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$35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

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Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#221
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No good deed goes unpunished

If you live by that maxim and never do good, you'll never see it refuted. Truth is, people do good things all the time and are frequently rewarded for it. Sometimes people get punished for doing a good thing, but it's scarcely a certainty and our society would be a lot shittier if everybody went around assuming it was.

I was that guy in the office who would volunteer to help move equipment or furniture for office events. I made a lot of friends.

My boss would make fun of me when my good deeds would result in hassle for me. She was a meanie.

I have been reward cash, wine, simple thanks etc... on the numerous times I've handed in lost property or helped a stranger with directions etc.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#222

The Germans don't really have any more right to it than she does. The most likely story of this bust is from the 5th century until the 18th or 19th centuries, it was buried in the ground somewhere in Italy or former Roman empire. The person who dug it up and sold it didn't really have an inherent right to it. They just found it. I say all this not from a legal perspective but from an inheritors of history and culture…

Part of the former Roman empire includes Aschaffenburg (Germany)

The modern notion of either Germany or Italy doesn't fit into the context of this artefact. Both countries share a history with the Roman Empire - just like most of Europe does.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#223

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The Germans don't really have any more right to it than she does. Article 56 of the Hague Convention of 1907 disagrees. Stealing art is a war crime. So do the Allies themselves, in their memorandum on January 5th, 1943. > The most likely story of this bust is from the 5th century until the 18th or 19th centuries, it was buried in the ground somewhere in Italy or former Roman empire. Given that the person depicted w…

> Stealing art is a war crime. Is there anything that isn't a war crime at this point? Declaring war? War crime. Making a plan for war? War crime. Deportation? War crime. Blowing stuff up? War crime. Stealing art? Believe it or not, also war crime.

>Declaring war?

not a war crime

>Making a plan for war?

not a war crime

>Deportation?

war crime.

>Blowing stuff up?

depends on what you blow up.

>Stealing art?

war crime.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#224
post #4

Back at home, Young had a problem: She was in possession of a looted piece of ancient art. She couldn't keep it. She couldn't sell it. And giving it back to its rightful owners was a lot harder than it sounds. “At that point, I realized I was probably going to need some help,” Young says. “I was probably going to need an attorney.” So she hired a lawyer in New York who specializes in international art law, Leila Amin…

Most certainly looking for a payout. Has anyone been to a thrift store recently? About 30% of people are in need/want of inexpensive secondhand items, while the rest of the crowd — smartphones in hand — are trying to see what can be resold for profit on EBay. This whole “side hustle” economy is killing the thrift store as an source for people in need to find inexpensive goods.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#225
post #4

Back at home, Young had a problem: She was in possession of a looted piece of ancient art. She couldn't keep it. She couldn't sell it. And giving it back to its rightful owners was a lot harder than it sounds. “At that point, I realized I was probably going to need some help,” Young says. “I was probably going to need an attorney.” So she hired a lawyer in New York who specializes in international art law, Leila Amin…

Most certainly looking for a payout. Has anyone been to a thrift store recently? About 30% of people are in need/want of inexpensive secondhand items, while the rest of the crowd — smartphones in hand — are trying to see what can be resold for profit on EBay. This whole “side hustle” economy is killing the thrift store as an source for people in need to find inexpensive goods.

Pretty sure that's just the market getting efficient.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#226
post #4

Back at home, Young had a problem: She was in possession of a looted piece of ancient art. She couldn't keep it. She couldn't sell it. And giving it back to its rightful owners was a lot harder than it sounds. “At that point, I realized I was probably going to need some help,” Young says. “I was probably going to need an attorney.” So she hired a lawyer in New York who specializes in international art law, Leila Amin…

Most certainly looking for a payout. Has anyone been to a thrift store recently? About 30% of people are in need/want of inexpensive secondhand items, while the rest of the crowd — smartphones in hand — are trying to see what can be resold for profit on EBay. This whole “side hustle” economy is killing the thrift store as an source for people in need to find inexpensive goods.

It’s pretty bad. I was at a community yard sale last week, and I was genuinely looking for interesting and useful things not to turn around and sell on eBay but to have an use. Unfortunately, I do a more than a few individuals who were running from table to table tossing around things looking for vintage items that they can turn a profit on and most interesting things were sold before I could even get to the table.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Getting a payout seems fair. I doubt the Germans paid anybody when they took it from Italy.

> I doubt the Germans paid anybody when they took it from Italy. Why? The museum was not built by nazis.

germans were invading and pillaging a long time before Nazi's came to power and that is not unique to Germany - think Napoleon, so it is more likely than not that it was simply stolen, perhaps repeatedly over a couple thousand years.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#228
post #4

Back at home, Young had a problem: She was in possession of a looted piece of ancient art. She couldn't keep it. She couldn't sell it. And giving it back to its rightful owners was a lot harder than it sounds. “At that point, I realized I was probably going to need some help,” Young says. “I was probably going to need an attorney.” So she hired a lawyer in New York who specializes in international art law, Leila Amin…

Most certainly looking for a payout. Has anyone been to a thrift store recently? About 30% of people are in need/want of inexpensive secondhand items, while the rest of the crowd — smartphones in hand — are trying to see what can be resold for profit on EBay. This whole “side hustle” economy is killing the thrift store as an source for people in need to find inexpensive goods.

>>is killing the thrift store as an source for people in need to find inexpensive goods.

thrift stores don't exist to help people find cheap stuff - they exist to raise or earn money, and many org's then use that money to fund the things they want to fund.

It might not be a 'side hustle' for some of these people, it may be the only income they earn, and good for them for showing their entrepreneurial instincts - and doubt very many are getting rich at it (except perhaps a few lucky ones that find that needle in a haystack).

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Genuinely curious, what if something is sold three times? Imagine a collector's edition book - Say it's stolen, then a month later it's listed on FB Marketplace, then the buyer re-lists it on ebay, then that ebay buyer sells it to a pawn shop. Does the person who was robbed still have a right to the book? Or are there special laws for the consideration of historical artifacts?

In German law, buying it in good faith gives you unassailable ownership rights.

Not if the good is of historic significance.

Re: $35 sculpture found at an Austin Goodwill was looted from a museum during WWII

#230
post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the problem in all those statements is how US law works (e.g. badly). In Europe, yes, I would agree with your assessment.

No, this is just what a lawyer would say. Every time I've consulted a lawyer (in Europe) I was told that the situation is very difficult, and there are big risks involved if I didn't do it properly, and a long and detailed contract would be required to avoid all these risks, and it just so happens that the lawyer I consulted with is very experienced in this area and would offer to set up such a contract for me. The c…

Laws are written by lawyers in such a way as to force you to have to hire lawyers
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