Hello!
Since it is my first ever post, it seems fitting to introduce myself and why I’m here. My name is Elicia Bates and I’m a junior at Fordham University in New York City. When people ask what my plans are after graduation, the details change but the end stays the same: work at a place that allows me to take all the things I’ve learned in my studies about culture and history and importance and use these to protect and preserve them. So I guess this is why I am here. As fascinating as it is to listen to my professors talk about Great Zimbabwe and Polynesian canoe crafting, there always seemed to be something missing.
In my first semester of freshman year, I took an ancient art history class with possibly one of the most interesting people I have ever met. In the last few classes of the semester, we started to address the issues of cultural patrimony, looting and destruction of sites. My initial save-the-world-college student reaction was a cross between “colonialism is still happening and won’t end until every piece of art is returned home” and “I will protect these myself if I have to.” However, my guerrilla instincts were quickly met with the reality of the complexities of the situation across the world. Some areas are simply too dangerous for archaeologists to enter in order to preserve the history, while other pieces suffer from ownership disputes that result in an unmoving work of art.
After this revelation, I came to another problem: how to visit a museum that proudly displays ancient artifacts. According to the Archaeological Institute of America, up to 85% of classical artifacts on the market do not have documented provenance. For private collections, this leads to incidents like what happened with the Greene family of Hobby Lobby who had to return over five hundred tiles that were discovered to be illegal. However, there are still implications for the museum world. Granted, the number of questioned artifacts is (hopefully) lower in museums, because they have to follow stricter protocols. But they cannot fully address each and every ancient artifact in the world to determine whether it was legally obtained. So it still poses the problem: how does one appreciate art and artifacts, while also being aware of the fact that at least some of it has dubious origins? On the one hand, you can see objects that were created literally thousands of years ago, maybe just to store wine. But on the other, there is a group of people somewhere in the world who’s ancient culture was taken from them for profit. Are we enabling the destruction of these sites by creating demand for artifacts, or are we making the best of the situation by at least appreciating it until it can be returned?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Is there a way to appreciate artifacts when there is a large chance that what you are looking at shouldn’t be there and to not be complicit?
Taken in front of the Temple of Dendur at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Elicia Bates
Latest posts by Elicia Bates (see all)
- In Pursuit of Progress - April 30, 2018
- Introductions and Thoughts: The Implications of Visiting Musuems - April 9, 2018