The Return of Cultural Treasures

The return of cultural treasures to their homelands inspires fierce debate, as the case of the Elgin Marbles illustrates. The third edition of The Return of Cultural Treasures, first published in 2007, explores the historical, legal and political issues at play and examines the most recent developments in the unfolding story of cultural restitution.

In recent years controversial cases such as the so-called Elgin Marbles have prompted public debate on the return of cultural treasures to their homelands. In this fully revised and expanded third edition of her seminal work, first published in 2007, Jeanette Greenfield analyzes and discusses the historical, legal and political issues surrounding a wide cross-section of similar cases. Bringing the story up to date, this edition includes new chapters on wartime plunders, deliberately destroyed art and the return of ethnic art such as Australian aboriginal and Native American art. It also explores the palaeontological and marine archaeology issues at play and examines new approaches taken by museums when dealing with cultural objects and their return. Written in a highly accessible style with an interdisciplinary approach, this book will appeal to a wide range of readers interested in cultural heritage, archaeology and anthropology, museums, art history and international law.