ABSTRACT
According to estimates by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Italy holds approximately 30 per cent of the European cultural heritage. The Berlusconi government began privatizing part of it through its ‘Law 112/2002’. By late 2003, 36 items, from antiquity to the 20th century, have been sold to international investment firms such as the American Carlyle Group and private investors, in most cases for amounts well below market value. As of 2003, hundreds more objects, among them temples, antique cities, medieval palazzos, archaeological sites, museums, beaches and islands, were waiting to be sold.
