This summer should also contain my first extended period of time working at U. Maryland-College Park. Once the bureaucratic overlords are appeased, I look forward to diving into the Sr (strontium) chemistry. I will also present SI-internally at this conference; sharing a general overview of isotopic bioarchaeology and what I will do for my project.
On the antiquities front, I am off to Switzerland tomorrow (!!!) to present at the first All Art and Heritage Law Conference on behalf of my U Sydney colleague and I, in regards to nascent investigations of the Vietnamese/Hanoi antiquities trade. Very excited to see a new city (Geneva) that I've never been to and meet/learn from some true experts in this area. Hope I do it justice. As usual, not looking forward to the long, draining flights... For those of you who follow me on Twitter, I will attempt semi-live tweeting as well, provided I get good WiFi.
In other news, I am pleased to announce that my and this same colleague's recent paper on the global online human remains trade will be released soon in Crime, Law, and Social Change. Long time coming, but we feel it's a good start to updating, and thus better understanding and monitoring, this overlooked aspect of cultural property trafficking. A week ago, myself, several colleagues old and new (including members of SAFE and The Antiquities Coalition) attended the CPAC hearing at the State Det. to decide on an MoU with Egypt. The room was packed to hear arguments both for and against...but I feel the outcome will be a clear win. You can read more about it here and here.
I am also happy to help to drum up press for the new book due out in October, in which a chapter by us (submitted from a talk given in February 2013!) will be found. Contemporary Perspectives on the Detection, Investigation and Prosecution of Art Crime (Ashgate Press). As other articles, chapters, and parts of my PhD enter and hopefully survive the review-process wringer, you'll hear about 'em!
That's me, signing off. There will be stories and a conference summary when I return. Till next time, constant vigilance!
