Artefacts, cultural heritage and grave-related items policy

When listing any artefacts, cultural heritage or grave-related items, users of shoppingtown.info must follow the guidelines and regulations of the following Australian Government Departments:

Department of the Environment and Energy

Department of Communications and the Arts

Department of Home Affairs

Trading artefacts and heritage items internationally

Users must make sure that any listings and transactions for the sale or artefacts and heritage items internationally are lawful and the requirements for permits and protocols are adhered to for the country of the seller, country of the buyer and the country of the item?s origin. At shoppingtown.info we consider any items of cultural significance from anywhere in the world as an artefact in terms of this policy.

All artefacts sold on shoppingtown.info must be authentic and the seller must include information about the provenance or ownership history of the item.

Items that have been looted or stolen are not allowed to be listed.

Australian cultural heritage items

Users can list Australian cultural property items on shoppingtown.info sale within Australia. For sales and shipping out of Australia, items on the National Cultural Heritage Control List must have a permit to be sold overseas and certain items may not be exported at all.

The transfer, possession and custody of relics or artefacts from historic shipwrecks is regulated in Australia and administered by the Department of the Environment and Energy. A permit is required when selling or buying historic shipwreck relics within Australia, and when exporting these items overseas.

Restricted

Relics from historic shipwrecks may be listed within Australia, provided the seller has obtained the appropriate permit, and displays a copy of it in their listing. (Note: The buyer is also obliged to submit a notification of their purchase within 30 days.)

Class A protected objects on the National Cultural Heritage Control List are illegal to export from Australia. Listings for any such items which are otherwise allowed under this policy may not offer international postage

Listings for any Class B protected objects on the National Cultural Heritage Control List which are otherwise allowed under this policy may offer international postage, provided the relevant export permit is shown in the listing

Not allowed

Items considered sacred by Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander persons

Other grave-related items, tombstones and related funerary items

Only new, unused funerary items may be listed on Shoppingtown. While we recognise that some historical grave markers or other items may be privately held within families and legal to sell, we don't permit them on Shoppingtown.

Restricted

The following items are allowed, as long as they're new and have never been used:

Burial plots

Caskets

Headstones

Tombstones

Urns

Not allowed

Historical graves, tombstones or related markers, including burial-related objects of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage

Used funerary items like headstones, markers or urns

Additional information

Shoppingtown has provided the information on this page to assist you in trading lawfully on Shoppingtown. Shoppingtown is not in any position to assess a particular artefact and whether its sale would be unlawful. You are responsible for ensuring that your transaction is lawful.

Here is a brief summary of the relevant legislation. If you have any questions regarding your rights to sell an artefact, either within Australia or overseas, you should contact the relevant government department and/or consult with a lawyer

Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage (PMCH) Act 1986

Cultural property ? objects that people create or collect ? forms an important part of a nation's identity and can be artistic, technological, historical or natural in origin. National and international cultural property is protected in Australia and administered by the Department of Communications and the Arts.

The National Cultural Heritage Control List sets out whether certain objects may be exported:

Class A protected objects are considered of such significance to Australia that they may not be exported. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Victoria Cross medals awarded to Australian service personnel

Significant items of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage, such as rock art and ritual objects

Class B protected objects require a permit to be exported. Examples include, but are not limited to:

Coins and other artefacts from historic shipwrecks

Items of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander heritage

Archaeological objects

Natural science objects such as meteor fragments

Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976

Under the Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976, it is illegal to disturb or remove items from historic shipwrecks without a permit. However, the law does provide ways in which dealers and collectors can legally purchase or sell coins and other relics or artefacts.

Visit the Department of the Environment and Energy website for more information about the Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976 and possessing and exporting historic shipwreck relics.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (ATSIHP Act) can protect areas and objects that are of particular significance to Aboriginal people. The ATSIHP Act allows the Environment Minister, on the application of an Aboriginal person or group of persons, to make a declaration to protect an area, object or class of objects from a threat of injury or desecration.

Visit the Department of the Environment and Energy website for more information about indigenous heritage laws.