The Australian Government’s Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan (PCOL) Scheme was established to administer the Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan Act 2013 (the Act).
The Act encourages international loans by providing legal protection for cultural objects on loan from overseas lenders for temporary public exhibition in Australia.
In order to be eligible for protection under the Act, the objects must be loaned by a lender ordinarily resident or incorporated in a country outside Australia or the government of another country, and the items must be imported into Australia for the primary purpose of temporary public display. The items will be protected from the date of import, until they are exported from the country.
Queensland Museum Network has been an approved borrowing institution under the Act since December 2016.
Further information about the scheme can be found at the Commonwealth Ministry for the Arts website.
Queensland Museum Network has several policies that govern the process of acquiring, borrowing and lending objects and specimens in accordance with the requirements of due diligence and in keeping with the parameters of the Act.
These policies outline the principles upon which the Queensland Museum Network ensures material is only acquired or borrowed where the vendor, donor or lender has legal title to the items, there is established provenance and the material is authentic and has not been looted or illegally obtained or exported.
The policies apply when material is being considered for acquisition via purchase, gift (including via the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program), bequest or exchange or in the case of inward loans and when lending material to external borrowers.
Queensland Museum Network is committed to hosting exhibitions of international standing from around the world in accordance with the highest principles of professional practice; by adhering to ethical and moral standards and all applicable laws and conventions.
As part of this commitment, Queensland Museum Network will consider all enquiries from people who might have concerns about an object on loan from overseas; such as a claim or clarification of ownership or provenance.
In order to provide complete transparency in this regard, all objects on loan from overseas which are subject to the Act are published below in the section Upcoming International Exhibitions at least one month prior to importation into Australia.
In the event that an individual, cultural group, organisation, institution, keeping place or Government wishes to make a claim or enquiry, or if additional information is required regarding an object Queensland Museum Network has on loan from overseas, the following information is required in writing:
If you want to make a claim or enquiry in relation to an item that Queensland Museum Network intends to borrow, or has borrowed from overseas, please contact us online, or write to us
By post
Protection of Cultural Objects on Loan
Queensland Museum Network
PO Box 3300
South Brisbane BC Qld 4101
Please note that this information relates to enquiries and claims concerning the ownership or provenance of an item borrowed from overseas for temporary public exhibition. For all other comments and enquiries about items, please refer to collection loans.
Dinosaurs of Patagonia
The information below describes the objects borrowed by Western Australian Museum (2nd July - 23 October 2022) and Queensland Museum Network for the Dinosaurs of Patagonia exhibition from the Museo Paleontologico Egidio Feruglio. Dinosaurs of Patagonia will be on display at Queensland Museum, cnr. Melbourne and Grey Street, Brisbane, 4101, from 17 March until 2 October 2023.
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Queensland Museum Network is the keeping place for the State Collection of more than 1.2 million items.