Legal Experts: The Recovery of Culturally Repatriated Artifacts Overseas Should Strengthen Provenance Research

Beijing, September 23 — Wang Yunxia, professor at Renmin University of China and director of the UNESCO Chair on the Protection of Cultural Heritage Law, said during the 2026 Beijing Cultural Forum that one of the keys to promoting the return of cultural relics lost overseas is to strengthen provenance research and to institutionalize and standardize related work, so as to provide stronger support for recovery efforts. She pointed out that China has joined multiple international conventions aimed at combating the illegal trafficking of cultural relics and promoting their return, and has signed relevant bilateral agreements with countries including the United States, Switzerland, Egypt, and Italy. The Cultural Relics Protection Law, revised in 2024, also clearly states that for cultural relics lost overseas due to theft, illegal export, or other reasons, the state retains the right to recover them, and such claims are not subject to any statute of limitations. Wang Yunxia believes that although international conventions do not have retroactive effect, this provision in domestic law clearly defines China’s position on seeking the return of cultural relics lost in history, and also provides a basis for coordination among domestic departments and for international cooperation. She also noted that there have already been some international return practices that go beyond the scope of the conventions, showing that promoting returns can be advanced gradually through more detailed institutional arrangements. She suggested further improving the international cooperation procedures for the recovery and return of cultural relics, establishing a regularized, lawbased working mechanism, and promoting the return of more cultural relics lost overseas to China.