Trust(s) ‘with Chinese Characteristics’ and Cultural Heritage Protection in the People’s Republic of China

This article analyses two of the most original types of trust currently used in the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter: PRC): the ‘cultural relics trust’ (文物 托管 wenwu tuoguan) and the ‘museum trust’ (博物馆 托管 bowuguan tuoguan). Until recently these types of trust have been almost neglected by Chinese national legislators and rarely investigated by Chinese legal academics. Nevertheless, in the past dozen years they have aroused the interest of scholars concerned about the protection of the Chinese material cultural heritage, as well as that of collectors, owners of movable and immovable cultural relics, museums and, more in general, of public and private institutions. This led to some notable, albeit not very frequent, experiments at the local level. This article explores such developments, still little known by non-experts, both within the PRC and abroad, which one day might prove instrumental in the creation of a truly effective cultural heritage management and promotion system. I will begin by analysing the general definitions of cultural relics and trust contained in the PRC’s laws and legal theory. I will then explore how Chinese legal players have been able to take advantage of the vagueness of these definitions to create two new types of cultural property trusts, different but (at least apparently) equally useful in enhancing the protection of Chinese material heritage. Finally, I will devote some attention to the proposals, de jure condendo, recently brought forward by Chinese scholars to introduce to Chinese national legislation the concepts of ‘cultural relic trust’ and ‘museum trust’ as well as the results of the local experiments already carried out in these fields.