Augie
The Fart Meister
Posts: 491
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Post by Augie on Dec 20, 2005 23:53:44 GMT
Hi folks,
Some things that I saw recently got me thinking about this sublect. Where do antiquities belong? I am NOT referring to antiquities that are stolen outright from museums. That is a different story. I am referring to antiquities that are found buried in the ground.
Recently, there was a story in the media about Inca artifacts from Peru that were displayed at an American University (Yale?). Peru claims that they were "stolen". Yale claims that they are legally theirs. Where should they be displayed?
The biggest problem here is that Peru wasn't capable of properly caring for these artifacts until recently. They were taken to America for safe-keeping. Additionally, the fact that these artifacts were displayed in America inspired people's interest in them and in the Inca people. That, in turn, encouraged people to visit Peru. That equals tourism and money. So, Peru benefitted from having these artifacts in America for about 100 years.
But Peru wants them back now. Can they care for them and provide for their safety?
Augie
(continued in next post...)
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Augie
The Fart Meister
Posts: 491
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Post by Augie on Dec 21, 2005 0:05:10 GMT
Hi folks,
I recently saw a show on the History Channel about Caligula's 2 luxury ships on Lake Nemi in Italy. They were at the bottom of the lake for 2,000 years. In 1928, Mussolini raised them and put them in a museum for safe-keeping. They were in excellent condition.
During World War II, German soldiers stationed in Italy deliberately set fire to these 2,000 year old ships. They were totally destroyed. The world saw them for only 15 years. This begs the question: Would they have been better off in a private collection or museum in another (safer?) country?
There were museums in Berlin that were also totally destroyed during World War II. The artifacts in these museums were lost forever. For example, there were dinosaur bones in those museums that were "one of a kind". Those Berlin museums housed the only known examples in existance. They were totally destroyed and lost to humanity forever.
Augie
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Augie
The Fart Meister
Posts: 491
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Post by Augie on Dec 21, 2005 0:10:11 GMT
Hi folks,
There are really 2 questions here:
1) Do antiquities belong in museums or in private collections? This is the old "museum vs. private collection" arguement.
2) What country should antiquities be stored in? If a country is unstable, should antiquities be moved to another (safer?) country?
You know the old saying: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." I think it is safer to spread antiquities around between museums, private collectors, different countries, etc.
What do you think?
Augie
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Augie
The Fart Meister
Posts: 491
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Post by Augie on Dec 21, 2005 0:29:45 GMT
Hi folks, Some countries really carry this to an extreme. They feel that people are "stealing their culture". Greece and Turkey will give you the death penalty if they catch you exporting antiquities out of their countries. Italy doesn't have a death penalty. They will just throw your ass in prison for a very, very long time. It's one thing to steal an antiquity from a museum. But artifacts that are found buried in the ground are a different story. I don't look at it as "stealing their culture". I look at it as "spreading their culture" and educating people about their culture. This inspires tourism. By having antiquities in other countries, it also gives them (the country of origin) many different "brains" working on solving the mysteries of the past. The laws in these countries really get "crazy" and "stupid" when you are dealing with things that are mass-produced. For example, the Roman Empire minted (mass-produced) millions of the same type of coin. Today, there could be 10,000 examples of the exact same coin that have survived from antiquity. Let's say that 20 of those coins are in museums in Italy. What about the other 9,980 examples of that coin? Is it "wrong" for private collectors in other countries to own them? Let's say that some guy in Italy gets caught exporting 10 examples of that coin. Should he be sent to prison for 20 or 50 years for it? Augie
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Augie
The Fart Meister
Posts: 491
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Post by Augie on Jun 2, 2006 23:00:33 GMT
Hi folks,
In the past few months, there were stories in the newspapers here in NYC about antiquities that were "stolen" from Morgantina, Sicily. They are currently on display at the "Met" museum here in NYC.
It was determined that these artifacts were removed from the ground at Morgantina back in circa 1972. Somehow, they made their way to NYC. The Italian government found out about them, and they want their "stolen" property returned.
The Met museum actually worked out a comprimise deal where the artifacts would alternate between Italy and the Met museum in NYC.
Augie
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