This book explores the activities of the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Property, a branch of the Italian military police known as Carabinieri TPC. Regarded as ‘the most effective military policing force in the world for protecting works of art and archaeological property’ (p 1), Carabinieri TPC was founded in 1969. As the authors note, ‘Italy was the very first country in the world to form such a policing unit’ (p 7). Its foundation preceded the 1970 Unesco treaty demanding that states party to the accord set up forces of this nature.

Laurie Rush and Luisa Benedettini Millington’s book is a compelling and yet emotional account of the investigative activities carried out by Carabinieri TPC both nationally and internationally. The book is divided into thirteen chapters. The first two provide a historical overview of Carabinieri TPC and a detailed description of its internal structure, which revolves around three major units: the Archaeology Unit, the Antique Unit and the Forgery Unit (pp 23–9). The force also benefits from a databank (‘Leonardo’), which represents ‘one of the earliest efforts in the world to use computer technology to trace stolen works of art … available to Italians and the international community for the recovery of art and cultural property’ (p 15). The authors then devote a section to describing the thick presence of TPC operative departments (nuclei): from their Roman headquarters to centres based throughout Italy. Chapter 3 concentrates on the ethical mission of Carabinieri TPC. Believing in the value of education as a way to prevent people from conniving with criminal organisations selling looted historical artefacts on the black market, regional TPC units have developed a policy of community outreach through public engagement, educational programmes and internet visibility addressed to students and non-specialists as well as scholars.

Touching upon the rich diversity of historical resources available in different parts of Italy, from Chapter 4 to Chapter 7 Carabinieri Command presents an overview of Carabinieri TPC’s operations at regional level. As stated by the authors, ‘in contrast to the need to emphasise efforts to prevent archaeological looting in the south and forgery, theft and money lending in the north, the officers in the central region face the full range of art crimes on a daily basis’ (p 62). Accordingly, Rush and Benedettini Millington discuss the challenges faced by Carabinieri TPC in protecting Italian cultural heritage. Operations range from recovering looted artefacts of ancient tombs to investigations concerned with the disappearance of paintings, artefacts and even palaeontological material from inventories, historical buildings, churches and illegal excavations of public and private land. The disappearance of historical material also includes rare books and manuscripts. Rash and Benedettini Millington devote a section of Chapter 6 to the recent case of the Gerolamini Library in Naples, from which thousands of books and manuscripts of inestimable value were stolen by Massimo Marino de Caro, a Veronese antique dealer who managed to secure a position as the Library Director in 2011 thanks to his political connections.

The final three chapters deal with investigative techniques, which shed light on the challenges that Carabinieri TPC forces face in tracking down and recovering stolen Italian art. The analysis of case studies, such as Rodolfo Siviero’s lifetime effort to repatriate works of art taken by high-ranking Nazi officials and the investigation known as the Medici case, convincingly highlights the complex nature of Carabinieri TPC international investigations. The book’s final chapter focuses on the role of Carabinieri TPC in foreign relations. Its recent mission in Iraq to assess the damage caused by the looting of the country’s National Museum in Baghdad constitutes a central theme of the concluding section.

Rush and Benedettini Millington’s book is an informative and readable piece of work. Through the presentation of a number of case studies, it explores investigations carried out by Carabinieri TPC forces throughout Italy: from major centres to villages. By extending their analysis beyond world-renowned Italian artistic centres, the authors draw attention to lesser-known peripheral areas that also hold important works of art. The cultural significance of places such as Teano and Pignataro Maggiore in Campania are just some of the interesting case studies. Although this book lacks the emotional distance one would expect from a scholarly piece, and while the reader is at times overwhelmed by the repetitiveness of its eulogistic tone, Rush and Benedettini Millington’s work is nonetheless an original contribution which informs an English-speaking audience about the complex activities carried out by Italian police forces in protecting one of the richest artistic heritages in the world.