Unveiling the Deception: Exploring the Impact of Fakes and Forgeries on Museums
Professor Patricia Kingori, from the Ethox Centre at the University of Oxford discusses the impact of fakes and forgeries with Vernon Rapley, the Director of Cultural Heritage Protection and Security at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London (UK).
Vernon is a Special Advisor for the UK Government’s ‘Cultural Heritage Protection Fund’, he is the founder and chairman of the National Museum Security Group, Chairman of the Security of Major Museums Europe Group (SOMME), the UK lead for Tourism on the Cross-sector Security and Safety Communications Team, a board member of the International Council of Museum Security and a member of the NPCC (National Police Chiefs’ Council) Heritage & Cultural Property Crime Working Group.
Before joining the V&A in 2010, Vernon served as a Scotland Yard Detective for 24 years; the last 10 years spent as the head of the Art & Antiques Unit. During that time, he overtly and covertly investigated all manner of art and cultural property crime. He was a member of The Interpol Tracking Task Force (Iraq), as well as representing UK Law Enforcement on International initiatives to combat the illicit trade of cultural goods from places such as: Afghanistan, South America, Eastern Europe and South East Asia. He formed a number of long-lasting community partnerships, including the creation of ‘ArtBEAT’, a unique use of expert volunteers drawn from the cultural sector to assist the police. Towards the end of his police career, he organised two exhibitions on Fakes & Forgeries, the second of which, displayed in 2010, attracted 30,000 visitors in 3 weeks.
Focus of this discussion
Vernon will draw upon his years of police experience to describe the methods and motivation behind criminals who use fake and forged art to deceive. He will describe how such crimes denude our collections and corrupt our understanding of history. He will briefly explain how museum security seeks to stay one step ahead and protect our collections and archives from corruption.
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