Putin Orders Art Inventory

President Putin ordered top officials to conduct a nationwide inventory of 50 million works of art at Russian museums, concerned that other art treasures might be missing after the theft of $5 million worth of valuables from the famed Hermitage. Russian authorities say that only a quarter of the country's works of art have been inventoried since a check began six years ago, the first such survey since the closing years of the Soviet Union. About 50 to 100 art thefts are registered each year in Russian museums, officials say. Although outright robberies are less frequent because of new security measures, inside jobs are increasing. Irish Art