The international protection of religious cultural property

This article briefly discusses some aspects of the legal treatment of "religious" cultural property, both internationally and domestically, and how religious communities and churches may influence domestic law in this respect. The focus is on the cultural property of the Roman Catholic Church, so as to consider to what extent its particular status as a subject of public international law has an impact on the protection of cultural property owned by it or by its affiliated institutions. Two aspects are discussed: firstly, the alternatives to the direct protection of its own cultural heritage that are available to the Church as a subject of international law and, secondly, the scope for indirect protection through the negotiation of international agreements. Before concluding, some salient features of the protection of religious cultural property under domestic law are recapitulated.