Muzea a ryzyka związane z globalizacją rynku sztuki

The blurring borders and disappearance of barriers in the international trade in goods leads to the phenomenon called globalisation of trade which includes the international and internal art market, too. With approval of various legal provisions, this market is controlled and limited not only in particular states, but also in the European Union. Parallelly, an important role is played by traditional general regulations, for instance those concerning liquidating results of wartime looting or “regular” theft committed in the time of peace. Finally, international cooperation is initiated in response to phenomena which are especially negative for the heritage in a particular country or countries. Museums take active part in the art market by purchasing works and accepting donations or participating in expositions abroad. In other words, they take active part in the international “traffic” of art goods, which involves their transfer from one country to another, either in the case of trade or temporary presentation at expositions. Thus, they are exposed to all risks related to the fact that on the market there is a growing number of objects burdened with variable legal flaws. These may be stolen objects or objects from illegal excavations, frequently considered as theft, too, but also objects from organised robbery, either from old times (even WWII) or modern situations, for instance from Iraqi or Syrian territories which were occupied by the organisation called Islamic State. Origins of illegally exported goods are analysed in the same context, too, i.e. goods transferred abroad against respective binding provisions, if there are such provisions in the country in question. As highlighted in the title, the Author analyses these issues from the point of view of museums, indicating potential risks and suggesting what can be done to avoid negative consequences.