Status: 01/27/2023 1:42 p.m
Gold, jewels and other treasures came from the Crimea to the Netherlands for an exhibition in 2014. Since the peninsula was annexed, there has been a dispute over who owns the cultural assets. Now there is a solution.
The Attorney General of the Netherlands has recommended that the country’s highest court finally award the Scythian cultural treasure to Ukraine.
Judgment expected in September
This could bring a year-long legal dispute to an end, because the judges of the High Council usually follow the recommendation of the Attorney General. A final verdict is expected in September.
Previously, Amsterdam courts had also awarded the valuable cultural assets of Ukraine in two instances. As a result, the Crimean museums appealed to the Supreme Council.
Crimean exhibition in the Netherlands
It all started in 2014 with an exhibition in Amsterdam about archaeological art treasures from Crimea – at that time part of Ukraine. The hundreds of exhibits include gold, jewels, weapons and masks.
Objects at the Crimean Gold Exhibition in Amsterdam in 2014.
Image: dpa
But in 2014, Crimea was annexed by Russia. The Amsterdam museum did not return the valuable objects after the end of the exhibition. The reason: The museum did not know who was the rightful owner.
The Crimean museums, now under Russian administration, are reclaiming the pieces. But according to Kiev, it is about Ukrainian state property. The art treasures have since been kept in a secret location in the Netherlands.