Red List of Latin-American Cultural Objects at Risk
Red List I Legislation I Acknowledgments
I General Bibliography I Press
release I Red List Home Page
In
Latin America, looting of archaeological sites and thefts from museums
and religious edifices are inflicting irreparable damage on the heritage
of the continent and of mankind as a whole. Objects are being wantonly
removed from their historical context to satisfy the growing international
demand for antiquities.
Faced with an emergency situation, the international
community of heritage professionals has drawn up a Red
List of Latin-American Cultural Objects at Risk to help put
a stop to the illicit trade in cultural property.
This list contains 25 examples of specific pre-Columbian and Colonial
heritage categories which are systematically looted throughout Latin America
and are in great demand on the illegal antiquities market.
The Red List is also designed to help customs officials, police
officers and art dealers to identify them.
This is a list of the types of object from Latin America which are particularly at risk and most likely to be stolen. It is in no way exhaustive. Because of the tremendous variety of objects, styles, and periods, any antiquity from Latin America should be viewed with suspicion.