Rule2026-00582
Extension of Import Restrictions on Categories of Archaeological and Ethnological Material From Morocco
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 14, 2026
Effective
January 14, 2026
Issuing agencies
Homeland Security DepartmentU.S. Customs and Border Protection
Abstract
This document amends the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations to reflect an extension of import restrictions on certain categories of archaeological and ethnological material from the Kingdom of Morocco (Morocco), which were originally imposed by CBP Decision 21-02. The CBP regulations are being amended to reflect this extension through January 14, 2031.
Full Text
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 14, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1382-1387]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-00582]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
19 CFR Part 12
[CBP Dec. 26-02]
RIN 1685-AA39
Extension of Import Restrictions on Categories of Archaeological
and Ethnological Material From Morocco
AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland
Security.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This document amends the U.S. Customs and Border Protection
(CBP) regulations to reflect an extension of import restrictions on
certain categories of archaeological and ethnological material from the
Kingdom of Morocco (Morocco), which were originally imposed by CBP
Decision 21-02. The CBP regulations are being amended to reflect this
extension through January 14, 2031.
DATES: Effective on January 14, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For legal aspects, W. Richmond
Beevers, Chief, Cargo Security, Carriers and Restricted Merchandise
Branch, Regulations and Rulings, Office of Trade, (202) 325-0084, or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#305f441d5f44424253455c444542515c40425f4055424449705352401e5458431e575f46"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3d52491052494f4f5e485149484f5c514d4f524d584f49447d5e5f4d1359554e135a524b">[email protected]</span></a>. For operational aspects, Queena
Fan, Director, Interagency Collaboration Division, Trade Programs
Directorate, Office of Trade, (202) 945-7064, or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1b2a4e485c59697a7578735b78796b357f7368357c746d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e5d4b0b6a2a797848b868da5868795cb818d96cb828a93">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (Pub. L. 97-
446, 19 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) (CPIA), which implements the 1970 United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit
Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (823
U.N.T.S. 231 (1972)) (the Convention), allows for the conclusion of an
agreement between the United States and another party to the Convention
to impose import restrictions on eligible archaeological and
ethnological material. The Secretary of the Treasury, or the
Secretary's delegate, is authorized to, by regulation, promulgate and,
when appropriate, revise the list of designated archaeological and/or
ethnological materials covered by an agreement between State Parties to
the Convention (19 U.S.C. 2604). Under the CPIA and the applicable U.S.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations, found in Sec. 12.104
of title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations (19 CFR 12.104), the
restrictions are effective for no more than five years, beginning on
the date on which an agreement enters into force with respect to the
United States (19 U.S.C. 2602(b)). This period may be extended for
additional periods, each extension not to exceed five years, if it is
determined that the factors justifying the initial agreement still
pertain and no cause for suspension of the agreement exists (19 U.S.C.
2602(e); 19 CFR 12.104g(a)).
On January 14, 2021, the United States and the Kingdom of Morocco
(Morocco) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding entitled,
``Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the United
States of America and the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco
Concerning the Imposition of Import Restrictions on Categories of
Archaeological and Ethnological Material of Morocco'' (the
[[Page 1383]]
MOU). The MOU entered into force upon signature on January 14, 2021,
and reflects an agreement to impose import restrictions on certain
categories of archaeological material ranging in date from
approximately 1 million B.C. to A.D. 1750, as well as certain
categories of ethnological material from the Saadian and Alaouite
dynasties ranging in date from approximately A.D. 1549 to 1912. On
January 22, 2021, CBP published a final rule (CBP Dec. 21-02) in the
Federal Register (86 FR 6561), which amended 19 CFR 12.104g(a) to
reflect the imposition of these restrictions and included a list
designating the types of archaeological and ethnological material
covered by the restrictions.
On December 30, 2024, the United States Department of State
proposed in the Federal Register (89 FR 106724) to extend the MOU. On
August 7, 2025, after considering the views and recommendations of the
Cultural Property Advisory Committee, the Acting Assistant Secretary
for Educational and Cultural Affairs, United States Department of
State, made the necessary determinations to extend the MOU for an
additional five years. Pursuant to an exchange of diplomatic notes, the
United States and Morocco have agreed to extend the MOU for an
additional five-year period, through January 14, 2031.
Accordingly, CBP is amending 19 CFR 12.104g(a) to reflect the
extension of the import restrictions. The designated list is also being
revised to clarify that one of the subcategories of ethnological
material that comes under ``Wood'' includes all writing materials. The
restrictions on the importation of categories of archaeological and
ethnological material from Morocco will continue in effect through
January 14, 2031. Importation of such material from Morocco continues
to be restricted until that date unless the conditions set forth in 19
U.S.C. 2606 and 19 CFR 12.104c are met.
Amended Designated List
The Designated List, covering archaeological material from
approximately 1 million B.C. to A.D. 1750, and ethnological material
from approximately A.D. 1549 to 1912, that are protected pursuant to
the existing 2021 agreement, has been revised. One category of
ethnological material under the subheading ``Wood'' is being revised to
``writing materials,'' rather than only ``writing implements,'' as it
was previously phrased. For clarity, the category is also being revised
to include additional specific reference to inscribed wooden tablets in
its description.
The Designated List of restricted material and additional
information may also be found at the following website address: <a href="https://www.state.gov/current-agreements-and-import-restrictions">https://www.state.gov/current-agreements-and-import-restrictions</a> by selecting
the material for ``Morocco.'' For ease of reference, the Designated
List that was published in CBP Dec. 21-02, including the revisions
mentioned above, is reproduced below:
Amended Designated List of Archaeological and Ethnological Material of
Morocco Categories of Material
The Agreement between the United States and Morocco includes the
categories of objects described in the Designated List set forth below.
Importation of material on this list is restricted unless the material
is accompanied by documentation certifying that the material left
Morocco legally and not in violation of the export laws of Morocco.
The Designated List includes certain archaeological and
ethnological material from the Kingdom of Morocco. The archaeological
material in the Designated List includes, but is not limited to,
objects made of stone, ceramic, metal, bone, ivory, shell, glass,
faience, semi-precious stone, painting, plaster, and textiles ranging
in date from approximately 1 million B.C. to A.D. 1750. The
ethnological material included in the Designated List contains
architectural elements, manuscripts, and ceremonial and ritual objects
of the Islamic culture from the Saadian and Alaouite dynasties ranging
in date from approximately A.D. 1549 to 1912. This would exclude Jewish
ceremonial or ritual objects.
I. Archaeological
A. Stone
B. Ceramic
C. Metal
D. Bone, Ivory, Shell, and Other Organic Materials
E. Glass, Faience, and Semi-Precious Stone
F. Painting and Plaster
G. Textiles, Basketry, and Rope
II. Ethnological
A. Stone
B. Metal
C. Ceramic and Clay
D. Wood
E. Bone, Ivory, and Shell
F. Glass and Semi-Precious Stone
G. Leather, Parchment, and Paper
I. Archaeological Material
Archaeological material covered by the Agreement includes
categories of objects from the Paleolithic, Neolithic, Phoenician,
Greek, Mauritanian, Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic (Idrisid, Almoravid,
Almohad, Marinid, Saadian, and Alaouite) periods and cultures ranging
in date from approximately 1 million B.C. to A.D. 1750.
Approximate chronology of well-known archaeological periods and
sites:
a. Paleolithic period (c. 1 million-6500 B.C.): Thomas Quarry, Sidi
Abderrahmane, Jebel Irhoud, Dar Soltane 2, Taforalt Cave
b. Neolithic period (c. 6500-300 B.C.): Kaf Taht El Ghar, Rouazi
Skhirat, Tumulus of Mzoura
c. Phoenician period (c. 600-300 B.C.): Lixus, Mogador, Tangiers,
Thamusida
d. Mauretanian period (c. 300-49 B.C.): Lixus, Tangiers, Thamusida,
Volubilis, Rirha
e. Roman period (c. 40 B.C.-A.D. 600): Banasa, Cotta, Dchar Jdid,
Kouass, Lixus, Mogador, Rirha, Sala, Tamuda, Thamusida, Volubilis
f. Islamic period (c. A.D. 600-present): \1\ Aghmat, Al-Mahdiya,
Belyounech, Chichaoua, Essaouira, Fez, Figuig, Ighliz, Moulay Idris,
Qsar es-Seghir, Marrakesh, Meknes, Rabat, Sala, Sijilmasa, Tetouan,
Tinmal, Volubilis (Walila)
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\1\ Import restrictions concerning archaeological material from
the Islamic period apply only to those objects dating from c. A.D.
600-1750.
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A. Stone
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes doors, door
frames, window fittings, columns, capitals, bases, lintels, jambs,
archways, friezes, pilasters, engaged columns, altars, prayer niches
(mihrabs), screens, fountains, inlays, and blocks from walls, floors,
and ceilings of buildings. Architectural elements may be plain, molded,
or carved and are often decorated with motifs and inscriptions. Marble,
limestone, sandstone, and gypsum are most commonly used, in addition to
porphyry and granite.
2. Mosaics--Floor mosaics are made from stone cut into small bits
(tesserae) and laid into a plaster matrix. Wall and ceiling mosaics are
made with a similar technique, but may include tesserae of both stone
and glass. Subjects can include landscapes; scenes of deities, humans,
or animals; religious imagery; and activities, such as hunting or
fishing. There may also be vegetative, floral, or geometric motifs and
imitations of stone.
3. Architectural and Non-Architectural Relief Sculptures--Types
include carved slabs with figural, vegetative, floral, geometric, or
other decorative motifs, carved relief vases,
[[Page 1384]]
steles, palettes, and plaques. All types can sometimes be inscribed in
various languages. Sculptures may be used for architectural decoration,
including in religious, funerary (e.g., grave markers), votive, or
commemorative monuments. Marble, limestone, and sandstone are most
commonly used.
4. Monuments--Types include votive statues, funerary or votive
stelae, and bases and base revetments made of marble, limestone, and
other kinds of stone. These may be painted, carved with relief
sculpture, decorated with moldings, and/or carry dedicatory or funerary
inscriptions in various languages.
5. Statuary--Types include large-scale representations of deities,
humans, animals, or hybrid figures made of marble, limestone, or
sandstone. The most common type of statuary are freestanding life-sized
portrait or funerary busts (head and shoulders of an individual)
measuring approximately 1 m to 2.5 m (approximately 3 ft to 8 ft) in
height. Statuary figures may be painted.
6. Figurines--Figurines are small-scale representations of deities,
humans, or animals made of limestone, calcite, marble, or sandstone.
7. Sepulchers--Types of burial containers include sarcophagi,
caskets, reliquaries, and chest urns made of marble, limestone, or
other kinds of stone. Sepulchers may be plain or have figural,
geometric, or floral motifs painted on them. They may be carved in
relief, and/or have decorative moldings.
8. Vessels and Containers--These include bowls, cups, jars, jugs,
lamps, flasks, and smaller funerary urns. Funerary urns can be egg-
shaped vases with button-topped covers. Vessels and containers can be
made of marble, limestone, calcite, or other stone.
9. Furniture--Types include thrones, tables, and beds, from
funerary or domestic contexts. Furniture may be made from marble or
other stone.
10. Tools and Weapons--Chipped stone types include blades, borers,
scrapers, sickles, burins, notches, retouched flakes, cores,
arrowheads, cleavers, knives, chisels, and microliths (small stone
tools). Ground stone types include grinders (e.g., mortars, pestles,
millstones, whetstones, querns), choppers, spherical-shaped hand axes,
hammers, mace heads, and weights. The most commonly used stones are
flint, chert, obsidian, and other hard stones.
11. Jewelry--Types include seals, beads, finger rings, and other
personal adornment made of marble, limestone, or various semi-precious
stones, including rock crystal, amethyst, jasper, agate, steatite, and
carnelian.
12. Seals and Stamps--These are small devices with at least one
side engraved (in intaglio and relief) with a design for stamping or
sealing. Stamps and seals can be in the shape of squares, disks, cones,
cylinders, or animals.
13. Rock Art--Rock art can be painted and/or incised drawings on
natural rock surfaces. Tazina-style art is common from southern
Morocco. Common motifs include humans, animals, such as horses, and
geometric and/or floral elements.
B. Ceramic
1. Architectural Elements--These are baked clay (terracotta)
elements used to decorate buildings. Examples include acroteria,
antefixes, painted and relief plaques, revetments, carved and molded
bricks, knobs, plain or glazed roof tiles, and glazed tile wall
ornaments and panels.
2. Figurines--These include clay (terracotta) statues and
statuettes in the shape of deities, humans, and animals ranging in
height from approximately 5 cm to 20 cm (2 in to 8 in). Ceramic
figurines may be undecorated or decorated with paint, appliques, or
inscribed lines.
3. Vessels and Containers--Types, forms, and decoration vary among
archaeological styles and over time. Shapes include jars, jugs, bowls,
pitchers, basins, cups, storage and shipping amphorae, cooking pots
(such as Roman mortaria), and large water jugs (zirs). Examples may be
painted or unpainted, handmade or wheel-made, and may be decorated with
burnishes, glazes, or carvings. Roman terra sigillata and other red
gloss wares are particularly characteristic. Ceramic vessels can depict
imagery of humans, deities, animals, floral decorations, or
inscriptions.
4. Lamps--Lamps can be handmade or molded, glazed or unglazed, and
may have ``saucer,'' ``slipper,'' or other forms; they typically will
have rounded bodies with a hole on the top and in the nozzle, handles
or lugs, and may be decorated with motifs, such as beading, human
faces, and rosettes or other floral elements. Inscriptions may also be
found on the body. Later period examples may have straight or round,
bulbous bodies with a flared top and several branches.
5. Objects of Daily Use--These include game pieces, loom weights,
toys, tobacco pipes, and andirons.
C. Metal
1. Statuary--These are large- and small-scale, including deities,
human, and animal figures in bronze, iron, silver, or gold. Common
types are large-scale, freestanding statuary ranging in height from
approximately 1 m to 2.5 m (approximately 3 ft to 8 ft) and life-size
busts (head and shoulders of an individual).
2. Reliefs--These include plaques, appliques, steles, and masks,
often in bronze. Reliefs may include inscriptions in various languages.
3. Inscribed or Decorated Sheet Metal--These are engraved
inscriptions and thin metal sheets with engraved or impressed designs
often used as attachments to furniture or figures. They are primarily
made of copper alloy, bronze, or lead.
4. Vessels and Containers--Forms include bowls, cups, plates, jars,
jugs, strainers, cauldrons, and boxes, as well as vessels in the shape
of an animal or part of an animal. This category also includes scroll
and manuscript containers, reliquaries, and incense burners. These
vessels and containers are made of bronze, silver, or gold, and may
portray deities, humans, or animals, as well as floral motifs in
relief. They may include an inscription.
5. Jewelry--Jewelry includes necklaces, chokers, pectorals, finger
rings, beads, pendants, bells, belts, buckles, earrings, diadems,
straight pins and fibulae, bracelets, anklets, girdles, wreaths and
crowns, cosmetic accessories and tools, metal strigils (scrapers),
crosses, and lamp holders. Jewelry may be made of iron, bronze, silver,
or gold. Metal can be inlaid with items, such as colored stones and
glass.
6. Seals and Sealings--Seals are small devices with at least one
side engraved with a design for stamping or sealing. Types include
finger rings, amulets, and seals with a shank. Seals can be made of
lead, tin, copper, bronze, silver, and/or gold. Sealings are lead
strips, stamped in Arabic, used for closing bags of coins.
7. Tools--Types include hooks, weights, axes, scrapers,
hammerheads, trowels, locks, keys, nails, hinges, tweezers, ingots,
mirrors, thimbles, and fibulae (for pinning clothing). Tools may be
made of copper, bronze, or iron.
8. Weapons and Armor--This includes body armor, such as helmets,
cuirasses, bracers, shin guards, and shields, and horse armor, often
decorated with elaborate designs that are engraved, embossed, or
perforated. This also includes both launching weapons (e.g., spears,
javelins, arrowheads) and hand-to-hand combat weapons (e.g., swords,
daggers, etc.) in copper, bronze, and iron.
9. Lamps--Lamps can be open saucer-type or closed, rounded bodies
with a hole on the top and in the nozzle, handles, or lugs. They can
include
[[Page 1385]]
decorative designs, such as beading, human faces, animals or animal
parts, and rosettes or other floral elements. This category includes
handheld lamps, candelabras, braziers, sconces, chandeliers, and lamp
stands.
10. Coins--This category includes coins of Numidian, Mauretanian,
Greek/Punic, Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, and Medieval Spanish types that
circulated primarily in Morocco, ranging in date from the fifth century
B.C. to A.D. 1750. Coins were made in copper, bronze, silver, and gold.
Examples may be square or round, have writing, and show imagery of
animals, buildings, symbols, or royal figures.
D. Bone, Ivory, Shell, and Other Organic Materials
1. Small Statuary and Figurines--These include representations of
deities, humans, or animals in bone or ivory. These range from
approximately 10 cm to 1 m (4 in to 40 in) in height.
2. Reliefs, Plaques, Steles, and Inlays--These are carved and
sculpted and may have figurative, floral, and/or geometric motifs.
3. Jewelry--Types include amulets, pendants, combs, pins, spoons,
bracelets, buckles, beads, and pectorals. Jewelry can be made of bone,
ivory, and spondylus shell.
4. Seals and Stamps--These are small devices with at least one side
engraved with a design for stamping or sealing. Seals and stamps can be
in the shape of squares, disks, cones, cylinders, or animals.
5. Vessels and Luxury Objects--Ivory, bone, and shell were used
either alone or as inlays in luxury objects, including furniture,
chests and boxes, writing and painting equipment, musical instruments,
games, cosmetic containers, and combs. Objects can include decorated
vessels made of ostrich eggshell.
6. Tools--Tools include bone points and awls, burnishers, needles,
spatulae, and fish hooks.
7. Manuscripts--Manuscripts can be written or painted on specially
prepared animal skins (e.g., cattle, sheep, goat, camel skins) known as
parchment. They may be single leaves, bound as a book or codex, or
rolled into a scroll.
8. Human Remains--This includes skeletal remains from the human
body, preserved in burials or other contexts.
E. Glass, Faience, and Semi-Precious Stone
1. Architectural Elements--These include glass inlay and tesserae
pieces from floor and wall mosaics, mirrors, and windowpanes.
2. Vessels and Containers--These can take various shapes, such as
jars, bottles, bowls, beakers, goblets, candle holders, perfume jars
(unguentaria), and flasks. Vessels and containers may have cut,
incised, raised, enameled, molded, or painted decoration. Ancient
examples may be engraved and/or light blue, blue-green, green, or
colorless, while those from later periods may include animal, floral,
and/or geometric motifs.
3. Jewelry--Jewelry includes bracelets and rings (often twisted
with colored glass), pendants, and beads in various shapes (e.g.,
circular, globular), some with relief decoration, including multi-
colored ``eye'' beads.
4. Lamps--Lamps may have a straight or round, bulbous body, some in
the form of a goblet, with flared top, and engraved or molded
decorations and may have several branches.
F. Painting and Plaster
1. Wall Painting--Wall painting can include figurative (i.e.,
deities, humans, animals), floral, and/or geometric motifs, as well as
funerary scenes. These are painted on stone, mud plaster, and lime
plaster (wet--buon fresco--and dry--secco fresco), sometimes to imitate
marble.
2. Stucco--This is a fine plaster used for coating wall surfaces,
or molding and carving into architectural decorations, such as reliefs,
plaques, steles, and inlays.
G. Textiles, Basketry, and Rope
1. Textiles--These include linen, hemp, and silk cloth used for
burial wrapping, shrouds, garments, banners, and sails. These also
include linen and wool used for garments and hangings.
2. Basketry--Plant fibers were used to make baskets and containers
in a variety of shapes and sizes, as well as sandals and mats.
3. Rope--Rope and string were used for a great variety of purposes,
including binding, lifting water for irrigation, fishing nets,
measuring, lamp wicks, and stringing beads for jewelry and garments.
II. Ethnological Material
Ethnological material covered by the Agreement includes
architectural elements, manuscripts, and ceremonial and ritual objects
of the Islamic culture from the Saadian and Alaouite dynasties ranging
in date from approximately A.D. 1549 to 1912. This would exclude Jewish
ceremonial or ritual objects.
A. Stone
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes doors, door
frames, window fittings, columns, capitals, plinths, bases, lintels,
jambs, archways, friezes, pilasters, engaged columns, altars, prayer
niches (mihrabs), screens, fountains, inlays, and blocks from walls,
floors, and ceilings of buildings. Architectural elements may be plain,
molded, or carved and are often decorated with motifs and inscriptions.
Marble, limestone, and sandstone are most commonly used.
2. Architectural and Non-Architectural Relief Sculpture--This
category includes slabs, plaques, steles, capitals, and plinths carved
with religious, figural, floral, or geometric motifs or inscriptions in
Arabic. Examples occur primarily in marble, limestone, and sandstone.
3. Memorial Stones and Tombstones--This category includes
tombstones, grave markers, and cenotaphs. Examples occur primarily in
marble and are engraved with Arabic script.
4. Vessels and Containers--This category includes stone lamps and
containers, such as those used in religious services, as well as
smaller funerary urns.
B. Metal
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes doors, door
fixtures, such as knockers, bolts, and hinges, chandeliers, screens,
taps, spigots, fountains, and sheets. Copper, brass, lead, and alloys
are most commonly used.
2. Architectural and Non-Architectural Relief Sculpture--This
category includes appliques, plaques, and steles, primarily made of
bronze and brass. Examples often include religious, figural, floral, or
geometric motifs. They may also have inscriptions in Arabic.
3. Lamps--This category includes handheld lamps, candelabras,
braziers, sconces, chandeliers, and lamp stands.
4. Vessels and Containers--This category includes containers used
for religious services, such as Koran (Qur'an) cases and incense
burners. Brass, copper, silver, and gold are most commonly used.
Containers may be plain, engraved, hammered, or otherwise decorated.
5. Musical Instruments--This category includes instruments used in
Islamic/Sufi religious ceremonies or rituals, such as cymbals and
trumpets.
C. Ceramic and Clay
This category consists of architectural elements, which include
carved and molded brick, and engraved and/or painted and glazed tile
wall ornaments and panels, sometimes with Arabic script.
[[Page 1386]]
D. Wood
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes doors, door
frames and fixtures, windows, window frames, panels, beams, balconies,
stages, screens, prayer niches (mihrabs), portable mihrabs (anazas),
minbars, and ceilings. Examples may be decorated with religious,
geometric, or floral motifs or inscriptions, and may be either carved
or painted.
2. Architectural and Non-Architectural Relief Sculpture--This
category includes panels, roofs, beams, balconies, stages, panels,
ceilings, and doors. Examples are carved, inlaid, or painted with
decorations of religious, floral, or geometric motifs or Arabic
inscriptions.
3. Furniture--This category includes furniture, such as minbars,
professorial chairs, divans, stools, and tables from Islamic ceremonial
or ritual contexts. Examples can be carved, inlaid, or painted, and are
made from various types of wood.
4. Vessels and Containers--This category includes containers used
for religious purposes, such as Koran (Qur'an) cases. Examples may be
carved, inlaid, or painted with decorations in religious, floral, or
geometric motifs, or Arabic script.
5. Writing Materials--This category includes printing blocks,
writing tablets, and Islamic study tablets inscribed in Arabic and used
for teaching the Koran (Qur'an). Includes wooden tablets used for
record-keeping and contracts in Amazigh or Berber tradition, sometimes
called alwah or arraten; these are inscribed in ink in Arabic, and
range in size from approximately 10 to 50 cm in length.
6. Musical Instruments--This category includes instruments used in
Islamic/Sufi religious ceremonies or rituals, such as frame drums
(banadir).
7. Beads--This category includes Islamic prayer beads (mas'baha).
Examples may be plain or decorated with carved designs.
E. Bone, Ivory, and Shell
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes inlays for
religious decorative and architectural elements.
2. Ceremonial Paraphernalia--This category includes boxes,
reliquaries (and their contents), plaques, pendants, candelabra, and
stamp and seal rings.
F. Glass and Semi-Precious Stone
1. Architectural Elements--This category includes windowpanes,
mosaic elements, inlays, and stained glass.
2. Vessels and Containers--This category includes glass and enamel
mosque lamps and ritual vessels.
3. Beads--This category includes Islamic prayer beads (mas'baha) in
glass or semi-precious stones.
G. Leather, Parchment, and Paper
1. Books and Manuscripts--Manuscripts can be written or painted on
specially prepared animal skins (e.g., cattle, sheep, goat, camel
skins) known as parchment or paper. They occur as single leaves, bound
with leather or wood as a book or codex, or rolled into a scroll. Types
include the Koran (Qur'an) and other Islamic books and manuscripts,
often written in black or brown ink, and sometimes embellished with
painted colorful floral or geometric motifs.
2. Vessels and Containers--This category includes containers used
for Islamic religious services, such as leather Koran (Qur'an) cases or
pouches.
3. Musical Instruments--This category includes instruments used in
Islamic/Sufi religious ceremonies or rituals, such as leather drums
(banadir).
References
Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian
Peninsula, 700-1800, 2020, Jonathan M. Bloom, Yale University Press,
New Haven.
Corpus nummorum Numidiae Mauretaniaeque, 1955, Jean Mazard, et al.,
Arts et m[eacute]tiers graphiques, Paris.
Etude sur la numismatique et l'histoire mon[eacute]taire du Maroc i:
Corpus des dirhams idrissites et contemporains, 1971, Daniel
Eustache, Banque du Maroc, Rabat.
Etude sur la numismatique et l'histoire mon[eacute]taire du Maroc
ii: Corpus des Monnaies Alaouites, 1984, Daniel Eustache, Banque du
Maroc, Rabat.
Le Maroc M[eacute]di[eacute]val: Un Empire de l'Afrique [agrave]
l'Espagne, 2014, October 15, 2014 ed., Yannick Lintz, Claire
D[eacute]l[eacute]ry, and Bulle Tuil Leonetti, Louvre Museum, Paris.
Les Bronzes Antiques du Maroc, Etudes et travaux
d'arch[eacute]ologie marocaine, 1969-1994, Christiane Boube-Piccot,
[Eacute]ditions marocaines et internationales, Tangier.
The Roman Provincial Coinage, Multiple Volumes, 1992-, Andrew
Burnett, et al., The British Museum Press, London.
Inapplicability of Notice and Delayed Effective Date
This document involves a foreign affairs function of the United
States and is, therefore, being made without notice or public procedure
under 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1). For the same reason, a delayed effective date
is not required under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
Executive Order 12866
Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) directs
agencies to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory
alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory
approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential economic,
environmental, public health and safety effects, distributive impacts,
and equity). CBP has determined that this document is not a regulation
or rule subject to the provisions of Executive Order 12866 because it
pertains to a foreign affairs function of the United States, as
described above, and therefore is specifically exempted by section
3(d)(2) of Executive Order 12866.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), as amended
by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996,
requires an agency to prepare and make available to the public a
regulatory flexibility analysis that describes the effect of a proposed
rule on small entities (i.e., small businesses, small organizations,
and small governmental jurisdictions) when the agency is required to
publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking for a rule. Since a
general notice of proposed rulemaking is not necessary for this rule,
CBP is not required to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis for
this rule.
Signing Authority
In accordance with Treasury Order 100-20, the Secretary of the
Treasury has delegated to the Secretary of Homeland Security the
authority related to the customs revenue functions vested in the
Secretary of the Treasury as set forth in 6 U.S.C. 212 and 215, subject
to certain exceptions. This regulation is being issued in accordance
with Department of Homeland Security Delegation 07010.3, Revision 03.2,
which delegates to the Commissioner of CBP the authority to prescribe
and approve regulations related to cultural property import
restrictions.
Rodney S. Scott, the Commissioner of CBP, having reviewed and
approved this document, has delegated the authority to electronically
sign this document to the Director of the Regulations and Disclosure
Law Division of CBP, for purposes of publication in the Federal
Register.
List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 12
Cultural property, Customs duties and inspection, Imports,
Prohibited merchandise, and Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Amendment to the CBP Regulations
For the reasons set forth above, part 12 of title 19 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (19 CFR part 12), is amended as set forth below:
[[Page 1387]]
PART 12--SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE
0
1. The general authority citation for part 12 and the specific
authority citation for Sec. 12.104g continue to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202 (General Note 3(i),
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)), 1624.
* * * * *
Sections 12.104 through 12.104i also issued under 19 U.S.C.
2612;
* * * * *
0
2. In Sec. 12.104g, amend the table in paragraph (a) by revising the
entry for Morocco to read as follows:
Sec. 12.104g Specific items or categories designated by agreements
or emergency actions.
(a) * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State party Cultural property Decision No.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * * * *
Morocco.............................. Archaeological material from Morocco CBP Dec. 26-02.
ranging in date from approximately 1
million B.C. to A.D. 1750, and
ethnological material from Morocco
ranging in date from approximately
A.D. 1549 to 1912.
* * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
Robert F. Altneu,
Director, Regulations and Disclosure Law Division, Regulations and
Rulings, Office of Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
[FR Doc. 2026-00582 Filed 1-13-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-14-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 14, 2026.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.