1970 Convention Turns 50!

In 2020, the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property celebrates its 50th anniversary.  Adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO on 14 November 1970, this Convention provides an international framework for the prevention of theft and looting and the return and return of stolen cultural property, in parallel with other advances in the fight against illicit trafficking. With ratifications from Bulgaria, Ecuador and Nigeria, the Convention entered into force on 24 April 1972. It was the first instrument of international law for the protection of cultural property during peacetime.