ENVIRONS ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND POLICY JOURNAL UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS SCHOOL OF LAW VOLUME 28 FALL 2004 NUMBER 1 An Examination of Archaeological Ethics and the Repatriation Movement Respecting Cultural Property (Part Two) John Alan Cohan* TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................4 X. THE VICIOUS CYCLE OF CULTURAL PROPERTY LOOTING AND THE B LACK M ARK ET .......................................................................................4 A. The Nature of the Problem ofLooting ..........................................4 1. Destruction of Cultural Heritage ............................................7 2. Destruction of Archaeological Sites ....................................7 3. Violation of the Intent of the Deceased ................................9 4. Violation of Umbrella Retention Laws ..................................9 B. The Nature of the Problem of the Black Market .........................10 1. Black Market Artifacts Lack Provenance ............................11 2. How Black Market Artifacts Garner "Provenance": Looting Eludes D etection ........................................................11 X I. THE RAPE OF EGYPT ............................................................................13 A. The GeneralProblem, Past and Present................................... 13 * J.D., Loyola Law School; B.A., University of Southern California; Law Clerk to Federal Judge Charles H. Carr; Instructor, Western State Law School; Part One of this Article was published in Spring 2004 - vol.27, no.2. Environs [Vol. 28.1 B. A Case Study: The Napoleonic Occupation ................................14 XII. THE LAW OF WAR REGARDING PROTECTION OF CULTURAL PROPERTY AND TAKING OF "WAR BOOTY". .......................................22 A. H istorical Overview ..................................................................22 B. What Law Should Apply in Evaluating the Napoleonic Occupation of Egypt? .................................................................24 1. Napoleon's Occupation of Egypt Seen As Just ....................25 2. Napoleon's Occupation of Egypt Seen As Unjust ...............28 XIII. A PARADIGM SHIFT IN THE LAW OF WAR REGARDING THE PROTECTION OF CULTURAL PROPERTY AND THE TAKING OF "WAR BOOTY" GAINED MOMENTUM THROUGHOUT THE NINETEENTH AND TW ENTIETH CENTURIES .......................................................................31 A. The Prohibitionson "Art Trophies" in the War of 1812 and the Lieber Code .........................................................................31 B. The Prohibitionson "Art Trophies" in the Twentieth Century Through World War II.............................................................. 32 C. The Movement to Prohibit "War Trophies" Following the N azi P lunders ..............................................................................35 XIV. THE HAGUE CONVENTION OF 1954 .....................................................37 XV. PROTECTION OF CULTURAL PROPERTY IN TIMES OF PEACE: THE UN ESCO CONVENTION ......................................................................42 A. Substantive Provisions of the UNESCO Convention.................. 42 B. Implementation of the UNESCO Convention in the United States ...........................................................................................46 C. The Impact of the UNESCO Convention ...................................47 D. Objections To and Critiquesof Some Inadequaciesof the UNESCO Convention ................................................................49 E. The UNIDROIT Convention .......................................................50 XVI. LAWS THAT NATIONALIZE ARCHAEOLOGICAL ARTIFACTS AND IMPOSE EXPORT RESTRICTIONS ..........................................................51 A. ForeignPatrimony Laws ............................................................51 B. Patrimony Laws of the UnitedStates ..........................................54 C. Criticisms of Umbrella NationalizationLaws ............................55 1. Lack of Enforcement, Bribery and the Risk of Exacerbating the Black M arket ............................................55 2. The Problem of Hoarding .....................................................56 XVII. A REFUTATION OF JOHN MERRYMAN'S ARGUMENT THAT HAGUE AND UNESCO EXPRESS TWO CONTRASTING WAYS OF CONSIDERING CULTURAL PROPERTY ......................................................60 XVIII. RECOVERY OF LOOTED PROPERTY BY LEGAL PROCEEDINGS A BROAD .............................................................................................64 Fall 2004] ArchaeologicalEthics & the Repatriation Movement (PartTwo) 3 A. CriminalProsecution in the United States for ForeignLooting .... 65 B. Civil Litigation in the United States for ForeignLooting ....... 68 XIX. REPATRIATION OF LOOTED ARTIFACTS THROUGH DIPLOMACY, PRIVATE NEGOTIATION AND PUBLIC PRESSURE .................................. 77 A. The Preferencefor Diplomatic Solutions ................................... 77 B. GeneralArguments in Support ofRepatriation.......................... 78 C. Arguments in Favorof Repatriationof Looted Antiquitiesfrom Past Centuries:Retroactive Application of Modern Customary InternationalLaw ....................................................................... 78 D. Examples of Successful Repatriation of Artifacts....................... 86 E. The Unresolved Controversy Regarding the Elgin Marbles .......... 89 F. The UNESCO IntergovernmentalCommittee ........................... 91 G. Museum Policiesfor and Against Repatriation.......................... 93 XX. PROPOSED MODEL FOR SETTLEMENT OF CULTURAL PROPERTY D ISPU TES ............................................................................................. 99 A. Establishingan InternationalTribunal ..................................... 99 B. Issues to be Assessed in Mediating a Claim for Repatriationof Cultural P rop erty ......................................................................... 100 1. Did the Property Originate in the Country of the C laim ant? ............................................................................... 100 2. Resolution of Claims Among Competing Cultural Groups ... 101 3. In What Ways Is the Property Significant to Claimants? ....... 102 a. Length of Tim e ................................................................. 104 b. H istoric Factors .............................................................. 104 c. Group Identity ................................................................. 104 d. Intentions ofAncestors .................................................... 105 e. Sacred or SpiritualSignificance ...................................... 105 f Aesthetic Concerns .......................................................... 106 4. Under What Circumstances Was the Property Removed? .. ... 106 5. Long Delays in Making a Claim? ....................... .. .. ... .. .. .. 107 6. Finding an Appropriate Equitable Solution ........................... 107 7. Object-Centered Concerns: Where Will Property Be Better Conserved and Are There Hazards in Repatriation? ... 107 8. The Impact of Breaking Up Collections ................................ 108 9. Consideration of Whether Cultural Property Claimants Have a Surplus of Similar Artifacts ....................................... 109 C. Manner of Repatriation:Compromise or Settlement? ................. 109 C ON CLU SIO N ........................................................................................................ 112 Environs [Vol. 28.1 INTRODUCTION Part One of this Article examined the broad contours of archaeology: what constitutes the discipline and why it is important; the emergence of archaeological ethics; and the competing concerns of archaeologists, collectors of artifacts, and other stakeholders, most notably cultural groups. Part One explored the field of underwater archaeology, comparing and contrasting it with land-based archaeology. The first part of the Article went into some depth in fleshing out the relevant factors of concern when cultural groups lay claim to ownership rights in archaeological artifacts, including special concerns with respect to human remains, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act ("NAGPRA") and, finally, contemporary archaeological codes of ethics. Part Two of the Article looks more closely at the looting of archaeological sites and the sale of looted artifacts on the black market. The Article examines how looting destroys not only cultural sites but also the heritage of cultural groups and considers the related problem of lack of provenance of looted artifacts. This half of the Article uses Napoleon's looting of archaeological sites during the invasion of Egypt in 1800 as a case study and discusses the evolution of international law with respect to the taking of wartime "booty," culminating in the Hague Convention of 1954 and the UNESCO Convention of 1970, which specifically protect cultural property. Part Two also challenges a claim made by the noted law professor John Merryman that the Hague and UNESCO Conventions express two irreconcilable ways of defining and treating cultural property, arguing instead that the Conventions both support an internationalist approach to developing global standards for the treatment of such property. Finally, this part of the Article addresses the repatriation of looted artifacts through diplomacy, private negotiation and litigation, and proposes a model for