1 Some perspectives on the illicit antiquities trade in China Melvin Soudijn & Edgar Tijhuis Draft (2003) for Art Antiquity & Law, 8(2), 149-165. ‘It is a melancholy observation that, although the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property was adopted as long ago as 1970, the destruction of archaeological sites through looting has increased rather than diminished in the thirty succeeding years...’ With the above sentence, Colin Renfrew begins his foreword in Trade in illicit antiquities - the destruction of the world’s archaeological heritage. 1 In this collection of papers, several experts narrate about the looting of antiquities in a number of countries. Almost all the accounts confirm the gloomy picture with which Renfrew started, although some countries have seen a few successes in the reclamation and protection of their cultural property. Differences between individual countries aside, the looting of antiquities seems to have risen sharply during the last decades. Subsequently, academic interest in this problem has also increased. Due to a number of publications, we have some insight in the way antiquities are looted and transported to their destinations. 2 However, one of the countries that has hardly seen any academic interest in its problem of illicit excavation and trafficking is China. This is rather surprising considering the reports in the Chinese media and several remarks in general studies on the illicit antiquities trade. These point at large-scale looting and the trafficking of antiquities. According to He Shuzhong, the director of Cultural Heritage Watch, a non-governmental Chinese organization for the protection of cultural heritage, the problems of illicit excavation and trade have reached dramatic proportions. He points out that there is a need for legal protection of the 400,000 known sites in China, but only 60,000 sites are actually protected. 3 China seems to face an enormous problem but at the same time there has been very little research in this area. This paper attempts to address this lack of research. We begin by drawing together the information that is currently available. Thereafter, we will evaluate these findings. We will try to make the problem of illicit antiquities in China more concrete and analyse the way the Chinese government is dealing with this problem. 1 Trade in illicit antiquities: the destruction of the world’s archaeological heritage, Brodie et al (2001), Cambridge, Mc Donalds Institute for Archaeological Research. 2 Goden, graven en grenzen - Over kunstroof uit Afrika, Azië en Latijns-Amerika, Jos van Beurden (2001), Amsterdam, KIT Publishers; Trade in illicit antiquities, Brodie et al (2001); Artcrime, John Conklin (1994), Westport, Preager; Göttinnen, Gräber und Geschäfte – Von der Plünderung fremder Kulturen Elisa Fuchs (ed.) (1992) Zürich, Erklärung von Bern; Kulturgütertransfer und Globalisierung Andrea Raschèr (2000) Zürich, Schulthess Juristische Medien; Sotheby’s Inside Story, Peter Watson (1998) London, Bloomsbury. 3 ‘China’s Protective Measures to Combat Illicit Traffic’ He Shuzhong (2002), http://www.culturalheritagewatch.org/indexenglish.html.