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The South Australian Museum is committed to exhibiting items, objects and specimens, only in accordance with the highest standards of due diligence (including ethical and professional practice, and in accordance with applicable law).
As part of this commitment, the South Australian Museum invites people to contact it if they have a concern about an object that the South Australian Museum has borrowed or is about to borrow from overseas. For example, please contact the South Australian Museum if:
you wish to make a claim (such as an ownership claim) over such a work;
if you have any questions about such a work; or
if you want further information about such a work’s ownership or provenance.
We set out below information about our enquiry and claims handling procedures in relation to objects borrowed by the South Australian Museum from overseas. These objects will usually be subject to the provisions of the Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan Act 2013 (Cth) (“the Act”), which (among other things) generally prevents an item from being seized or forfeited while it is in Australia.
Objects that the South Australian Museum is borrowing or has borrowed from overseas and that are subject to the Act are published on the Museum’s website at least four weeks prior to the work being imported into Australia, and only removed once the work leaves Australia.
What information do I need to provide if I am making a claim or enquiry?
If you wish to make a claim or enquiry, or if you want additional information about a work the South Australian Museum has borrowed or is borrowing from overseas, you will need to provide us with the following in writing:
your name, address and contact details;
if you are making a claim or enquiry on behalf of someone else, that person’s name, contact details and their relationship to you;
a short summary of the claim to the work;
copies of any documents or other evidence that may be relevant to the claim or enquiry; and
a statement confirming that you are aware that the South Australian Museum may inform the lender of the request and supply them with information on the claim.
How will the South Australian Museum consider my enquiry or claim?
As part of the Department of State Development the South Australian Museum operates under the guidance of the Department of State Development’s Customer Complaints Management Policy and Customer Complaints Management Procedure.
The South Australian Museum will give serious consideration to each enquiry and claim it receives in relation to a work borrowed from overseas, based on the nature and circumstances of each enquiry or claim.
In determining whether an enquiry or claim in relation to a work borrowed from overseas and subject to the Act is justified, the South Australian Museum may consider, among other things:
the documentation and evidence you provide;
the documentation provided by the lender
if you are known to the South Australian Museum and whether you have already made the same or a similar claim in another country; and
in the case of Australian cultural material (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander material), a close examination of the work’s known provenance and history, including how the work left the custody of any relevant individual or community and the circumstances in which it was exported from Australia.
What response should I expect to get back from the South Australian Museum?
Where we are satisfied an object’s provenance is established we will provide you with information on the provenance and due diligence procedures we followed. Such research will be in accordance with the policies and procedures of the South Australian Museum and is required under the Act.
We would also give the lender an opportunity to respond to a claim made in relation to an object. We would normally also provide you with an outline of the lender’s response to your claim.
We will also direct you to any additional information about an object available either on our own website, or elsewhere.
Please note, however, that the South Australian Museum retains the right not to disclose any of the above if we determine that it is not, in all the circumstances, appropriate to do so.
How long will it take for the South Australian Museum to respond to my enquiry or claim?
The South Australian Museum will acknowledge your enquiry or claim within 3 working days. The Museum will aim to provide the outcome of the investigation within 10 working days of receiving the enquiry or claim. If it is not possible to complete the required investigation within that time period, you will be informed of the expected response time. To assist in a prompt response, please make sure you provide all the details that the South Australian Museum will likely need to assess your claim and to accurately identify any information you have requested.
What will happen if the South Australian Museum determines that a claim I make is justified?
If the South Australian Museum determines that you have a legitimate claim in relation to a work before that work is imported into Australia, the South Australian Museum will assess whether or not it is appropriate, in all the circumstances, to continue with the loan. In making that assessment, the South Australian Museum will have full regard to its due diligence and provenance standards, as set out in the Museum’s Collections Policy and Loan of Cultural Objects Policy.
Please note, however, that once a work has been imported into Australia on loan from overseas, your ability to take legal action in relation to that work in Australia may be limited by the provisions of the Act. For information on the Act, see https://www.arts.gov.au/funding-and-support/protection-cultural-objects-loan-scheme.
Who do I contact at the South Australian Museum if I want to make a claim or enquiry?
If you want to make a claim or enquiry in relation to a work of art that the South Australian Museum has borrowed from overseas, please address your enquiry to feedback@samuseum.sa.gov.au
Please note that the information above relates to enquiries and claims relating to the ownership or provenance of a work borrowed from overseas for temporary public exhibition.