- Amsterdam Court of Appeal to give verdict on Crimea’s Scythian gold case
- Crimean museums have indisputable rights to Scythian gold collection, statement says
- Scythian gold collection inseparable from Crimea’s history, lawyer says
- Hermitage director calls for returning Scythian gold collection to Crimean museums
- Dutch court to consider Crimean museums’ appeal over Scythian gold in April
- Russia to continue efforts to get Scythian gold collection back to Crimea
- Russia sets up new expert council to return Scythian gold collection
- Dutch court may review appeal on Scythian gold in winter — Crimean museum
- Amsterdam Court may look into appeal against Scythian Gold ruling in fall
- Amsterdam Court confirms receipt of Crimean museums’ appeal concerning Scythian Gold case
THE HAGUE, July 16. /TASS/. The Amsterdam Court of Appeal has delayed a verdict in the Scythian gold case, the Court said in a statement on Tuesday.
According to the statement, judges need the parties to provide additional information, particularly regarding the ownership.
"It is now a question of deciding who has the strongest rights, either the Crimean museums claiming a right of operational management under Ukrainian law, or the Ukrainian State claiming ownership of the Crimean treasures," the document reads.
The Court has also ruled that Dutch laws are not applicable to the case.
"The Amsterdam Court in first instance had ruled that the Crimean treasures are to be handed over to the Ukrainian State pursuant to the Dutch Heritage Act. The Court of Appeal has now ruled otherwise: neither the UNESCO Convention, nor the parliamentary history of the Dutch Heritage Act, nor the EU Directive 2014/60/EU, nor the UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects imply a construction of the Dutch Heritage Act that leads to its applicability in this case," the statement adds.
The Court has also said that the Allard Pierson Museum should withhold the Scythian gold collection until the matter is decided in court.
"The parties have been given two months to provide the requested information. Subsequently, the court will examine the case further. A final judgment may be expected in six to nine months’ time," the Court pointed out.
Scythian gold issue
The Scythian gold collection from the Crimean museums was put on view at the Allard Pierson Museum of the University of Amsterdam in February 2014 when Crimea was still part of Ukraine. However, after the peninsula reunited with Russia in March 2014, uncertainty over the collection arose as both Russia and Ukraine claimed their rights to the exhibits. In this regard, the University of Amsterdam suspended the handover until either the dispute is legally resolved or the parties come to terms.
The Central Museum of Tavrida, the Kerch Historical and Cultural Preserve, the Bakhchysarai Historical and Cultural Preserve and the Chersonesus Historical and Cultural Preserve are among the museums whose items are being kept in Amsterdam. Items provided for the exhibition by a Kiev museum were returned to Ukraine in September 2014.
In December 2016, the Amsterdam District Court ruled that the Scythian gold treasures be returned to Ukraine. The Crimean museums filed an appeal against this decision.