This contribution unveils the outcomes of a research project undertaken in 2021 by the Dutch section of the University of Trieste, as a collaborative effort within the framework of the Dutch Literature in Translation international platform. The project's primary aim was the comprehensive analysis and comparative evaluation of the Italian, French, English, and German translations of Cees Nooteboom's novel Rituelen (1980). The focal point of this inquiry lies in the diverse translation strategies employed to convey culture-bound terms embedded in the source text. Moreover, the study involved a group of ten Italian students in Applied interlinguistic communication and Conference interpreting and solicited their insights regarding the translation choices concerning culture-bound terms in the Italian rendition. This article opens by focusing on literary translation as a form of cultural mediation and the translation of culture-bound terms and on Cees Nooteboom's work from a transnational point of view. Subsequently, the findings of our research project are exposed by focussing on the results related to two case studies: culture-bound terms that are linked to the history of the Netherlands and heterolingualism in the scrutinized novel. For each case study different translation techniques as well as students’ comments will be analysed in a transnational perspective.