German police confiscate hundreds of sculptures attributed to Giacometti

German police confiscate fake Giacomettis

BERLIN — German police have confiscated hundreds of bronze and plaster statues alleged to be the works of Alberto Giacometti and arrested an art dealer and two others on suspicion of selling the fakes across the globe.

Prosecutors in Stuttgart said Wednesday a 59-year-old man in Frankfurt, as well as a 61-year-old art dealer and his wife have been held in detention since their arrest a week ago.

The trio face charges of collaborating since 2004 to offer and sell the forged artworks, complete with certificates of authentication, to buyers worldwide for tens of millions of dollars. None of the suspects were identified.

Prosecutors said the 61-year-old posed as a count who worked as a salesman offering the statues to potential buyers. His 59-year-old colleague then posed as a friend of the artist’s brother, saying he had found the statues in a secret cache, found after his death in 1966.

Earlier this year, a Giacometti sculpture sold at a New York auction for $7.7 million, above its pre-sale estimate. The bronze “Bust of Diego,” which features the artist’s brother, had not been exhibited for more than 35 years.

Giacometti is probably best known for his skeletal and elongated standing women and striding men, depicted on the current 100-Swiss franc bank note along with a portrait of the artist.