THE INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION OF THE LOSS OF UKRAINE’S HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL HERITAGE DURING THE SECOND WORL WAR
Keywords:
cultural heritage, Second World War, Ukraine, international law, restitution, looting, cultural property, losses, Hague ConventionAbstract
The article is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of the international dimension of the losses of Ukraine’s cultural heritage during the Second World War. The author examines the scale, nature, and consequences of the destruction and removal of cultural assets, archives, architectural monuments, museum collections, manuscript funds, and works of art that constituted an integral part of both national and European cultural heritage. The study outlines the main directions of the plundering policies pursued by Nazi Germany and Soviet occupation authorities, which led to significant losses of both tangible and intangible values of the Ukrainian people.
Particular attention is paid to the international aspects of the issue – Ukraine’s participation in postwar restitution processes, the work of intergovernmental commissions for the return of cultural property, as well as the contribution of Ukrainian scholars and diplomats to the preservation and restoration of cultural heritage. Based on archival sources, international legal acts, and contemporary research, the article traces the development of international legal mechanisms for the protection of cultural property during and after the war (including the 1954 Hague Convention and its Protocols). The author also analyzes Ukraine’s place in these processes within the context of its limited representation in global institutions of that time and the country’s current efforts to document losses and recover displaced cultural artifacts.
The article also reveals the significance of the topic for contemporary historical and cultural discourse, emphasizing that the issue of wartime losses of Ukraine’s cultural heritage possesses not only a historical but also a current political and legal dimension in light of modern challenges associated with new armed conflicts. The study examines the question of international solidarity in the field of cultural property protection and the potential of cultural diplomacy as an instrument of historical justice.
The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the processes of loss, preservation, and restoration of cultural assets in a global context and help define Ukraine’s place within the international system for the protection of cultural heritage.
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