O’Keefe’s Commentary on the 1970 UNESCO Convention

This new edition of Patrick O’Keefe’s classic book presents up-to-date analysis of the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, contributing to the detailed article-by-article commentary on the Convention’s provisions, while providing historical context to the Convention’s adoption and a contemporary understanding of its stature today.

The traffic in cultural artefacts has been a major challenge for the international community, especially when it involves cross-border smuggling and the potentially conflicting application of different national laws. The UNESCO Convention was adopted in 1970 to confront this challenge, setting out important mechanisms for the protection and the return of cultural objects. While the direct legal effect of the Convention may be debatable, it has without doubt become the quintessential marker in the fight against the illicit antiquities trade, coming to influence standards across the entire cultural sector. With roughly 150 States Parties, the Convention has had an indelible impact on the ethical landscape affecting acquisitions and due diligence amongst museums and the art market.

The book highlights the background which led to the creation of the Convention and offers a critical look at how it has been interpreted over the years by commentators and international bodies. It also examines in detail specific implementation of the Convention across a number of important States.

The 1970 Convention is a watershed, an aspiration, an icon – and an eternal compromise. This book shows how the Convention has come to be all these things at once, and what its future may look like.