Created by IvyB800566150
Last edited March 26, 2026
Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972
Parliament of India
CitationAct No. 52 of 1972
Territorial extentIndia
Enacted byParliament of India
Enacted9 September 1972
Assented to9 September 1972
Commenced5 April 1976 (except for Sikkim)
1 June 1979 (Sikkim)
Amends
Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958
Repeals
Antiquities (Export Control) Act, 1947
Amended by
Antiquities and Art Treasures (Amendment) Act, 1976
Related legislation
Antiquities and Art Treasures Rules, 1973
Status: In force

The Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972 was created in accordance with the UNESCO 1970 Convention to regulate the internal and external dealing in antiquities in India. Its purpose is to prevent the permanent export of India's treasures so as to preserve the country's cultural wealth.[1][2][3]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. Pachauri, S. K. (2002). "15. Plunder of cultural and art treasures – the Indian experience" (PDF). In Brodie, Neil; Walker Tubb, Kathryn (eds.). Illicit Antiquities. London: Routledge. pp. 268–269. ISBN 0-203-16546-2. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 November 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  2. Gupta, Vinay Kumar (July 2019). "Retrieval of Indian Antiquities: Issues and Challenges". Art, Antiquity & Law. 24 (2): 101–124. Retrieved 4 November 2023 – via Academia.edu.
  3. Shroff, Cyril; Shroff, Rishabh (1 February 2015). "India's antiquities laws: an antiquated relic?". Trusts & Trustees. 21 (1–2): 75–85. doi:10.1093/tandt/ttu221.

External links[edit | edit source]