Dutch Supreme Court orders return of historical artifacts to Ukraine – National | 24CA News
The Supreme Court of the Netherlands on Friday ordered {that a} Dutch museum’s trove of historic treasures from Crimea be despatched to Ukraine, upholding a decrease court docket ruling that the 300 artifacts are a part of Ukraine’s cultural heritage.
The assortment of archaeological objects, some greater than 2,000 years outdated, was on show on the Allard Pierson Museum in Amsterdam when Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, sparking a dispute over the repatriation of the borrowed items.
Both the Ukrainian authorities in Kyiv and the 4 Crimean museums that had loaned bronze swords, golden helmets, treasured gems and different artifacts to the Allard Pierson demanded the objects again. The Amsterdam museum as an alternative opted to retailer the objects till a court docket might determine their destiny.
The authorized tug-of-war has now ended with the Hague-based Supreme Court ordering the gathering to be returned to Ukraine. Judges cited the shortage of nationwide recognition for the Russia-annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea.
“Although the museum pieces originate from Crimea and can therefore also be regarded as Crimean heritage, they are part of the cultural heritage of Ukraine,” the ruling stated.
Mediation in 2014 between all of the museums concerned and Ukrainian authorities failed, and the Allard Pierson Museum took the matter to court docket.
Highlights from the “Crimea — Gold and Secrets of the Black Sea” exhibition included a strong gold Scythian helmet from the fourth century B.C. and a golden neck decoration from the second century A.D. that weighs greater than a kilogram (two kilos).
Rob Meijer, third from left, lawyer for the Crimean museums and Paul Loeb, lawyer for the Allard Pierson Museum, middle proper, anticipate the presiding choose to learn the decision in a Dutch appeals court docket in Amsterdam, Tuesday Oct. 26, 2021, on possession of a trove of Crimean historic artifacts that have been loaned to an Amsterdam museum shortly earlier than Russia annexed the area. A decrease court docket dominated in 2016 that the treasures must be handed to the Ukrainian authorities.
Associated Press
In 2016, the District Court of Amsterdam cited the 1970 UNESCO conference, discovering that the objects should be returned to the sovereign state that loaned them and the problem of possession must be determined by a Ukrainian court docket.
The Crimean museums appealed and Russia threatened to cease lending objects to Dutch museums if the museum didn’t return the items. In 2021, an appeals court docket once more ordered the objects to be despatched to Ukraine.
In an announcement, the Allard Pierson Museum says it will probably now act on the choice and return the objects. Legal charges and storage have already price the museum greater than 500,000 euros ($538,000), in line with paperwork it submitted throughout the proceedings.
It is unclear when the switch of the objects will happen.
© 2023 The Associated Press
