QIL is an open-source peer-reviewed e-journal which aims to foster the debate on questions of public international law by providing a dynamic platform for scholars and practitioners.
Britain's African empire in the nineteenth century was both
extensive and ruthless. The empire was responsible not only for
the colonies' loss of minerals and land, but also for the subjugation
of the local people.
The Open Restitution Project is an Africa-led project seeking to open up access to information on restitution of African material culture and human ancestors, to empower all stakeholders involved to make knowledge-based decisions.
The African Museums and Heritage Restitution (AFRIMUHERE) was established in 2021 in Nairobi Kenya in response to calls by the African heritage community for a continental heritage and museums association. AFRIMUHERE’s mandate is to safeguard, promote and facilitate restitution of African heritage.
Returning Heritage was established in 2019 as a not-for-profit online resource with a
focus on Cultural Restitution: news, information and analysis on the return of cultural property.
Disputed Archival Heritage brings important new perspectives into the discourse on displaced archives. In contrast to shared or joint heritage framings, the book considers the implications of force, violence and loss in the displacement of archival heritage. With chapters from established and emerging scholars in archival studies, Disputed Archival Heritage extends and enriches the conversation that started with the earlier volume, Displaced Archives. Advancing novel theories and methods for understanding disputes and claims over archives, the volume includes chapters that focus on Indigenous records in settler colonial states; literary and community archives; sub-national and private sector displacements; successes in repatriating formerly displaced archives; comparisons with cultural objects seized by colonial powers and the relationship between repatriation and reparations. Analysing key concepts such as joint heritage and provenance, the contributors unsettle Western understandings of records, place and ownership. Disputed Archival Heritage speaks to the growing interest in shared archival heritage, repatriation of cultural artefacts and cultural diasporas.
Indigenous peoples are increasingly making requests for the return of their ancestors’ human remains and ancient indigenous deoxyribonucleic acid. However, some museums and scientists have refused to repatriate indigenous human remains or have initiated protracted delays. There are successful examples of the return of ancient indigenous human remains however the focus of this book is an examination of the "hard" cases. The continued retention perpetuates cultural harm and is a continuing violation of the rights of indigenous peoples. This book develops a litigation Toolkit which includes legal and quasi legal instruments from the following frameworks, cultural property, cultural heritage, cultural rights, collective heritage, intellectual property, Traditional Knowledge and human rights.
The book draws on a process of recharacterisation. Recharacterisation is to be understood to mean the allocation of an indigenous peoples understanding and character of ancient indigenous human remains and ancient indigenous DNA, in order to counter the property narrative articulated by museums and scientists in disputes.
The Return of Cultural Heritage to Latin America takes a new approach to the question of returns and restitutions. It is the first publication to look at the domestic politics of claiming countries in order to understand who supports the claims and why.
Drawing on analysis of articles published in national newspapers and archival documents and interviews with individuals involved in return claims, the book demonstrates that such claims are inherently political. Focusing on Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, the book analyses how return claims contribute to the strengthening of state-sponsored discourses on the nation; the policy formation process that leads to the formulation of return claims; and who the main actors of the claims are, including civil society individuals, experts, state authorities, and Indigenous communities. The book proposes explanations for why Latin American countries are interested in specific objects held in Western museums and why these claims have come to light over the past three decades.
The Return of Cultural Heritage to Latin America argues that return claims ought to be the object of public debate, allowing contemporary societies to address the legacy of colonialism.
Explores the travels and travails of a fabulous headdress reputed to have belonged to Montezuma, the last emperor of the Aztecs. This feather crown was brought to Europe by Hernando Cortez following the conquest of Mexico. Not long after it arrived in Europe, it was placed in the "cabinet of curiosities" at Ambras Castle, the Austrian residence of the author's ancestors. From there the headdress was removed to Vienna's Weltmuseum in the early nineteenth century, where it has been on view ever since. "El Penacho," as the headdress is called, is considered a national treasure by both Austria and Mexico. The crown has long been the center of political and cultural power struggles. This is at once the biography of a rare cultural object and a history of political collecting and colonizing. The book analyses claims for postcolonial justice through the repatriation case of the headdress, today among the most contested museum claims between Europe and the Americas.
This book examines the ways in which law can be used to structure the return of indigenous sacred cultural heritage to indigenous communities, referred to as repatriation in this volume. In particular, it aims at developing legal structures that align repatriation with contemporary international human rights standards. To do so, it gathers the most valuable lessons learned from different repatriation laws and frameworks adopted in the United States and Canada. In both countries, very different ways of approaching repatriation have been used for several decades, highlighting the context-dependent nature of repatriation.
The volume is divided into four parts, looking first at international law, then at the national legal landscape in the United States, followed by Canada, before the different repatriation models are evaluated against the backdrop of human rights law standards. Emphasis is placed not only on repatriation-specific legislation but also on the legal context in which it was developed and operates. In turn, the fourth part develops various models on the basis of these experiences that can be aligned with contemporary indigenous and cultural rights. The book ends by considering the models' suitability for international repatriation and the lessons that can be learned from them.
Indigenous rights to heritage have only recently become the subject of academic scholarship. This collection aims to fill that gap by offering the fruits of a unique conference on this topic organised by the University of Lapland with the help of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Examining the restitution of cultural property to Indigenous Peoples in human rights law, this book offers a detailed analysis of the opportunities and constraints of international law as a tool of resistance and social transformation for marginalized groups.
In accordance with an increasing insistence on respect for diverse cultures, and through their own international mobilization, Indigenous Peoples have participated in the construction of a distinct human rights framework. Significant academic inquiry has focused on the substantive gains made by Indigenous Peoples in this context; along with its impact on a body of law that had previously denied Indigenous Peoples a basis for claims to their own cultural materials and practices. Accordingly, this book acknowledges that Indigenous Peoples, as non-state actors, have generated greater substantive and procedural legitimacy in human rights law making. Offering normative insights into the participation of non-state actors in international law making, it also, however, demonstrates that, despite their significant role in constructing the legal framework of human rights in the 21st century, the participation of Indigenous Peoples continues to be structurally limited.
Includes seventeen essays, accompanied by newly discovered archival material and illustrations, which address a wide range of topics: from the shifting meaning and character of the objects themselves, the so-called object biographies, their restitution processes after 1945, conflicting ideas about their appropriate location, political interests in their preservation, actors and networks involved in salvage operations, to questions of intellectual and cultural transfer processes revolving around the moving objects and their literary resonances.
The 2nd edition of Norman Palmer’s classic work, Museums and the Holocaust. In the twenty years since the first edition was published the scale of the looting and deprivation carried out during the years 1933-1945 has become ever more apparent, and looted art works are resurfacing in museums and galleries around the world. The ways in which museums and governments have responded to the challenges of achieving justice when confronted with claims vary greatly and this book looks at a representative sample of countries to examine their approaches to this issue and the legislation they have enacted.
The book contains chapters on each of the countries with restitution committees (Austria, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom), together with a selection of other countries which highlight differences of approach (Australia, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Poland and the United States). Separate chapters examine issues of common concern, including the passing of title (ownership), limitation of actions and immunity from seizure. Transnational developments are also examined, including the discovery of the Gurlitt Hoard, the efforts of the Max Stern Foundation to recover lost works and the role of the Monuments Men during and in the aftermath of the War.
This edited collection, which brings together nearly fifty authors from across the globe and various disciplines, makes a valuable contribution to the field of conservation, covering a wide range of topics regarding the protection of heritage in times of war and peace.
Issues explored in the volume include but are not limited to questions surrounding the protection of contentious heritages, unsustainability of the current dichotomic cultural/natural heritage protection frameworks, digitalization of heritage, place of heritage in military conflicts, use of heritage by armed non-state actors, indigenous peoples' relationships with heritage, the intersection of intellectual property (IP) law and heritage, human rights matters linked to heritage protection, and the latest case studies surrounding restitution.
The Parthenon marbles case is the most famous international cultural heritage dispute concerning repatriation of looted antiquities, the Parthenon marbles in the British Museum's 'Elgin Collection'. The case has polarised observers ever since Elgin had the marbles hacked out of the ancient temple at the turn of the 19th century in Ottoman-occupied Athens. In 1816, a debt-stricken Elgin convinced the British government to purchase the marbles, which subsequently entrusted them to the British Museum, where they have remained since then. The ethical and cultural merits of their repatriation have been fiercely debated for years. But what has generally not been considered are the legal merits of their return in light of contemporary international law. This book is the first in legal scholarship to provide an international law perspective of the cause celebre of international cultural heritage disputes and, in doing so, to clarify the new customary international law on the return of cultural property unlawfully removed from its original context.
This book offers a fresh take on the history of those famous pieces of ancient sculpture removed from the Acropolis in Athens by Lord Elgin’s men in the early 19th century. It explains how they became the cause célèbre of the larger debates around cultural heritage and restitution now taking place. The subject is one that is currently embroiling museums, governments, universities and the public at large.
Herman provides a balanced, thorough and critical account of the history of the Marbles, while considering the legalities of their initial removal and the ethics of their retention by the British Museum. It explains why this particular dispute has not been satisfactorily resolved, and suggests new ways of seeking resolution – for the Parthenon Marbles and for the many other cultural treasures held in museum collections outside their countries of origin.
The biggest question in the world of art and culture concerns the return of property taken without consent. Throughout history, conquerors or colonial masters have taken artefacts from subjugated peoples, who now want them returned from museums and private collections in Europe and the USA.
Who Owns History? delves into the crucial debate over the Elgin Marbles, but also offers a system for the return of cultural property based on human rights law principles that are being developed by the courts.
A cross-border legal guide to the ever-changing maze of rules and regulations when acquiring, moving, and sharing works of art and antiquities. Providing a comprehensive and practical guide, this book will be an essential resource for art collectors and their advisers, alongside dealers, galleries, and museums. It will also be beneficial for lawyers specialising in commercial law, cultural heritage and art law, and intellectual property law.
Cultural objects have a protected status on account of their intangible value, as symbols of an identity. This has been so since the early days of international law, and today there is an extensive legal framework that ensures this protection. Yet, when it comes to claims by former owners to items such as Nazi-looted art, colonial booty, or more recently looted antiquities, the situation is less straightforward. On the one hand, such claims are often not supported by positive law at all. On the other hand, non-binding regulations urge present possessors to find `just' solutions to claims - not as a legal obligation but as a matter of morality. This raises a fundamental question: if we believe that the application of the law leads to injustice, is it not time to change the way the law is applied?
The discussion about objects, ancestral remains and archives from former colonial territories is becoming increasingly heated. Over the centuries, a multitude of items – including a cannon of the King of Kandy, power-objects from DR Congo, Benin bronzes, Javanese temple statues, Māori heads and strategic documents – has ended up in museums and private collections in Belgium and the Netherlands by improper means. Since gaining independence, former colonies have been calling for the return of their lost heritage. As continued possession of these objects only grows more uncomfortable, governments and museums must decide what to do. How did these objects get here? Are they all looted, and how can we find out? How does restitution work in practice? Are there any appealing examples? How do other former colonial powers deal with restitution? Do former colonies trust their intentions? The answers to these questions are far from unambiguous, but indispensable for a balanced discussion.
