A category of objects that exists entirely as a function of violence, the term “loot” describes a relationship of possession, if not more specifically of dispossession. Neither an historically nor materially specific typology of artifacts, loot is instead primarily a legal category that cuts across place and time. And while it is also not an art historical classification, it is one with which the discipline of art history must constantly contend, given its repercussions for what is accessible, where, and in what condition.
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