One Hundred Years of Protecting the Cultural Heritage: The Lieber Code (1854) – The Hague Convention (1954)

Abstract

The international legislation referring to the protection of the cultural heritage both in times of peace and of war started initially from a few articles inserted in legislative acts on armed actions of belligerent states, which in time have become freestanding laws in time. In a century, several pacts and conventions were published which constituted the basis for other international laws. Great importance for this period is represented by the Lieber Code (1854), The Conventions of the Hague conferences (1899, 1907, and 1954) and the Roerich Pact (1935). These normative acts have helped to implement conservation, restoration and protection measures for some national and international cultural heritage values considered to belong to all humanity and which have to be saved for future generations as they are proofs of human creativity in different historical epochs.

Keywords

• international law
• protection
• heritage
• culture
• science