The New Web Site for the Cultural Heritage Center

This new site brings together under a single banner the several areas of activity for which the Center is responsible, including International Cultural Property Protection, the U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation, the Iraq Initiative, and Special Projects. The original content of the retired “Cultural Property” site has been updated, and reorganized. Please use the navigation bar (left) or the Site Index to find specific information or features.

This page will contain news relating to all areas of the Center’s work.

Also, please note that the Cultural Heritage Center has moved; click here for the new contact information.

Cultural Property Advisory Committee Meeting Scheduled

A meeting of the Cultural Property Advisory Committee is planned for November 12 and 13, 2009.  On the 12th, the Committee will review the proposal to extend the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with El Salvador. An open session of the meeting will be held, to which interested parties are invited to comment on the proposal to extend this agreement.  On the 13th, the Committee will continue its interim review of the MOU with Italy, when another open session is planned so interested parties may present comments to the Committee. Please refer to the Federal Register notices in the links at right for information on the procedures to be followed with regard to the open sessions.

2009 - A Big Year for the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation

In 2009, the Ambassadors Fund awarded $5,291,000 in grants for the preservation of cultural heritage in 58 countries. The 74 grants awarded in 2009 include 3 grants for large-scale, partnership-based preservation projects in Peru, Nepal, and Macedonia, briefly described here:

The archaeological site of Caral, a very early settlement in the Supe Valley of Peru, dates from 3000 to 1800 BC. Excavations at the site have revealed skillfully-made architectural complexes and walled spaces in stone and mud-brick. The $800,000 Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) award to the Proyecto Especial Arqueológico Caral-Supe will support the preservation of several structures and technical training in the conservation of stone and other building materials.

The Patan Royal Palace in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley is one of South Asia’s most intact historic urban royal ensembles. Major earthquakes in 1833 and 1934, and decades of neglect and disuse have left this extraordinary complex in a state of disrepair. The AFCP awarded $900,000 to the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust to fund multiple activities that will stabilize and restore this World Heritage Site and to prepare it for public access.

The 13th-century monastery of the Holy Mother of God ‘Peribleptos’ is a centuries-old Orthodox pilgrimage site in the World Heritage City of Ohrid, Macedonia. Its extensive array of late Byzantine frescoes – the earliest known documented works of the Thessalonian painters Michael and Eutychius - are threatened by damage and deterioration from various forces. The AFCP has awarded $650,000 to the Cultural Heritage Protection Office of the Republic of Macedonia in support of major repairs to the church and the stabilization, diagnosis, conservation, and restoration of these rare and important paintings.

The MOU with Honduras is Extended

In March 2009, the governments of the United States and Honduras agreed to extend for an additional period of five years the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Honduras concerning the Imposition of Import Restrictions on Archaeological Material from the Pre-Columbian Cultures of Honduras, which was entered into in March 2004. The extension, consistent with the recommendation of the Cultural Property Advisory Committee, represents a continuation of cooperation that began when the U.S. implemented import restrictions to stem the problem of pillage of Honduras’ rich pre-Columbian heritage and the illicit trafficking in such material. Article II of the agreement has been amended, and is available in English*, and Español*.) Please see the Honduras page for further information.

A New Bilateral Agreement with China

On January 14, 2009, the United States and China entered into a bilateral agreement* that imposes import restrictions on categories of archaeological material from the Paleolithic period through the Tang dynasty (75,000 B.C. – A.D. 907), and on monumental sculpture and wall art that is at least 250 years old. (See the Designated List*, from the Federal Register.) The agreement, consistent with the recommendation of the Cultural Property Advisory Committee, establishes a means of cooperation to reduce the incentive for archaeological pillage and illicit traffic that threaten China’s ancient heritage. The agreement also aims to further the international interchange of such materials for cultural, educational, and scientific purposes.

*This is a PDF and requires the free Adobe Reader.