Law of Antiquities No.

1 of 1992
in the Emirate of Sharjah

We, Sultan bin Mohamed Al-Qassimi, Ruler of Sharjah, in accordance with that which is
required by the public interest, issued the following law:

Article 1

The following words and expressions, wherever they are mentioned in this Law, shall have
the meanings hereafter assigned thereto, unless the context requires otherwise:

State: United Arab Emirates

Emirate: Emirate of Sharjah
Region: The designated archaeological site in the Emirate.
Department: Department of Culture & Information
Head: Head of the Department
Directorate: Directorate of Antiquities & Heritage in the Department
Director: Director of the Directorate

Article 2
Antiquity

a. An antiquity left behind by earlier civilizations or generations, movable or non -

movable, created, made, engraved, portrayed, inscribed or built by man before 1900 AD,
including caves, coins, potteries, manuscripts, documents and other handicrafts which
indicate the emergence of science, arts, crafts, religions, civilizations related traditions or vital
historical events related regions, any additions to the same or whatever rebuilt after the date of
such antiquities.
b. Human, animal and plant remains dated before 600 A.D.
c. Upon the approval of the Head, the Directorate may consider the non-movable or
movable properties as antiquities as bearing historical or artistic characteristics and
representing a national heritage.

Article 3
The Two Types of Antiquities

a. Non-movable monuments: monuments connected to the land whether built on or

located underneath the same, also what is found under national waters, including remains of
cities, archaeological mounds, caves, castles, forts, walls, religious, civil and military
buildings and schools.
b. Movable monuments: a separate monument, from the land or the non-movable
monuments, whose location may be changed without causing damage to it or its related parts.
Movable may be deemed non-movable if the same was a component of a non-movable
monument, connected to it or formed a decoration or an inscription on it.
 Article 4
Excavation

Conducting excavation, probing and exploration activities for the purpose of finding movable
or non-movable monuments. Discovering monuments accidentally shall not be considered as
excavation.

Article 5
Ownership of the monument

a. Monuments whether movable or non-movable are the property of the Emirate

excluding such monuments as may be acquired by others in accordance with the provisions of
the law herein.
b. Subject to the approval of the Ruler, the Directorate shall be entitled to acquire the
ownership of any archaeological site, historic or heritage building owned by others.

Article 6

a. The ownership of the land shall not entitle its owner after acquiring the land to change
the monuments on the surface or underground or to excavate the same.
b. Breaking, deforming, damaging or destroying monuments is strictly prohibited
whether movable or non-movable ones. Causing damage to monuments by writing, inscribing
or sticking posters on the same is prohibited.

Article 7
Body responsible for Antiquities

The Directorate of Antiquities & Heritage, Department of Culture & Information, is the
empowered body responsible for conserving the antiquities in the Emirate.

The following tasks and responsibilities are vested in the Department:

1. Implement the antiquities policy in coordination with other bodies.

2. Determine the value of the monuments, archaeological sites, archaeological zones,
premises of the monuments and estimate the importance of each monument.
3. Request the concerned authority to expropriate the movable and non-movable
monuments for the sake of the public interest and indemnify owners of the same. In case of
compensation, it should not be established on the basis of its nature as a monument or on the
value of the same.
4. Manage, supervise, protect, maintain, conserve, record, improve the surroundings of
the monuments and prepare the same for public access.
5. Promote a culture of antiquities and national heritage, issue books, periodicals
specialized in the antiquities field.
6. Survey and excavate for antiquities and heritage, maintain historic and heritage
buildings, establish government museums, record and document the movable and non-
movable monuments in an official register.
7. Supervise and follow up the possession of antiquities and disposal of the same as per
the provisions of the law herein.
8. Train nationals in the excavation and preservation work and on the monuments and
heritage-related work.
9. Co-operate with the other authorities in the Emirate, State and rest of the world for
the sake of promoting the heritage and monument awareness.
10. Give licenses to official expeditions and scientific societies regarding survey and
excavations of related specific sites in the Emirate.
11. Give licenses to carry on the trade of antiquities in the Emirate.
12. Give licenses to establish non-government museums in the Emirate.
13. Give licenses to organize archaeological and heritage exhibitions in the Emirate.
14. Recover Emirate-related antiquities by all legal means.
15. Take part and co-operate in antiquities exhibitions within and outside of the State,
conferences and specialized workshops and seminars in the arena of archaeology, heritage
and museums.

Article 8
Possession of Antiquities

A person who has a movable or non-movable antiquity in his possession shall proceed to
register and document the same with the Directorate within a period of not more than one year
as from the issue date of the law herein.

Article 9

The possessor of a non-movable antiquity shall:

a. Allow the employees of the Directorate to inspect, record and document the
premises and not make any changes to the monument unless official permission is obtained
from the Directorate.
b. Allow the employees of the Directorate at any time to inspect, study, photograph
and take moulds and make sure of the registration number of the monument and preserve the
monument properly.
c. Inform the Directorate of any change that may occur to the monument such as
damage or loss.

Article 10

The Directorate may officially de-list a non-movable or movable monument after studying the
objective grounds which require such de-listing, provided that the related resolution is
published in the official gazette.

Article 11

Antiquities trading

No trade in antiquities registered in the Directorate or State or officially imported is allowed

unless permission is obtained from the Directorate. Permission is given only to UAE
Nationals.
 Article 12

The ownership of an antiquity registered by the Directorate may be transferred. In case a

holder is willing to sell a registered movable antiquity, he should apply to the Directorate for
it to consider acquiring the same at the price agreed upon between the two parties. If no
agreement is reached between the parties, it is allowed to sell the antiquity to another UAE
national, provided that such sale is officially registered and documented in the Directorate.

Article 13

The purchaser of an antiquity shall undertake not to export the antiquity outside the UAE.
The purchaser shall continuously inform the Directorate of the antiquity’s condition and
location and allow the Directorate’s staff to inspect the antiquity at any time and place.

Article 14

The Directorate shall reserve the right to confiscate the antiquity in case there might be a
fraud regarding its sale, suspicion that the antiquity has been smuggled abroad, or the
purchaser cannot preserve and protect the antiquity in a safe place or the antiquity is
improperly kept.

Article 15

The Directorate may issue export certificates, except for UAE antiquities, against payment of
fees.

Article 16

Antiquities imported to the Emirate without an export license from the exporting country shall
be confiscated by the customs, Post, security and other authorities and delivered by means of
an official report to the Directorate to conduct an investigation with the importer about the
source of such antiquity.

Article 17

If it is proven following investigation that the antiquities were smuggled and left the
exporting country illicitly and the importer was well informed of the same, the antiquities
shall be confiscated administratively and be the ownership of the Emirate and may be
returned to the country of origin provided that the same procedures are taken in the country of
origin.

Article 18

A legal holder of an antiquity or a collector of antiquities shall submit the same to the
Directorate for display in the relevant museums on permanent or temporary basis whenever it
is required. The holder is entitled to keep the antiquities in the stores of the Directorate as per
specific regulations.
 Article 19

Antiquities of the Emirates returned to the Government are not to be donated or sold.

Article 20

The Ruler of Sharjah has the right to return or exchange the antiquity if the Directorate
already has similar ones. Return and exchange shall be directed to the official authorities, or
to scientific and archaeological organizations and museums.

Article 21

A person who accidentally or through some works finds an archaeological site shall stop
carrying on such works and inform the Directorate of such discovery. The Directorate is the
only authority authorized to take a decision on continuing the works or stopping them
temporarily or completely. If the discontinuation was temporary or complete, the Directorate
should give priority to the excavation of such site and remove the causes of the
discontinuation insofar as allowed by its annual plan or its related budget.

Article 22

A person who finds, due to excavation works, an antiquity and does not have an excavation
license shall approach the Directorate within 48 hours from the time of finding the antiquity
or knowing about it. He shall not take any action that may cause damage, nor change the
monument. A report shall be made directly to the Directorate or to the nearest police station in
the region where the antiquity was discovered.

Article 23

Upon the approval of the Head, the Director may request the payment of a reward to the
person who discovered the monument or informed about it.

Article 24

a. When planning for town and village extensions, protecting sites and archaeological
features should be observed. No approval of proposed projects shall be given for locations
where monuments are unless approval is obtained from the Directorate.
b. No leveling or filling works are allowed on archaeological sites, nearby places or
places where archaeological sites are likely to be found unless approval is obtained from the
Directorate.
c. No building or reconstruction license is allowed for areas close to archaeological sites
and heritage buildings unless approval is obtained from the Directorate.
d. No heavy and hazardous industries, factories, blast furnaces or quarries are to be
constructed at a distance of less than ½ km from the monument location.
e. No license is to be granted for demolition of archaeological or heritage buildings
unless approval is obtained from the Directorate.
 Article 25
Conditions of Licensing for Organizations & Expeditions

The Directorate shall exclusively reserve the right to conduct excavation works and grant
licenses to bodies and scientific societies and expeditions to excavate for antiquities on the
basis of agreements and acknowledgment of the scientific professionalism and efficiency and
financial capabilities of such organizations. The Directorate shall reserve the right to send
technical representatives to accompany the organization which is carrying out the excavation
works.

Article 26

The duration of an excavation license shall not exceed five years; however, it may be renewed
for one year after the expiration of the license.

Article 27

A license to excavate for antiquities includes the following details:

1. Capacity and identity of the organization or the expedition and its previous
experience in the field of excavation for monuments.
2. Location of the sites of excavation as identified on specific maps.
3. Excavation programme, schedule and duration.
4. Training of UAE nationals on excavation projects.
5. Any others terms required by the Directorate.

Article 28

a. The authorized excavating body shall comply with the implementation of licensing
conditions, namely, photographing, drawing and registering the discovered antiquities
immediately in special records, preserving and taking care of the discovered monuments,
providing the Directorate with the finds periodically, submitting a brief report to the
Directorate at the end of each season as required by the Directorate and allowing the
Directorate representative to monitor the excavations. The excavating body shall transfer to
the stores specified by the Directorate the discovered antiquities while taking all the
precautions for preserving the same
b. The expedition shall restore the museum objects found in the sites so as to be
displayable after the end of excavation and give maximum help with the restoration of the
buildings discovered in the excavated sites.

Article 29

The excavating body shall provide the Directorate with a full report (in English and Arabic)
about its scientific work in the field of excavation in the previous season within a maximum
period of six months from the end of the excavation work, and submit the final report on the
excavations within a maximum period of two years of the end of the excavation work.
 Article 30

The Directorate shall take precedence for publishing the excavation reports for one year after
receiving the report, provided that the publication shall first be in the Arabic language and
may then be in foreign languages.

Article 31

In the event that the expedition did not submit the complete report within the given period, the
Directorate may publish such findings or require a third party to prepare the report along with
illustrative photos and drawings for publication, provided that the Directorate shall keep the
scientific rights in the name of the excavation team.

Article 32

The excavating body shall provide the Directorate with ten copies of any publication or
communication prepared on its participating research for conferences or seminars about
research on the antiquities of the Emirates in addition to the photographs or films of the
discovered monuments for a period of ten years.

Article 33

The excavating body is allowed to import equipment exempt from all duty or customs fees
provided that a statement of such equipment is submitted to the Directorate for approval.

Article 34
All discovered objects are the property of the Emirate and the expedition shall not be entitled
to own any of the same, even duplicates.

Article 35

In the event that the expedition breaches the provisions of this law, the Head of the
Department or a representative of the same reserves the right to terminate the excavations and
other works being done by the expedition till the settlement of the dispute. If no settlement
was reached or there was a gross contravention, the licensing may be terminated upon a
resolution by the Head on a proposal by the Directorate.

Article 36

If the license holder ceases excavation works for more than one season, the Directorate shall
reserve the right to cancel the license and grant the same to another body.

If the Directorate is satisfied with the reasons for postponing the works, it may grant the team
another period equal to the first period. If no works were resumed during the second granted
period, the license shall be finally cancelled.
 Article 37

If a dispute arises, such dispute shall be referred to the Federal courts in the Emirate which is
the only competent authority whose judgments shall be conclusive and final.

Article 38

Excavation Agreements shall be executed with the expedition in the Arabic language and in
other languages. The Arabic language version shall be the reference in case of conflict over
provisions.

Article 39

The Monuments staff or Directorate Inspectors shall be considered as judicial sequestration

officers concerning their official works in accordance with the provisions of the law herein.

Article 40
Penalties

Without prejudice to severer penalties under any other law, the following offenders shall be
sentenced to a period of not more than one year in prison, a fine of not less than fifteen
thousand Dhs. or both penalties if they

1. Excavate for monuments without obtaining a license

2. Steal antiquities
3. Smuggle, export or hide antiquities that have been sold and registered as antiquities in
the Directorate.

Article 41

Offenders shall be sentenced to imprisonment for a period of not more than one month or fine
of not more than ten thousand Dhs. or both if they:

1. Damage or destroy any monument including changing the features of the same or
separating its parts or modifying the same.
2. Discover, find or learn about the discovery of an antiquity and fail to inform about the
same in accordance with the provisions of the law.
3. Abstain or fail to submit the discovered antiquities to the Directorate, whether the
person holds an excavating license or not.
4. Export or dispose of an antiquity in contravention of the provisions of the law herein.
 Article 42

A fine of not more than ten thousand Dhs. shall be imposed on

1. Persons who did not submit for registration any antiquity in his possession after the
enforcement of the law herein.
2. Persons who give false information and data or incorrect documents to obtain a license
or permission under the provisions of this law.
3. Persons who duplicate or intend to duplicate an antiquity on purpose.
4. Persons who fabricate or handle false antiquities without obtaining a license from the
Directorate.
5. Persons who carry on trading in antiquities, establish a museum or an exhibition
without obtaining a license from the Directorate.
6. Persons who breach any other provisions of this law.

Article 43

In addition to the penalties stated in the above mentioned articles, the Directorate may

1. Confiscate any antiquities over which a crime was committed.

2. Demolish and remove any buildings causing a contravention to the provisions of this
law at the expense of the contravener, including the restoration costs of any damage to the
antiquities.

Article 44

An antiquity confiscated or sequestrated under the provisions of this law shall be instantly
submitted to the Directorate.

Article 45

Upon the approval of the Ruler, the Head of the Department shall issue necessary regulations
and resolutions for the implementation of the provisions of this law and in compliance with
the provisions thereof.

Article 46

All the concerned parties shall implement the provisions of this law which shall come into
force as of its promulgation in the official gazette.

Issued by us on 3/03/1992

Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qassimi

Ruler of Sharjah

Unofficial translation into English, October 2007

Sharjah Museums Department.