AIMS & OBJECTS OF THE IADAA
 

The main objectives of the IADAA
ARE:
 

1.

To encourage the study and interest throughout the world of ancient art and to address issues concerning exclusively works of ancient art from the Mediterranean civilisations and other civilisations directly in contact with them.
   

2.

To encourage contacts between museums, archaeologists, collectors and the trade and to foster its relations with governmental and non-governmental international organisations.
   
3. To actively encourage the protection and preservation of ancient sites. IADAA subscribes to the view put forward in the preamble to the Hague Convention of the 14th May 1954 (249 U. N. T>S. 240) that "Damage to cultural property belonging to any people whatsoever, means damage to the cultural heritage of all mankind, since each people makes its contribution to the culture of the world."
We believe that a more liberal and rational approach to regulations on the import and export of works of art will help to protect world cultural heritage.
   
4. To organise mutual assistance beween dealers in works of ancient art and official Institutions, by communicating to members of IDAA all information needed to apply strictly to the code of ethics and practice (cf. "AIMS & OBJECTS").
   
5.

To foster friendly relations between members of the Association.
   
(This is an extract from the Rules of the IADAA (Article 2))
 
 

The International Association of Dealers in Ancient Art (IADAA) was formed in 1993 by an international  group of art dealers specialized in Antiquities in order to respond to an increasing and aggressively spread amount of misleading information about the nature, the goals and the actually undeniable but equally often unrealized merits of our profession. We believe one of our prime functions as dealers is to participate actively in the preservation of the remains of man's ancient past. We have fulfilled this function with considerable success and we intend to do so further in a responsible, respectful and realistic way.

IADAA firmly believes that every country has a right (and indeed a duty) to preserve in public ownership the most important cultural objects, and should have a pre-emptive right over new finds. What we are referring to as responsible art dealers are the vast majority of antiquities which have no particular importance and which are already more than amply represented in public collections. These antiquities are without any doubt better treated and preserved for future generations - and even for their potential scientific needs - in carefully maintained private collections than in unattended museum cellars and cluttered depots.

There can and should be no doubt that a market for antiquities will continue to exist - man's interest in his own past, not to mention the legitimate impulse to collect beautiful objects, will see to that - but there is a choice to be made. Either legitimate dealers may be driven out of business by a process of increasing red tape, in which case the illicit trade will flourish, or the legitimate trade may be allowed to exist in a controlled context which would help to strangle the illegitimate traffic. This is a choice, which can only be made by sovereign governments, and it will take immense courage and foresight to arrive at the correct solution, but it must be faced. IADAA is ready and willing to help in any way possible.

(This is partially based on the Article "Ethics The Antiquities Trade & Archaeology." by James Ede; to see the full text of this article please click here.)