News item | 06-03-2025 | 09:00
Minister Bruins (Education, Culture and Science) wants to prevent a Golden Medieval Ring from being sold abroad. He started the process to retain the Ring for the Netherlands, after a request to transport it abroad for sale. The minister has decided that in principle the object should not leave the Netherlands because the Ring has irreplaceable historical value for our country. In 2022, the Ring was therefore designated as a protected culture. It is the first time that a minister has triggered such a process with a designated cultural property.
Minister Bruins: “Protected cultural goods are carriers of our history and identity. They are an indispensable part of the collective memory of the Netherlands. I think it is important that the Ring remains in the Netherlands so that future generations can also experience and understand their value.”
It is a medieval gold ring, dated from the 9th/10 century, with a representation of the Lamb of God surrounded by the four evangelists. The ring was found in 1997 in the Frisian Sumar by a metal detector amateur. Since 2022, the cultural property has been designated as protected and included in the register. The ring is here to view.
Protected status
The Minister of Education, Culture and Science can designate cultural goods in private possession as a protected cultural goods if they are in danger of leaving the Netherlands. This authority is to preserve objects that are of great importance for Dutch cultural history for the Netherlands. In such a decision, he is advised by the Commission Protected Cultural Goods. This committee finds whether the cultural goods is irreplaceable and indispensable for the Netherlands collection and therefore must be preserved for the Netherlands.
As soon as the cultural property has been designated, the Netherlands may not leave without the minister’s permission. Due to the cultural -historical significance of this cultural property for the Netherlands collection, the minister did not give this permission in this case. The powers of the minister follow from the Heritage Act.
Follow -up process
Potential, interested buyers in the Netherlands now have six weeks to purchase the jewelry and thereby keep it within our national borders. Isn’t a buyer reporting? Then the minister’s decision can be seen as an offer from the state to buy the ring. If this happens, the Ring will become part of the National Collection and a place will be sought to make the ring accessible to the public.