Howdy from Atlanta and ASOR 2015

Greetings all. Just a quick note to say I've arrived in Atlanta for the ASOR (American School of Oriental Research) 2015 conference! I will write a debriefing blog when I return to DC to share highlights of what I learned, as this will be my first foray into the Near Eastern archeology community. I will talk on Friday in the one and only bioarcheology panel (line-up visible in the PDF version of the program on the website).

I am really looking forward to that conference phenomenon of finally putting names to faces, presenting some highlights of my postdoctoral work, and seeing where to go from here in terms of future publication and collaboration.  And exploring the city and indulging in good BBQ. Etc. If you want to follow along on Twitter as I live Tweet what I attend, look for #ASOR15. Wish me luck, and catch you again when I do.

On the road from the SAAs

Just a quick check in from the road, the road that's led to San Francisco. This, the 80th Annual SAA conference, is proving to be just as exciting and hectic as I suspected. I have enjoyed staying with family, getting some opportunity to explore locations inside and outside of San Francisco proper, reunite with old friends and colleagues (if only in passing), and learn a fair amount.

My first talk is tomorrow, in the long-awaited illicit antiquities trade panel hosted by Dr. Donna Yates and featuring a number of leaders in the field. I will provide what I hope to be an informative update on the research that Prof. Chappell and I have been doing on the global online trade in human remains which we began in Huffer and Chappell 2014.

My second talk will introduce preliminary results of the isotopic work I've been doing on some Bronze Age Mongolian faunal remains, in the context of provious/ongoing studies of human remains from the numerous khirigsuurs (burial mounds), in light of Smithsonian Anthropology dept. colleague's larger efforts to understand the origins of pastoral nomadism on the Central Asian steppe. I look forward to meeting in person some individuals I only know from their published work, and hope I do the cause some sort of justice.

So, wish me luck and good tidings. Fun (if tiring) times had, and more to come!

The SAA Archaeological Record on "Archaeological Practice on Reality Television"

Many in the North American and global archaeological community are undoubtedly awaiting the upcoming Society for American Archaeology conference, to be held this year in San Francisco in three weeks time. If blessed with the proximity, time, and money on any given year, then attending a "mega" conference such as SAAs is a great (if tiring) opportunity to present one's work and learn from or meet experts covering just about every subfield and topic in archaeology imaginable. There's enough going on to fill three conferences and keep everyone moving; not to mention the after parties. This will be my third time, and I've always left glad that I attended and inspired.

While those of us pursuing an archaeological life via academic, museum or CRM (cultural resource management) avenues might prefer the intimacy of smaller, region or time specific conferences in which we're much more likely to have a comfortable home for our work, sometimes taking the plunge is necessary. There is no escaping the fact that it is conferences like the SAAs that have become the discipline and its active practitioner's key means of getting our work (and the realities of this life) out there en masse. Usually in a forum in which we the producers of that knowledge should have the most control.

However, sometimes events can be written about or portrayed on television in the name of archaeology that are very far removed from it, thus spurring outcry, anger and disgrace. So it was with pleasure that today, as the next conference approaches, I open my mailbox to find the latest edition of the SAA Archaeological Record magazine; full of eight intriguing articles specifically addressing archaeology and "reality TV."

Although I admit to not having read it cover to cover yet, I wanted to bring it to people's attention anyway (or those of you readers who aren't already SAA members). Covering such topics as the portrayal of archaeological practice on 'reality' TV, Time Team America: Archaeology as a gateway to science; creating a preservation ethic through 'reality' TV; the possibility of televised metal detecting as a force for public good, and, importantly, other outreach options beyond TV, this edition seems full of promise and is sure to inspire debate.

Blogging archaeology is becoming increasingly common (and has been  its own session at the SAAs for two years now). Many websites explain how participants can "hack" conferences, many of us engage in "live Tweeting," etc. All well and good and important to do as individuals to spread word of our own work and share our perspectives on the realities or controversies behind the headlines.

I would argue that in much of the world, television and movies still play the primary role in shaping public opinion and perception of us and our discipline. Since we can't change this, we have to keep working to steer it in directions we can rest easier with. It's a dilemma with no easy answer, so I look forward to seeing what the authors have to say on the subject. I know what I'll be reading on my Monday morning commute!

New human remains trade research in the SAA 2015 illicit antiquities panel

Its been awhile, so here's wishing everyone well! I am still brainstorming new ideas and directions for this blog in among the continued deluge of post-doctoral research and writing obligations, plus the added bonus of having family and future in-laws in town (tour guiding around DC...feeling like a local now). Life is good, but oh so hectic.

Therefore, this is just a quick place holder post to announce the excellent panel on illicit antiquities trade issues put together by Dr. Donna Yates for next year's Society for American Archaeology conference. San Francisco!! I am really looking forward to participating; working once again with my friend and mentor Prof. Duncan Chappell to present an update of the ongoing research into the online trade in human remains that we began with this paper and continued discussing here. Several new cases have come to light, and more undoubtedly will before April, thus providing new angles to explore, legal scenarios to examine, and further our ability to discus how better to achieve transparency. There promises to be plenty of pictures for sure.

The panel itself will be very hard hitting; covering diverse regions, numerous high-profile cases, grounded in comparative theory, and cutting-edge in focus. If you will be attending the conference (or will be in the San Fran area and want to crash the world's preeminent gathering of archaeologists), then come on by. More details of exact day, time, and place to come.

Suisse Incroyable!

Just a quick update from the middle of a very busy storm. Post-doc work is going well as I locate and continue to do preliminary recording and sampling of my skeletal assemblages. This sees me running between my office, two different collection locations, and the various labs at MCI, all the while dodging the very productive undergrad summer interns who've now arrived. I look forward to working with them and helping with at least one project.  

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!

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.