{"product_id":"the-butterfly-thief-adventure-fraud-scotland-yard-and-australias-greatest-museum-heist","title":"The Butterfly Thief: Adventure, Fraud, Scotland Yard, and Australia's Greatest Museum Heist","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA scientific true-crime caper stretching across the globe, \u003cem\u003eThe Butterfly Thief\u003c\/em\u003e pieces together the bizarre story of one of the largest, most systematic, and baffling museum heists in the records of natural history.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn January 1947, a chance discovery rocks the world of natural science--over 3,000 rare and precious butterfly specimens have vanished from the most prestigious natural history museums in Australia. Alarmingly, the missing insects include many priceless \"holotypes\" the first specimen of a given species to be identified, against which all others are compared.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNew Scotland Yard and a team of entomologists are tasked to catch the culprit, and the person they suspect turns out to be a fascinating, larger-than-life figure--British ex-soldier, former champion skier, painter, semi-professional yodeller, and amateur lepidopterologist Colin Wyatt.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBut who was this man, and how did he pull off such an ambitious string of burglaries? What did he serve to gain from amassing a vast illicit collection of specimens? What was the root of his obsession, and was he really a criminal, marked for life by his thefts, or a gifted and imaginative collector?\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eA delightful puzzlebox of a mystery drawing from unpublished dossiers, case files, and on-the-ground reporting, \u003cem\u003eThe Butterfly Thief\u003c\/em\u003e unfolds this captivating tale of stolen specimens in rich, spellbinding detail.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Scribe Us","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51984253059303,"sku":"9781964992204","price":24.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/arvidabookco.com\/products\/the-butterfly-thief-adventure-fraud-scotland-yard-and-australias-greatest-museum-heist","provider":"Arvida Book Co.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}