Today trading in archaeological and ethnographic objects under the tag "art" is a business that is growing worldwide. The demand for such objects surmounts the supply.

Following the collapse of political barriers and the significant drop in travelling costs, many inaccessible places of the past have become accessible and the geographical range of trade has thus expanded.

The ease in communication stimulates the commerce at a global level. By selling objects on the Internet or in a foreign country, the seller reduces the risk of getting caught due to the difficulty in identifying the objects. The worldwide looting of ancient antiquities causes a great loss of information and local identity.

International conventions

There are several international conventions and agreements that have been grafted to stop trade in illegally acquired cultural objects. The most important one is the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, which has been ratified by a lot of countries.

According to UNESCO, the cultural heritage belongs to the nation whereas the "safeguarding process" is an international responsibility. By ratifying the convention, each nation has undertaken to prevent cultural crime. Sweden ratified the convention in 2003. Ratification of the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention is still under discussion.

Nordic co-operation and investigation

The Scandinavian states have established close co-operation. These countries, except for Norway, have joint legislation on export control and a common export licence system. But still they lack common import licences. Lost goods are registered by Interpol; however there is no specification of what objects are to be registered.

Swedish legislation and regulations on the export and import of cultural objects

The Heritage Conservation Act serves as core legislation for the preservation of Sweden's heritage and historic environment. Ancient remains are protected by the Act and may not be damaged. The Act defines the concept of cultural objects and regulates the handling of archaeological finds and procedures for obtaining a permit to remove remains.

The Act regulates the export of older artefacts, identifies the objects covered and specifies procedures for obtaining a permit. The Act also regulates the return of specified artefacts that have been illegally removed from a country in the European Economic Area. Two permits may be required to take certain objects out of Sweden. The regulations can be found in the 5th chapter of the Conservation Act 2.

In addition to the Swedish law there are EU directions concerning the trade of cultural objects, which come into effect when an object is about to leave the EU. In Sweden the law on smuggling3 regulates offences relating to illicit export.

The juridical sanction for illicit export of cultural heritage objects is confiscation of the smuggled goods, and a monetary fine or up to two years' imprisonment. The maximum punishment for a serious offence is six years' imprisonment. There are five authorities that can issue export licences.

Depending on the category of the object in question, the export licence can be obtained from one of the following institutions: the National Library of Sweden, the National Museum of Fine Arts, with Prins Eugen's Waldemarsudde, the Swedish National Heritage Board of Sweden, the National Archives of Sweden and the Nordic Museum foundation.

The authorities offer more detailed information on export and application procedure. The Swedish National Heritage Board of Sweden is working to minimize demand and to change the market regulations on relics of antiquity as well as to provide pertinent knowledge and information that is easily accessible to the public. Please contact us for further information.

Contact:

Swedish National Heritage Board - phone: +468 5191-8000