Patty Gerstenblith’s long-awaited monograph is both the culmination of a distinguished scholarly career and a turning point in the field of international cultural heritage law. For decades, Gerstenblith, professor of law and director of the Center for Art, Museum & Cultural Heritage Law at DePaul University, has been a leading authority in the field. Beyond her scholarship, she has shaped legal frameworks on restitution through service as chair of the Cultural Property Advisory Committee (CPAC), appointed by President Obama in 2011, and as president of Blue Shield U.S. Her dual role as legal scholar and ethical advocate is deeply reflected in this book, which crystallizes her lifelong commitment to restitution and cultural justice.

The book is a milestone. It tackles one of the most contentious questions in heritage discourse: Should antiquities and cultural objects, often removed under coercive or colonial conditions, be returned to their countries of origin or remain with their current holders? Gerstenblith insists this is both a legal and ethical issue, embedded in colonial histories and structural inequalities. Framed around reparative justice, she argues that legal ownership must always be situated in historical context, particularly in light of imperial conquest, asymmetrical power, and the persistence of Western dominance in museums and conservation practices.

In a narrow sense, this book will interest anyone interested in the restitution of cultural property across disciplines. Lawyers will appreciate its near-exhaustive treatment of US and international case law, as well as its clear presentation of legal tools grounding restitution arguments. While technical in parts, the book remains accessible, offering art historians and museum professionals a valuable window into legal practice. At the same time, it raises foundational questions: Are antiquities inseparable from their cultural and geographic origins, and if so, can their relocation be justified on any legal, aesthetic, or moral grounds?

Gerstenblith organizes her argument chronologically and thematically. The first chapters of the book delve into European history. Chapter 1 highlights how reliance on the market for cultural objects has established the perduring dominance of former colonial powers. Chapter 2 situates the origins of restitution debates in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, distinguishing between earlier traditions of looting and the emergence of cultural property as national patrimony during the French Enlightenment. She identifies the restitution of Napoleonic spoils as a critical inflexion point marking the birth of modern legal principles, though inconsistently applied beyond Europe.

Chapter 3 turns to emblematic cases: the Parthenon Marbles, the Yuanmingyuan treasures, and the Benin Bronzes. These examples are framed as questions of sovereignty and colonial agency. Gerstenblith critiques the “universal museum” ideal, showing how it relied on Enlightenment rationalism underpinned by imperial domination. She dismantles rescue narratives, for instance the British Museum’s justifications for retaining the marbles. Yet at times her analysis could benefit from deeper archival engagement or broader theoretical grounding, such as was undertaken by Catharine Titi in her book on the topic, which came out around the same time (Titi 2023).

The rest of the chapters revolve more around international law. Chapter 4 examines the particular issues of looting of archaeological sites and illicit trafficking of antiquities removed from sites. Chapter 5 presents an analysis of the legal structures and international conventions that aimed to curb the removal of cultural objects from their countries of origin. Chapter 6 takes a close look at international trade in, and acquisition of, cultural objects through ethical frameworks and declarations concerning ethical acquisition. Chapter 7 then reviews and discusses the shortcomings of the law and criticizes the justifications advanced by some holders of looted antiquities.

Underlying the entire study lies a liberal ethics of heritage. The book is a pinnacle of this tradition: It assumes that historical injustices can and should be addressed through law and institutional reform. Deeply reflective on ideological inflexions from the postwar period to the present, it embodies a belief in progress and accountability. For instance, the author’s analysis of the US legal framework on the repatriation of Native American graves (NAGPRA) emphasizes its implementation by museums receiving federal funding. Yet in today’s climate, when federal funding to museums is likely to stop, the question arises: What becomes of the achievements of NAGPRA when the world seems to be turning once again toward realpolitik?

The book’s limitations are equally instructive. Its perspective remains largely Euro-American, with minimal engagement with South American, Asian, or African scholarship. This is also reflected in how the cases are framed. While the book discusses the Yuanmingyuan and Benin Bronzes, it is only in their involvement with museums in Europe and the United States, with no attention to inter–Third World narratives. The book also does not fully address the contemporary political economy of restitution; why claims are mobilized by governments and communities today, and to what ends.

Nonetheless, the book succeeds in synthesizing decades of scholarship and public debate, making a compelling case that the cultural and moral debts of nineteenth-century expropriations remain unresolved. Gerstenblith offers a decolonial perspective that advocates for Indigenous sovereignty and cultural repair, looking back on the twentieth century.

In sum, this is a landmark publication. It reflects a generational shift in attitudes toward restitution, moving beyond ownership disputes to questions of justice, legitimacy, and repair. While it cannot exhaust the complexities of cultural property in a postcolonial world, it provides the clearest legal and historical map we have to date. For any interdisciplinary reader of law, art history, and cultural justice, this book is essential reading.