The airport will soon install five special cameras that can transfer the image of a suspicious object to the Shanghai Commission of Relics Management, where experts can date and authenticate the item.

"We are short of professional experts, which causes us to either delay travelers' belongings to a later time or let antique smugglers through," said Chen Mingzhi, deputy director of the Customs' supervision and control department, yesterday.

Currently, any antique made prior to 1795 and some artifacts made between 1795-1949 are considered valuable artifacts and thus cannot be taken overseas, according to the relics commission.

Travelers are usually advised to obtain exit certificates for antiques before going to the airport. But if they don't have the certificate and Customs officials have questions about an object's value, experts have to be called in to evaluate the item, a process that can take hours.

"Normally, our Customs officers don't delay passengers or confiscate their belongings without convincing evidence because we have to take responsibility for the consequences," Chen said.

From 1999 to 2002, the Customs cracked 25 major antique smuggling cases involving 2,632 pieces.

"Most of the smuggled antiques would be sold at very steep prices at overseas antique markets, particularly those in Hong Kong and Britain," Chen said.

In 2000, the Customs stopped a smuggler from taking 50-plus dinosaur eggs out of China, and in 2001 it nabbed two Japanese smugglers who tried to slip 298 ancient Chinese coins and dozens of silver ingots from the country.

The commission also announced that the city now has 624 licensed antique companies but only 23 of those stores are authorized for overseas sales.

(eastday.com January 16, 2003)