SAFE MUSEUMS, SAFE COLLECTIONS. A SELECTION OF ARTICLES BY PIOTR OGRODZKI, NIMOZ LIBRARY, VOL. 13, WARSZAWA 2020

Abstract

Safe Museums, Safe Collections. A Selection of Articles by Piotr Ogrodzki is a publication discussing the contemporary problems of crimes against heritage objects. The essays written over the period of 20 years were systematically published in the ‘Cenne, Bezcenne/Utracone’ journal, the only periodical dedicated to the recovery and restitutions of the lost national heritage. The publication is composed of 18 papers characterizing selected threats to museums and collections. All the presented texts oscillate within the semantic concepts related to crime and theft in museums and sacral facilities. The essays aptly juxtapose legal aspects with the practices of the protection of national heritage, while the described examples of security measures have been and will remain applicable also in the future. The additional value of the publication of Piotr Ogrodzki’s texts is their translation into English. Although many of the described thefts of art works have taken place in Poland, the Author also points to similar circumstances of such crimes in Europe. Enriched with Piotr Ogrodzki’s short biography and bibliography, the book begins with the papers by Piotr Majewski, Paulina Florjanowicz, Kamil Zeidler, and Jacek Rulewicz. It concludes with the message of Chief Inspector Adam Grajewski of the Polish Police Headquarters under a meaningful title In Lieu of an Afterword. Museum Collection Safety. The publisher of the book, the National Institute for Museums and Public Collections, NIMOZ, should be acknowledge for the noble idea of publishing this book, thus commemorating the outstanding individual that Piotr Ogrodzki was.