Fraudster sentenced after trying to sell bogus ancient statues with fake papers to Sotheby’s

A 46-year-old man, Andrew Crowley, was sentenced to two years in prison for attempting to sell fraudulent Cycladic figures at Sotheby’s London using forged 1976 provenance documents that were later identified to use a typeface developed in 2001. Forensic analysis by the Metropolitan Police and FBI revealed the invoices were fakes, and while Crowley claimed the items were inherited, expert evidence deemed the artefacts to be modern reproductions. This case, resulting in a prison sentence and fines, relies on the dealer doing due diligence to uncover the scam and the necessity of rigorous pre-sale provenance research.

Interestingly, in terms of the toolmarks, these counterfeits have been produced by less simplistic methods than many of those that pass for genuine on the market that are machine-carved.

BBC ''Ancient' statues fraud foiled by fake paperwork', 22 May 2026

Nadeem Badshah,'Fraudster sentenced after trying to sell bogus ancient statues with fake papers to Sotheby’s' The Guardian 23 May 2026.