Brett
--- In Ancientartifacts@yahoogroups.com, "Dave Welsh" <dwelsh46@...>
wrote:
>
> Readers of the AncientArtifacts list have recently indicated how
unhappy
> they are with many posts that have appearedlately in that list.
Paul Barford
> and his fellow traveler Trevor have been mentioned as the
originators of
> some of the most objectionable messages.
>
> I ask that our long-suffering list readers take just a moment to
understand
> who began this intensely disagreeable and wearisome controversy,
and who are
> those presently stoking the flames.
>
> Prior to 1970 there was no public controversy regarding antiquities
> collecting. Objections to this time-honored avocation were mostly
confined
> to a relatively small number of radical archaeologists (led by Colin
> Renfrew) and cultural preservation interests, notable those
of "source
> states" in Latin America, Africa and other underdeveloped countries
whose
> citizens had no objection to exporting old cultural artifacts for
money.
>
> In these days of cultural peace, collectors and antiquities dealers
were
> significant supporters of the archaeological community, and often
donated
> generously to help start or sustain archaeological expeditions. I
did so
> myself, and my contribution (according to the leader of the
project, who
> read my letter to the expedition staff) was helpful in keeping
interest
> going during the most difficult times of the Mary Rose project.
>
> In 1970 a very divisive international convention (the UNESCO
Convention) was
> promulgated, and since then things have never been the same.
Collectors and
> the antiquities dealer community on the one hand, and
archaeologists,
> cultural authorities and allied academics on the other hand, are
literally
> at war with each other. It is a cold war - so far no one is
shooting at each
> other - but one that is nevertheless deadly serious. I fear that it
will
> turn out to be like the Israel-Palestinian conflict, an
uncompromising clash
> of ideology that can only be settled by force majeure and will go
on almost
> indefinitely.
>
> If the so-called preservation lobby would simply accept the status
quo, and
> agree that collectors and dealers have a right to an open licit
market to
> provide antiquities to collectors, there would be no controversy and
> everyone involved could direct their efforts toward working in
harmony to
> reform and clean up the antiquities trade. The preservation lobby
does not
> want to settle for that. Instead, they intend to work for the
abolition of
> the antiquities trade and of antiquities collecting. That really is
their
> ultimate objective, they are working very hard and intelligently at
it, and
> they have powerful allies in academia and in various governmental
bureaus
> and ministries.
>
> It's quite clear to me that this unrelenting assault upon
collecting, this
> unjustifiable blackguarding of collectors and dealers with the most
> misleading doublespeak and linguistic misdirection since the heyday
of Josef
> Goebbels, is driven by radical socialist ideology (all artifacts
belong to
> the State) not by realistic practical considerations. Everyone
would be far
> better off if the effort involved had been cooperatively directed
toward
> concrete measures directed at the causes of antiquities looting and
> smuggling, not the unrealistic fantasies of archaeologists and
academics who
> do not understand the antiquites trade, nor the views and concerns
of those
> doing the looting.
>
> So when you see the next round of posts on this unwelcome topic,
please
> remember that collectors and dealers are not those stoking the
flames -
> Baford & Co. are doing that. We are their very unwilling victims,
and all we
> are attempting to do is to defend ourselves. When they stop this
> unreasonable, unjustified and unproductive attack, the controversy
will
> immediately end.
>
> Dave Welsh
> Unidroit-L Listowner
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Unidroit-L
> dwelsh46@...
>
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