News
UNESCO facilitates negotiations between countries
Since 1978, there has been an international mechanism for mediation between States on the issue of restitution, or the return of lost cultural property. It deals with cultural objects that are lost as a result of foreign or colonial occupation, or following a previous theft – committed before the entry into force of the 1970 Convention by the States concerned.
Created by UNESCO, the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in case of Illicit Appropriation (ICPRCP) is a permanent body, independent of the 1970 Convention. Its mission is to facilitate negotiations between countries and encourage them to conclude agreements.
Under the aegis of the Committee, Germany returned the Kueka stone – considered sacred by the indigenous Pemón community – to Venezuela in January 2020. It was taken to Berlin to be part of an exhibition more than two decades ago, and had been on display at the capital’s Tiergarten Park since 1998.
Another example that illustrates the Committee’s success: the missing fragments of a Roman mosaic discovered in the ancient town of Zeugma in modern-day Gaziantep province, Turkey – and part of the art collection of Bowling Green State University, Ohio, since 1965 – were returned to Turkey by the university in 2018.
The Netherlands: Museums confront the country’s colonial past, The UNESCO Courier, October-December 2020
Ìý
Photo: Domaine public / Nevit Dilmen
Created by UNESCO, the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in case of Illicit Appropriation (ICPRCP) is a permanent body, independent of the 1970 Convention. Its mission is to facilitate negotiations between countries and encourage them to conclude agreements.
Under the aegis of the Committee, Germany returned the Kueka stone – considered sacred by the indigenous Pemón community – to Venezuela in January 2020. It was taken to Berlin to be part of an exhibition more than two decades ago, and had been on display at the capital’s Tiergarten Park since 1998.
Another example that illustrates the Committee’s success: the missing fragments of a Roman mosaic discovered in the ancient town of Zeugma in modern-day Gaziantep province, Turkey – and part of the art collection of Bowling Green State University, Ohio, since 1965 – were returned to Turkey by the university in 2018.
The Netherlands: Museums confront the country’s colonial past, The UNESCO Courier, October-December 2020
Ìý
Photo: Domaine public / Nevit Dilmen
12 October 2020
Last update:20 April 2023
