Comparative Study on Preventing the Illicit Traffic in Cultural Property in Korea and the United States

This article introduces international governmental protections of cultural property within the structure of the three major conventions, the 1970 UNESCO Convention, UNIDROIT, and the Hague Convention focusing on the public aspect. It describes several implementation acts and efforts to regulate illicit trafficking of cultural property in Korea and the United States, discusses whether they are following the originally intended way of these conventions, and compares laws in two countries. It argues that these laws are different because of the different levels of implementation of the 1970 UNESCO Convention and underlying theories of cultural property claims and laws, such as internationalism and nationalism, legality of acquisition of cultural property, and arguments of major museums. It concludes with a discussion on the problems of current protections in Korea and the U.S. as well as some suggestions.