The Protection of National Treasures in the EU Single Market

Abstract

It is estimated that around 40,000 cultural objects are illegally removed from European Union (EU or the Union) countries every year and only a very small number of them are ever returned (European Parliament, 2014). Art theft and trade of stolen art are growing and they are often linked with organised crime. The creation of a single, borderless market has been the indisputable cornerstone of European integration. The abolition of physical checks at the internal borders of the Union, necessary for the completion of the single market, has in many ways facilitated art theft and the laundering of stolen art and artefacts (Viantro, 1993: 1166). However, Union law has consistently recognised, throughout the development of the European project, the need for protection of the national treasures of member states.