Repatriation (cultural property)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Repatriation is the return of the cultural property, often referring to ancient or looted art, to their country of origin or former owners (or their heirs). The disputed cultural property items are physical artifacts of a group or society taken by another group, usually in the act of looting, whether in the context of imperialism, colonialism, or war. The contested objects vary widely and include sculptures, paintings, monuments, objects such as tools or weapons for purposes of anthropological study, and human remains.
The looting of defeated peoples' cultural heritage by war has been common practice since ancient times. In the modern era, the Napoleonic looting of art was a series of confiscations of artworks and precious objects carried out by the French army or French officials in the territories of the First French Empire, including the Italian peninsula, Spain, Portugal, the Low Countries, and Central Europe. The looting continued for nearly 20 years, from 1797 to the Congress of Vienna in 1815.
After Napoleon's defeat, some of the looted artworks were returned to their country of origin, among them the Lion and the Horses of Saint Mark, that were repatriated to Venice. But many other artworks remained in French museums, like the Louvre museum, the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris or other collections in France.
In the early 21st century, debates about the colonial context of acquisitions by Western collections have centered both around arguments against and in favor of repatriations. Since the publication of the French report on the restitution of African cultural heritage in 2018, these debates have gained new international attention and have led to changes regarding the public role of museums and to restitutions on moral rather than merely legal grounds.
See also
- Report on the restitution of African cultural heritage
- Byzantine Fresco Chapel, Houston
- Decolonization of museums
- Iraqi Jewish Archive
- Repatriation and reburial of human remains
- Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act