Swiss canton has ‘legal’ claim to controversial artefacts
A Swiss canton has legal ownership of rare ancient artefacts, but only because it took possession of the collection before regulations were introduced to prevent unlawful imports of cultural objects.
Therefore, the so-called Guigoz collection in western Switzerland does not breach Swiss law, according to an expert study commissioned in 2014 to examine the controversy.
The report on the 3,700 ancient and medieval art objects originating from the Mediterranean region was made public on Tuesday.
They were originally collected by industrialist Edouard Guigoz who bequeathed them to the canton of Valais in 1970 upon his death.
The provenance of the collection has come under suspicion, prompting the return of a stolen marble statue to Italy in 1979 and for the remaining artefacts to be placed into storage since 1985.
Valais cantonal authorities commissioned the study by art and law experts to gain legal clarity on the collection. The experts could find no specific evidence of theft of the artefacts, but their legal verdict is far from clear-cut.
Switzerland ratified a UNESCO treaty on the transfer of cultural artefacts in 2003 and two years later drew up its own laws to prohibit illegal smuggling.
As neither edict has retroactive reach, canton Valais can claim legal ownership of the collection, the study argued.
However, any museum that displays the artefacts in future could still be subject to claims for reimbursement from abroad, the experts added.
More
More
Switzerland restores image over art trafficking
This content was published on
Alongside the United States, France and Britain, Switzerland is one of the principle trading centres for art. But until 2005 there was no law or national regulation governing this lucrative sector, which accounted for SFr1.39 billion ($1.21 billion) of imports and SFr1.4 billion of exports in 2009. This situation encouraged traffickers and unscrupulous art collectors.…
Should raw milk sales be banned or should consumers decide?
Swiss food regulations do not allow raw milk to be sold for direct consumption. However, a loophole allows 400 raw milk vending machines to do just that.
Swiss safe after shelling of UN headquarters in Lebanon
This content was published on
Israeli forces on Thursday shelled the UNIFIL headquarters in southern Lebanon, injuring two UN soldiers. Swiss military observers
Only 11% of companies in line with Paris Agreement
This content was published on
Only 11 percent of listed companies worldwide are currently operating in line with the 1.5 degree target of the Paris Climate Agreement. This is the conclusion of an analysis by the US financial services provider MSCI.
This content was published on
A committee in Switzerland's senate is pushing for a ban on Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based militia and sworn enemy of Israel.
Personal care products affect indoor air quality, warns Swiss study
This content was published on
A Swiss study claims that typical personal care products can have a ‘significant impact’ on air quality when used in enclosed spaces.
Government estimates for first time Switzerland’s carbon budget up to 2050
This content was published on
The Swiss government predicts that the country will produce around 660 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents for the 2020-2050 period if it meets its climate targets.
Switzerland imposes entry ban on far-right Austrian activist Martin Sellner
This content was published on
Switzerland has imposed an entry ban on the far-right Austrian extremist Martin Sellner. This prevents him from speaking at an event planned by the Swiss Junge Tat far-right group in canton Zurich.
Security firm Sicpa cuts jobs in western Switzerland
This content was published on
Sicpa, a company specialising in security inks, announced on Thursday that it plans to cut up to 120 jobs in canton Vaud, citing a complicated international economic context and geopolitical tensions.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Germany returns Nazi art from Gurlitt trove to French family
This content was published on
Germany has returned three works of art to a descendant of a Jewish French collector who owned them until his death in 1941 in Nazi-occupied France.
This content was published on
Alongside the United States, France and Britain, Switzerland is one of the principle trading centres for art. But until 2005 there was no law or national regulation governing this lucrative sector, which accounted for SFr1.39 billion ($1.21 billion) of imports and SFr1.4 billion of exports in 2009. This situation encouraged traffickers and unscrupulous art collectors.…
This content was published on
Gianna Mina explains what has changed in the Swiss art world since the “theft of the century” in February 2008 and the difficult choices facing museum directors and curators. On Thursday, police from Serbia and Switzerland recovered Cézanne’s “The Boy in the Red Vest”, worth an estimated SFr100 million ($110 million), which had been stolen…
This content was published on
Cologne-based art detective Ingrid Blom-Böer is one of those working on the case. She spoke to swissinfo about her job tracking down stolen art. Blom-Böer works for the Art Loss Register, which operates a permanent international database of stolen and missing works of art, antiques and valuables. It is a booming sector estimated to be…
This content was published on
The sentence, which concludes the so-called Varone stone affair, will only be activated if Varone commits a similar offence in the next five years. According to Turkish law, there will be no criminal record of the offence. “It’s what we expected,” Varone’s Turkish lawyer said, adding that they were satisfied with the judgement. The court…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.