Cultural Property Observer

A Web Log Championing the Longstanding Interests of Collectors in the Preservation, Study, Display and Enjoyment of Cultural Artifacts Against an "Archaeology Over All" Perspective

Saturday, February 19, 2022

"Emergency" Import Restrictions Imposed on Afghan Cultural Goods to 1920's.

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The State Department Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and US Customs and Border Protection have imposed extremely broad "emer...

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Thursday, January 27, 2022

Summary of January 25, 2022, Cultural Property Advisory Committee Meeting to Discuss Proposed Renewals and Amendments of MOUs with Cyprus and Mali and a Proposed Renewal of a MOU with Guatemala

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On January 25, 2022, the US Cultural Property Advisory Committee (CPAC) met to consider proposed renewals and amendmen...

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Comments from Today's CPAC Hearing: It’s Time for a Reset for Import Restrictions on Coins

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I said this more or less at today's CPAC hearing to discuss proposed renewals of MOUs with Cyprus and Guatemala: I am s...

Friday, January 7, 2022

State Department reopens record for renewal and possible amendment of the current MOU with Cyprus; Renewals of MOUs with Guatemala and Mali also to be discussed.

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The State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and its Cultural Heritage Center have provided public notice of a Cult...

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Summary of October 5, 2021, Cultural Property Advisory Committee Meeting to Address Emergency Import Restrictions Request on Behalf of the “Former Government of Afghanistan,” Proposed Renewals of MOUs with Cyprus and Peru.

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On October 5, 2021, the US Cultural Property Advisory Committee (“CPAC”) met to consider proposed emergency import restr...

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

The CPIA Cannot Support Import Restrictions on Spanish Colonial and Republican Era Coins or Any Restrictions that Could Benefit the Taliban

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Here is what I said more or less at today's CPAC meeting: Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of IAPN and PNG....

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

State Department Adds Afghanistan to Oct. 5, 2021 Agenda-Any Comments due on September 26, 2021!

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Incredibly, the State Department now has agreed to entertain a request supposedly from the former Government of Afghanistan that would by ne...

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About Me

Cultural Property Observer: Washington, DC, United States; Peter Tompa has collected ancient coins for almost 50 years. He has written and lectured about cultural property issues for a decade. He is a contributor to a chapter on numismatics in K. Fitz Gibbon ed., "Who Owns the Past?" (Rutgers 2005). He has lobbied members of the U.S. Congress and the Executive Branch in an effort to ensure that the small businesses of the numismatic trade receive fair treatment from federal regulators. He currently serves as a board member of the Cultural Policy Research Institute and the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild. He also has been a co-chair of the American Bar Association's Art & Cultural Heritage Law Committee. His advocacy has received notice in the media, including the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Art Newspaper and the Voice of America. He hopes his views as a collector and lawyer will provide a counterpoint to the "archaeology over all" perspective found in most blogs about cultural property issues. This Web page is a public resource for general information and opinion about cultural property issues, and is not intended to be a source for legal advice. Opinions expressed here are the author's own.

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