Against the backdrop of international conventions and their implementation, Cultural Property and Contested Ownership explores how highly-valued cultural goods are traded and negotiated among diverging parties and their interests. Cultural artefacts, such as those kept and trafficked between art dealers, private collectors and museums, have become increasingly localized in a ‘Bermuda triangle’ of colonialism, looting and the black market, with their re-emergence resulting in disputes of ownership and claims for return. This interdisciplinary volume provides the first book-length investigation of the changing behaviours resulting from the effect of the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property. The collection considers the impact of the Convention on the way antiquity dealers, museums and auction houses, as well as nation states and local communities, address issues of provenance, contested ownership, and the trafficking of cultural property. The book contains a range of contributions from anthropologists, lawyers, historians and archaeologists. Individual cases are examined from a bottom-up perspective and assessed from the viewpoint of international law in the Epilogue. Each section is contextualised by an introductory chapter from the editors.

øThis Handbook offers a collection of original writings by leading scholars and practitioners in the exciting, rapidly developing field of cultural heritage law. The detailed essays are the product of a multi-year project of the Committee on Cultural H

"Protecting Cultural Objects" provides a comprehensive analysis, not only of the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, but of the historical background that led to the adoption of the Convention and of the ways in which it is implemented around the world. It also includes the texts of other significant legal instruments which seek to provide international protection for cultural objects. Theft and illicit traffic in objects of cultural heritage cause major problems for protection and conservation. This is so whether they come from archaeological sites, museum collections, private houses, or elsewhere. However, how to deal with these problems is difficult, particularly when the objects have been transported from one country to another. There are practical difficulties, such as identification and who pays for the investigative work, prosecution, and return of the objects. Overlaying all are the legal standards used to determine who the owner is and whether the objects should be returned. When UNESCO adopted the Convention in 1970 it was a truly significant event in the protection of cultural objects. This book studies the developments which led to its creation, and how it has been interpreted and implemented. The birth of the Convention led to a range of other instruments and techniques to protect cultural objects. Only some have been successful. These later instruments are studied here with suggestions for improvement. The final chapter looks to the issue of return, the mechanics of which received little attention in 1970. [Subject: Heritage Law, International Law, Museology, Cultural Heritage]

The illicit traffic in cultural objects is a grave concern to the general public and international community. The resulting cultural damage fuels debates on how best to regulate the trade in cultural objects and inform legal responses at all levels for the protection of movable cultural heritage. Treaties concerning the treatment of cultural objects during peacetime and war represent some of the earliest multilateral initiatives on cultural heritage in the modern era. They also remain some of the most deeply contested, representing shifting fault lines within the international community. Authored by leading scholars and practitioners from around the world, this Commentary is the first to cover the two leading multilateral treaties on movable cultural heritage in one volume: the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property adopted by UNESCO in 1970 and the Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects adopted by UNIDROIT in 1995. This Commentary is designed to be the authoritative text for academics, lawyers, policymakers, and diplomats on the protection and regulation of cultural objects. Encompassing both public and private international law rules on the trade in cultural objects, it provides a detailed historical and thematic overview. Drawing on the travaux preparatoires and intergovernmental and state practice over the last half century, the Commentary provides an article-by-article analysis of the interpretation and application of these treaties. The texts 1970 UNESCO and 1995 UNIDROIT Conventions are examined in the working context of other culture conventions including the World Heritage Convention and the Intangible Heritage Convention, as well as related fields of international law, such as international humanitarian law, international criminal law, human rights law, and international economic law. The volume also offers a critical examination of current trends and future directions which are informing the field.