No subject

Switzerland, according to customs statistics analyzed by historian Peter Hug
as part of a study into Switzerland's role during the war.

Buehrle purchased most of the paintings between 1951 and until his death in
1956. The Foundation museum is housed in a villa adjoining his former home,
according to the museum's Web site.

Two Pablo Picasso oil paintings belonging to the Sprengel Museum in Germany
were stolen on Feb. 6 from a cultural exhibit in eastern Switzerland, police
said. The thieves involved are still at large. Police officials told Agence
France-Presse the Picasso works had a total value of almost $4.5 million.

Museums including in the U.S. often don't have the money to spend on
adequate security, according to Marinello.

Rising Art Prices

Rising art prices have swollen the value of art thefts. Prices for modern
art, including Pablo Picasso, have risen 2.5 times since 2002, according to
Art Market Research's index of the central 50 percent of works.

While investor losses in the financial markets have made it harder to sell
some impressionist and modern works at peak prices, the most desired
pictures continue to appreciate. A Picasso painting of his mistress Dora
Maar sold for 5.7 million pounds ($11.1 million) with commission on Feb. 4,
after failing to sell in 2002 at a low estimate of $4 million.

The 2003 looting and theft of Iraqi artifacts was among the 10 largest
crimes listed on the FBI Web site. Art looted by the Nazis during World War
Two is usually regarded as war crime rather than theft.

To contact the reporters on this story: Marc Wolfensberger in Bern at
mwolfens at bloomberg.net ; Linda Sandler in New York at lsandler at bloomberg.net
. Antonio Ligi in Zurich at aligi at bloomberg.net . 

http://www.bloomberg.com/