If You Happen to Find Yourself in Chicago...

On November 14th, please make an effort to attend this one-day symposium, to be offered by the DePaul University College of Law Centre for Art, Museum and Cultural Heritage Law. The symposium "will address the underlying legal, ethical and moral reasons and policies behind the return of cultural objects. Panels will discuss provenance research, museum acquisitions, the 1970 UNESCO Convention and historical appropriations, and the ethical issues that come into play when requests for repatriation are made." It is rare to see so many influential scholars on this topic in the same room at the same time, so this is truly an opportunity not to be missed (if you're not on an entirely different continent, as I am).

Topics will include "market and legal" perspectives on the need for more thorough provenance (ownership history) research, how museums can negotiate the acquisition of artifacts that lack a pre-1970 provenance (and should they?), legal and moral aspects of international calls for repatriation of artefacts lifted during the Colonial-era, and the oft-contentious issue of when museums and private dealers or collectors should and shouldn't heed calls for repatriation. All in all, it seems like quite the fascinating gathering...one that I wish I could attend! If any readers of this blog do attend, and would like to guest-blog about what they learned, they are more than welcome.

A "Wrecked" Opportunity?

Yet another historic shipwreck has been discovered and heavily plundered off the coast of Vietnam (Quang Ngai Province), the third since 1998. Thanh Nien News reports that towards the end of June, about 30 boats full of "treasure hunters" rushed over to plunder the shallow wreck; unfortunately discovered no more than 100 meters from the coast and 1.5m deep (more news here).

The seabed around the clusters of likely c. 16th-17th century blue-on-white ceramics discovered has also been dredged and disturbed in the hunt for more artifacts, thereby revealing some of the wreck itself, but also destroying vital archaeological context regarding site formation and taphonomy. There is even testimony to the effect that axes and crowbars were used to free individual artifacts from the wreck as quickly as possible, smashing other pieces in the process!

Fortunately, police have allegedly been on patrol since last Friday morning and a southern Vietnamese "salvage" company was contracted out to conduct an excavation of what remained (see photo above left). The trajectory of discovery, looting, patrol, and "salvage" that occurred for this wreck is very similar to that which occurred for another c. 13th-14th century wreck in the area.

The merits of approaching a salvage company (headed by a known antiquities collector...), as opposed to an organization devoted to maritime archaeology such as the Vietnam Maritime Archaeology Project Centre (full disclosure: colleagues of mine), is open to debate. I'd assume it's just a question of time and money, as always.

Here's hoping that authorities will have better luck recovering looted items this time around, but how many are destined for international markets as opposed to local collections is anyone's guess. Vietnamese heritage law would theoretically prevent their export (search for Vietnam here), but enforcement and detection is another matter. With the likely upcoming expansion of Dung Quat port, time is running out to decide what to do with these wreck; remove it or preserve it in-situ as a tourist attraction? Given that other wrecks from different time periods remain unexcavated (but already looted?), how authorities deal with this situation will set important precedent. Stay tuned...  

Live Blogging from Bhutan

For the last week, I have been attending the 1st annual "International Conference on Protection of Cultural Property in Asia" conference, in Thimphu, Bhutan. Pre-conference tours have been incredible, with scenic Himalayan mountain views, visits to Dzongs (monasteries) as old as the 8th and 16th centuries (such as the Taktsang, or "Tiger's Nest," at left) and weekend markets, nightlife, cultural institutions, and interesting and spicy food were all enjoyed. We even "auspiciously" caused a lovely snow fall yesterday and today through our very presence, according to many! The people, both the governmental, military and Ministerial authorities who have made this conference possible, and the "civilian" Bhutanese themselves, have been most accommodating to our varied international diets, levels of cold-tolerance, the occasional technical difficulties, etc. All in all, a wonderful time.

Conference delegates derive from numerous countries across Europe, North America, Australia, and several Asian nations; all united to share the latest developments in issues of policing, monitoring, documenting art and antiquities crime, and preserving heritage. Representatives of INTERPOL, UNESCO, most of Bhutan's governmental ministries concerned with heritage preservation, several museums, textile conservators, and numerous archaeologists and criminologists from several Universities.

Topics have touched on all aspects of local and international law and treaties, loopholes needing to be closed, how to better facilitate networking, active cases (some as current as last month), museum security, unique aspects of the Asian trade, etc., etc. I have left humbled, yet again, by the complexity of this problem, but also its urgency and the commitment, against often steep odds and dire statistics, to do something about it wherever possible.

Stay tuned for more detailed summaries here and elsewhere!

Destroying Syria's Past...

This excellent report, compiled in May, is just too important not to share. It details the massive damage still occurring to Syrian archaeological sites of all time periods, with or without World Heritage listing. It also documents the even more recent looting of some key museums (e.g. the Homs museum), and the involvement of players on all sides of the conflict. Despite repeated and ongoing calls for on-the-ground help and greater contingency efforts, it appears that the situation remains grave. Another excellent summary can be found here, with video testimony.

Much praise needs to go to Mrs. Cunliffe, of Durham University, for her hard work in bringing this information to light, and in such a multifaceted way. The use of photos, media links, YouTube etc. is, in my opinion, an ideal combination of resources that can ensure the facts reach the widest possible audience and stick. Unfortunately, it seems that the desperate times inherent in such situations of "cultural heritage in conflict" is the very reason behind the production and availability of such materials. Thus, the biggest kudos goes to those Syrian archaeologists and concerned citizens who are watching this happen and doing their best to do something about it.

Tragedy in Mali...

Tragic news coming out of the northern Malian city of Timbuktu (see here and here) throws debates about heritage preservation in times of war or political uncertainty into new light. It appears that members of the newly victorious Ansar Dine Islamic extremist group, who recently staged a coup in Bamako and have "taken over" much of the north, decided to begin to manually destroy several ancient historic period tombs and shrines in early June.

Most of the damaged mausoleums and tombs in question are connected to the Sufi tradition and the ancient Ghanian, Malian, and Songhai Empires that collectively produced a written history at least as old as the European Renaissance, as well as numerous smaller surface sites, all now threatened with potential looting. Ironically, the ancient Sufi responsible for constructing some of these monuments are of the very same orders that helped spread Islam into Africa in the first place.

The attacks have, and continue to be, roundly condemned by local, African Union, and international politicians and governments. Some observers wonder if the recent move by UNESCO to place Timbuktu on the endangered heritage list was a catalyst for the raiding, but one Prof. Shamil Jeppie is quoted as saying "that is meaningless to Ansar Dine; what is UNESCO to them?" I agree. Even though Timbuktu has been sacked before in ancient times (kinda like Baghdad), it's the speed, pace, and targeted destruction of modern warfare, or looting driven by fervor and ignorance, that's the real concern these days.

An additional worry here (like most of the rest of the world when antiquities trafficking gets connected to warfare and other illicit trades) is that, as time goes on, historic period artifacts and manuscripts will be looted or go missing from collections and end up on the black market. Now, those tracking the trade out of Africa will have to be extra vigilant... I wouldn't be surprised if fresh loot has already reached the storerooms of online dealers. Whether or not the continued actions of Ansar Dine are in the name of their concept of a "purified" Islam, or more related to attacks against Western supremacy and imposed ideas of heritage itself, the time to act is now. Once destroyed, they can not truly be replaced....