I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3497
To provide for the recovery, restitution, and protection of the cultural heritage 
of Iraq. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 17, 2003
Mr. ENGLISH (for himself and Mr. LEACH) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To provide for the recovery, restitution, and protection of 
the cultural heritage of Iraq.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iraq Cultural Heritage 
Protection Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that—
(1) cultural property is defined by the 1954 
Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural 
Property in the Event of Armed Conflict as ‘‘mov-
able or immovable property of great importance to 
the cultural heritage of every people, such as monu-
ments of architecture, art or history . . .; archae-
ological sites; groups of buildings which, as a whole, 
are of historical or artistic interest; works of art; 
manuscripts, books and other objects of artistic, his-
torical or archaeological interest; as well as scientific 
collections and important collections of books or ar-
chives . . .’’; 
(2) the region of present day Iraq (ancient 
Mesopotamia), located between the Tigris and Eu-
phrates rivers, is known as the ‘‘Cradle of Civiliza-
tion’’, the birthplace of numerous societies that 
moved civilization from prehistory to history, and 
the native land of many Biblical and Koranic events; 
(3) the cities and rural areas of Iraq are home 
to some of the oldest human settlements in the 
world as well as more than 10,000 identified archae-
ological sites of cultural and historical importance 
and tens of thousands of other unexcavated sites; 
(4) Iraq continues to serve as one of the prime 
centers of Islamic art and culture; 
(5) in the 4th millennium B.C., long before the 
emergence of Greek or Roman culture, the Sumerian 
culture flourished in the region of present day Iraq,
inventing the wheel, the first plow, the first ever so-
phisticated irrigation system, the earliest form of 
writing (cuneiform), and the first used calendar; 
(6) southern Iraq is home to the site of the an-
cient Sumerian city of Uruk, known to many as the 
first true civilized city and home to the legendary 
King Gilgamesh who built the city’s famous great 
wall; 
(7) the city of Ur, which flourished in the 3rd 
millennium B.C., and is partially excavated but yet 
to be completely uncovered, is said to be the birth-
place of Abraham; 
(8) Qurna at the junction of the Tigris and Eu-
phrates Rivers is said to be the possible location of 
the Garden of Eden; 
(9) the city of Ur holds one of the world’s old-
est and most important ziggurats, a high rising tem-
ple of sunbaked and oven baked brick with outside 
staircases leading to the shrine on top and associ-
ated temples, partially excavated but yet to be com-
pletely uncovered; 
(10) the city of Ur is the location of one of the 
greatest archaeological finds of the 20th century, a 
cemetery in which ancient Sumerian royalty were
buried along with their servants and extravagant 
treasures; 
(11) near the city of Ur is the archaeological 
site of Tel Al-Ubaid, where ancient pottery and 
sculptures dating back to 4,500 B.C. were un-
earthed; 
(12) the Akkadian Empire ruled the region of 
present day Iraq in the 3rd millennium B.C. and de-
veloped new systems of weights and measures as 
well as some of the highest quality works of art; 
(13) the Babylonian people briefly ruled the re-
gion of present day Iraq in the 2nd millennium B.C. 
and developed the capital city of Babylon which be-
came the commercial and cultural center of the Mid-
dle East for 2000 years; 
(14) the city of Babylon, flourishing from ap-
proximately 1700 to the 6th century B.C., was the 
center of operations for historical leaders such as 
Hammurabi and Nebuchadnezzar; 
(15) Hammurabi of Babylon promulgated a fa-
mous law code that provided precedents for both the 
Biblical Ten Commandments and later legal codes; 
(16) Babylon was home to the captive Israelites 
in the 6th century B.C. according to the Biblical 
book of Second Kings and the location of great ar-
Great Mosque, as well as the Abu Dalaf mosque 
with a spiral minaret, and other important buildings 
dating from 800–1200 A.D.; 
(21) in the modern city of Samarra, the tombs 
of the Tenth and Eleventh Caliphs, as well as the 
portal for the return of the Twelfth Caliph, are of 
great significance for a major segment of Shi’a 
Islam; 
(22) the tombs of the Fourth Caliph Ali and his 
son Husayn are located in Najaf and Karbala (re-
spectively), which are the two most holy cities of the 
Shiite branch of Islam; 
(23) located in Iraq’s third largest city, Mosul, 
are a Great Mosque, dating from the late 9th or 
early 10th century A.D., and nearby an ancient 
leaning brick minaret, that is all that is left of an 
Ommayad mosque dating from 640 A.D.; 
(24) in the city of Mosul is located the site of 
the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, which is ref-
erenced by the Biblical prophet Zephaniah, was the 
site of the prophet Jonah’s sermons, and includes 
royal Assyrian palaces and more than 20,000 cune-
iform tablets from King Ashurbanipal’s library; 
(25) south of the city of Mosul is located the 
ancient Assyrian capital of Nimrud, the Biblical
Calah, site of the best-preserved Assyrian palace, in 
which were found rich royal tombs of Assyrian 
queens in 1989; 
(26) near Mosul are also located the Assyrian 
capitals of Ashur and Khorsabad, in which have 
been excavated priceless treasures, including colossal 
human-headed winged bulls; 
(27) the city of Ashur and another capital, Kar 
Tukulti Ninurta, across the Tigris have remains of 
three palaces and hold great works of art from the 
royal Assyrian workshops of the 13th century B.C., 
residences of merchants from the 18th century B.C., 
and temples built before the 21st century B.C., 
many of which have not yet been excavated; 
(28) the site of the ancient city of Hatra, lo-
cated west of Mosul, is known as the ‘‘City of the 
Sun’’ which holds many archaeological remains, es-
pecially Parthian artifacts, and served as a trade 
and military route along the Wadi Tharthar; 
(29) located at the site of the Parthian and 
later Sassanian capital of Ctesiphon, 20 miles south-
east of Baghdad, are the remains of a gigantic 
vaulted hall, the Taq Kisra, which has one of the 
largest single-span brick arches in the world and is 
extremely fragile;
(30) it should be recognized that the aforemen-
tioned Iraqi cities and archaeological sites comprise 
a representative but not comprehensive list of endan-
gered cultural antiquities; 
(31) despite extensive efforts by U.S. and coali-
tion forces to limit damage to archaeological and 
cultural sites during Operation Iraqi Freedom, 
looting has been widespread in the aftermath of the 
military conflict. Thousands of items are reported 
missing from the National Museum, the Archives, 
Library and the modern art museum in Baghdad, 
and large-scale looting has occurred at numerous re-
corded and unrecorded archaeological sites, including 
Adab, 
Umm 
al-Aqarib, 
Isin, 
Larsa, 
Nippur, 
Zabalam, Shuruppak, and Umm al-Hafriyat. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act—
(1) the term ‘‘archaeological material of 
Iraq’’—
(A) means any object or fragment or part 
of an object that was first found within the bor-
ders of Iraq and that—
(i) was built, manufactured, sculpted, 
produced, or written by humans; 
(ii) is at least 100 years old; and
(iii) was discovered as a result of sci-
entific excavation, illegal or clandestine 
digging, accidental discovery, or explo-
ration on land or under water; 
(B) includes all human and animal skeletal 
remains, as well as floral and botanical remains, 
that are found in association with archae-
ological material described in subparagraph (A); 
and 
(C) does not include any coin or coin-like 
object that is less than 250 years old; 
(2) the term ‘‘coin or coin-like object’’ means 
any piece of gold, silver, or other metal or material, 
that is—
(A) fashioned into a prescribed shape, 
weight, or degree of fineness, and 
(B) stamped or embellished with a device,
by the authority of a government or govern-
mental or quasi-public authority in order that 
the piece may circulate as currency; 
(3) the term ‘‘cultural material of Iraq’’ means 
any object, regardless of age, including manuscripts, 
and materials used for traditional or religious cere-
monial purposes, or a fragment or part of an object, 
that was, on or after August 2, 1990, in the care
of Iraq’s cultural or religious institutions and is of 
historic, artistic, religious, scientific, or cultural in-
terest. 
SEC. 4. IMPORT RESTRICTION. 
(a) IMPORT PROHIBITION.—No archaeological mate-
rial of Iraq or cultural material of Iraq that was removed 
from Iraq after Executive Order 12722 of August 2, 1990, 
was issued may be imported into the United States, unless 
the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection of the De-
partment of Homeland Security determines that expor-
tation of the material from Iraq was lawful pursuant to 
a valid certification or other documentation issued by the 
appropriate governing authority in Iraq certifying that the 
exportation of the material was not in violation of the laws 
of Iraq. 
(b) CUSTOMS ACTION IN ABSENCE OF DOCUMENTA-
TION.—If the consignee of any archaeological material of 
Iraq or cultural material of Iraq is unable to present to 
the appropriate customs officer at the time of making 
entry of such material the certification or other docu-
mentation by the appropriate governing authority in Iraq 
required under subsection (a), the customs officer shall de-
tain the material, and shall send it to a bonded warehouse 
or store to be held at the risk and expense of the con-
signee, notwithstanding any other provision of law, until
such certification or other documentation is filed with such 
officer. If such certification or other documentation is not 
presented within 90 days after the date on which such ma-
terial is detained, or such longer period as may be allowed 
by the Secretary of Homeland Security for good cause 
shown, the material shall be subject to seizure and for-
feiture.
(c) LIFTING OF IMPORT PROHIBITIONS.—The import 
prohibitions imposed under this Act on archaeological or 
cultural material of Iraq shall cease to be effective with 
respect to archaeological or cultural material that is re-
moved from Iraq at the end of the 6-month period begin-
ning on the date on which paragraph 7 of United Nations 
Security Council Resolution 1483, adopted on May 22, 
2003, ceases to be effective or is suspended pursuant to 
a decision of the United Nations Security Council. 
SEC. 5. FORFEITURE OF UNLAWFUL IMPORTS. 
(a) SEIZURE.—Archaeological material of Iraq or cul-
tural material of Iraq that is imported into the United 
States in violation of this Act shall be seized and subject 
to forfeiture under the customs laws of the United States. 
All provisions of law relating to seizure, forfeiture, and 
condemnation for violation of the customs laws shall apply 
to seizures and forfeitures under this Act, insofar as those
provisions of law are applicable to, and not inconsistent 
with, the provisions of this Act. 
(b) DISPOSITION OF ARTICLES.—Any archaeological 
material of Iraq or cultural material of Iraq that is for-
feited to the United States under this Act shall be re-
turned to the country of Iraq. 
SEC. 6. COUNTRY OF ORIGIN. 
In applying the Tariff Act of 1930 or any other provi-
sion of the customs laws of the United States to an article 
that is an object, or fragment of an object, discovered as 
a result of scientific excavation, illegal or clandestine 
digging, accidental discovery, or exploration on land or 
under water, the country of origin of the object or frag-
ment is the country within whose borders, as they exist 
at the time the object or fragment is imported, or at-
tempted to be imported, into the United States, the object 
or fragment was first discovered or excavated. 
SEC. 7. AMENDMENTS TO CONVENTION ON CULTURAL 
PROPERTY IMPLEMENTATION ACT. 
(a) DEFINITION OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL OR ETHNO-
LOGICAL MATERIAL.—Section 302 of the Convention on 
Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2601) 
is amended—
(1) in paragraph (2)(i)—
(A) by amending subclause (II) to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(II) subject to subclause (IV), is at 
least 100 years old’’; and 
(B) by inserting after subclause (III) the 
following: 
‘‘(IV) in the case of any coin or coin-
like object, is at least 250 years old; and’’; 
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through 
(11) as paragraphs (4) through (12), respectively; 
and 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(3) The term ‘coin or coin-like object’ means 
any piece of gold, silver, or other metal or material, 
that is—
‘‘(A) fashioned into a prescribed shape, 
weight, or degree of fineness, and 
‘‘(B) stamped or embellished with a device, 
by the authority of a government or governmental or 
quasi-public authority in order that the piece may 
circulate as currency.’’. 
(b) EMERGENCY IMPLEMENTATION OF IMPORT RE-
STRICTIONS.—Section 304 of the Convention on Cultural
Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2603) is amend-
ed—
(1) by striking ‘‘State Party’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘country’’; and 
(2) in subsection (c)—
(A) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2); 
and 
(B) by striking paragraph (3) and insert-
ing the following: 
‘‘(1) No import restrictions under section 307 
may be applied under this section to the archae-
ological or ethnological materials of any country for 
more than 10 years after the date on which the no-
tice in the Federal Register imposing such restric-
tions is published. Such 10-year period may be ex-
tended by the President for additional periods if the 
President determines that the emergency condition 
continues to apply with respect to the archaeological 
or ethnological material.’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (4)—
(i) by redesignating such paragraph 
as paragraph (2); and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘paragraph (3)’’ and 
inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’.
(c) CULTURAL PROPERTY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—
Section 306 of the Convention on Cultural Property Im-
plementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2605) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(1)—
(A) by striking ‘‘eleven’’ and inserting 
‘‘thirteen’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (A), by striking 
‘‘Two’’ and inserting ‘‘Three’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(E) One member who shall be an expert 
in the field of conservation of archaeological or 
ethnological artifacts, sites, or related areas.’’; 
(2) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘Six’’ and in-
serting ‘‘Seven’’; 
(3) in subsection (f)—
(A) by striking paragraph (3) and redesig-
nating paragraphs (4) through (6) as para-
graphs (3) through (5), respectively; and 
(B) in paragraph (3), as so redesignated—
(i) by striking ‘‘or the implementation 
of emergency action under section 304’’; 
and 
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
‘‘or action’’.
(d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The Convention 
on Cultural Property Implementation Act is amended—
(1) in section 302 (19 U.S.C. 2601)—
(A) in paragraph (2)—
(i) by amending the matter preceding 
subparagraph (A) to read as follows: 
‘‘(2) The term ‘archaeological or ethnological 
material’ of a State Party or other country means—
’’; and 
(ii) in the matter following subpara-
graph (C), by inserting ‘‘or other country’’ 
after ‘‘State Party’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (8), as redesignated by 
subsection (a)(2) of this section, by inserting 
‘‘or another country’’ after ‘‘State Party’’; 
(2) in section 305 (19 U.S.C. 2604) in the first 
sentence, by striking ‘‘by such action’’ and inserting 
‘‘the country covered by such action’’; 
(3) in section 307 (19 U.S.C. 2606)—
(A) in subsection (a)—
(i) by striking ‘‘the State Party’’ the 
first place it appears and inserting ‘‘the 
country concerned’’; and
(ii) by striking ‘‘the State Party’’ each 
subsequent place it appears and inserting 
‘‘that country’’; and 
(B) in subsections (b) and (c), by striking 
‘‘the State Party’’ each place it appears and in-
serting ‘‘the country concerned’’; 
(4) in section 310(b) (19 U.S.C. 2609(b)) by 
striking ‘‘State Party’’ each place it appears and in-
serting ‘‘country concerned’’; and 
(5) 
in 
section 
312(2)(C) 
(19 
U.S.C. 
2611(2)(C)), by striking ‘‘State Party’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘country’’. 
(e) EXTENSION OF AGREEMENTS.—
(1) EXTENSION.—Section 303 of the Conven-
tion on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 
U.S.C. 2602) is amended—
(A) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘five-
year’’ and inserting ‘‘10-year’’; and 
(B) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘five 
years’’ and inserting ‘‘10 years’’. 
(2) EXISTING
AGREEMENTS.—Any agreement 
that is entered into under section 303(a) of the Con-
vention on Cultural Property Implementation Act 
before the date of enactment of this Act and is in 
effect on such date of the enactment, shall be effec-
tive for a period of ten years beginning on the date 
on which the agreement entered into force with re-
spect to the United States.
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