Cultural Heritage Law in Ireland

A new piece of legislation has been enacted which will hopefully consolidate and update the rules surrounding cultural heritage law in Ireland. It has not yet commenced but is extremely broad in scope.

The Historic and Archaeological Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023 will regulate all issues relating to monuments, archaeological finds, shipwrecks, and other cultural heritage areas. It will also allow Ireland to ratify several international conventions including the UNIDROIT Convention 1995. There are specific rules and restrictions in relation to metal detecting (which is largely prohibited in this country), and what to do if one discovers ‘buried treasure’.

Further information can be found here in a blogpost written by Ronan Bergin in our office and published by the Art Lawyers Association.

If you have any questions relating to rules and regulations surrounding cultural heritage in Ireland, please feel free to contact our office.