Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Goods

The illicit trafficking of cultural goods refers to criminal activities that remove objects of historical, artistic, or archaeological value from their legitimate context: theft, clandestine excavations, illegal export, and subsequent black-market trade. It is often cited as one of the largest illicit flows worldwide, alongside drug and arms trafficking, and particularly affects religious heritage, sacred art, rare books, and archaeological sites. In Portugal, its combat involves international legal instruments, national legislation, and criminal investigations.

Legal Framework

The international framework rests on two complementary conventions. The 1970 UNESCO Convention, adopted in Paris on 14 November, establishes measures to prohibit and prevent the illicit import, export, and transfer of ownership of cultural property, obliging states to create inventories, protection services, and restitution mechanisms. Portugal approved it through Government Decree No. 26/85 and deposited the ratification instrument in December 1985, with the convention entering into force for the country in 1986. Complementing it is the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention, on stolen or illegally exported cultural goods, which translates the principles of the earlier convention into private law rules, facilitating international restitution. These instruments are part of the international heritage conventions.

At the national level, cultural heritage legislation, particularly Law No. 107/2001 of 8 September, regulates the export of goods from national territory. The export or shipment of cultural heritage goods must be preceded by notification to the competent authority at least 30 days in advance, which may provisionally prohibit the export; operations that fail to meet these requirements are considered illicit and incur criminal and administrative liability.

The Role of the Judiciary Police and DGPC

Investigating crimes against cultural heritage falls to the Judiciary Police, which maintains a database of stolen artworks with detailed records of each piece—photographs, dimensions, authors, styles, and authentication marks. This database feeds into INTERPOL’s international network, which lists hundreds of works stolen in Portuguese territory, including paintings, sculptures, goldsmithing, sacred art, and statuary. Cross-border police cooperation is crucial, given the international nature of the art market and the ease with which objects cross borders.

Cultural heritage administration—currently exercised by the Directorate-General for Cultural Heritage / Cultural Heritage, I.P.—has a preventive role: classifying and inventorying goods, controlling circulation, and issuing opinions on exports. Classification strengthens legal protection and hinders illegal export, while documentary inventories help identify and reclaim pieces that resurface in the market.

Vulnerabilities and Prevention

The most exposed contexts are isolated churches and chapels with limited surveillance, as well as archaeological sites subject to clandestine excavations and illegal metal detector use. Underwater heritage is especially fragile, making nautical and underwater archaeology a high-priority area due to shipwreck looting. Prevention depends on rigorous inventories, digitizing collections, raising awareness among clergy and local communities, and due diligence in the art market to verify the provenance of traded pieces.