Michael Collins

Writer and former parish priest Father Michael Collins looks behind the stories of famous works of art that have either vanished from the record or disappeared for long periods only to turn up again or be recovered.

Many masterpieces have disappeared through history including the treasures of Tutankhamun, the altarpiece of Ghent and van Gogh’s Sunset at Montmajour. Some have been stolen or looted, while others have been the victims of natural catastrophe or conflict. Collins looks at the stories behind lost masterpieces, including the artists behind them, those thought to be behind their loss and the efforts of investigators and curators to find them. This includes the museums who have profited from looted works of art and recent ‘heists’ made by nations seeking to regain their stolen works of art.

Collins served in two parishes in the Republic of Ireland before travelling to the Vatican for postgraduate studies. He has taught at The American University, John Cabot University and Duquesne University. He is author of books including Raphael’s World, Francis: Bishop of Rome, Good Pope John and John Paul II: The Path to Sainthood, and is still a parish priest in Dublin.