Supreme Court Confirms Crimean Art Objects Should be Returned to Ukraine

The Crimean art objects exhibited at the Allard Pierson Museum in 2014 should be returned to the state of Ukraine, not the Crimean museums. The Supreme Court hereby confirms the judgment of the Court of Appeal in October 2021.

The archeology museum in Amsterdam borrowed the archaeological objects and museum pieces from the Crimean Museums for an exhibition from February to August 2014. During that period – in March 2014 – Russia annexed the Ukrainian peninsula after an invasion. The United Nations, the European Union and the Netherlands have not recognized this separation and affiliation with Russia.

The Allard Pierson Museum did not know to whom to return the objects. That is why the museum decided to keep the pieces until the court had ruled. The Crimean Museums had appealed against the court’s decision, but the Supreme Court has now rejected that appeal.