cultural property

UNESCO: Culture

This part of the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) website provides information on the organisation’s cultural initiatives which include safeguarding historic sites, promoting creativity and supporting artistic innovation. There is information on the various international cultural funds supported by UNESCO, other international initiatives, international days and conferences. All conventions on culture are available in full text.

Restitution and Repatriation: A Practical Guide for Museums in England

Online guide produced by the Institute of Art and Law and made freely available on the Arts Council website. The guide aims to provide best practice advice for museums responding to restitution and repatriation cases. The guide was updated in 2026 and includes sections on provenance research, dealing with a claim and implementing the outcome. There are case studies, templates and checklists and references to relevant national and international legal instruments.

International Research Portal for Records Related to Nazi-Era Cultural Property

This website provides access to national and other archival institutions with records relating to Nazi-Era cultural property The research portal has been compiled and made freely available online by the United States National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Participating institutions include Bundesarchiv (The Federal Archives of Germany), UK National Archives, State Archives in Belgium, Commission for Looted Art in Europe (CLAE), United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and France Diplomatie: Diplomatic Archive Center of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

Office of the Legal Adviser

This website outlines the work of the Office of the Legal Adviser at the US State Department and makes available US official publications and information about international law. The Treaty Affairs section provides the current edition of Treaties in Force; the Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS) from 1996 to 2003; information about multilateral treaties deposited with the US Government; details of treaty actions; and a list of treaties pending in the Senate. The Digest of United States Practice in International Law is available from 1989/90 onwards.

Institute of Art and Law

The Institute of Art and Law (IALS) is a UK-based independent body dedicated to art law and cultural property law. It organises seminars on topics related to art and law for lawyers, historians, collectors, dealers, museum officials and others; it also offers a master's degree (LLM) in art law as well as other qualifications. The IAL website provides news updates on art and cultural heritage and gives details of IAL events and publications, including the institute's journal, Art Antiquity and Law. The site includes links to related art law sites.

Network of Concerned Historians

The Network of Concerned Historians (NCH) was established in 1995 at Groningen University in the Netherlands with the aim of linking international human rights organizations campaigning for censored or persecuted historians with the worldwide community of historians. Its website has information on the history and activities of the NCH and its campaigns. There are links to documents dealing with general human rights issues, copyright, democracy, disappearances, freedom of opinion and expression, genocide, racism, repatriation and international humanitarian law.

Central Registry of Information on Looted Cultural Property 1933-1945

Website of the Central Registry of Information on Looted Cultural Property a charitable organisation set up under the auspices of the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies to provide information and resources on Nazi looted cultural property. The site contains information from 40 countries which participated in the 1998 Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets. Information provided for each country includes laws, policies and guidelines, official reports and research resources. Information on the site is fully searchable by phrase or keyword.

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