The Global Architecture of Trafficking in Cultural Goods: Routes, Players and Patterns.

• In Event: Trafficking in Organized Crime

Abstract

This paper scrutinizes the various dimensions of Trafficking in Cultural Goods (TCG), including trafficking routes, actors, patterns, and recent changes in this illicit trade. The analysis reveals significant diversity in TCG phenomena globally. Criminal activities in this field have not led to an oligopolistic market but rather a decentralized constellation of small trafficking networks and individuals. Consequently, no common patterns emerge from available intelligence and empirical data; instead, there is a diverse array of trafficking practices with marked differences across space and time. Furthermore, the exploration of TCG activities highlights that empirical data only allow stakeholders to draw general conclusions about main routes, critical factors favoring trafficking, and archetypical actors involved. Having said that. this paper aims to analyze these tendencies to better understand the key issues shaping a broader and current picture of trafficking in cultural goods.

Author

• David Castro-Liñares, University of Vigo